Although I sample and use many versions when writing, I tend to use three versions more than others: The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), the New Living Translation (NLT), and The Message. So, you see, selecting Bible translations is a complicated subject. As examples, the Holman Christian Standard Bible is translated by 90 scholars, but primarily all Baptists the Living Bible was translated by only one person. The university, organization, or mind-set that the writer represents plays a part in “which way they lean,” such as their ideological intent. One must also know who is the translator. It also matters from which manuscripts or texts the translations were made - the original languages of Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic, or translations thereof, or from earlier English or modern translations, or from some recovered texts, etc. To get a point across by explaining ‘in other words’ or ‘another way of explanation’ I will use a paraphrase version like the The Message, or the Living Bible (LB), both with a 6 th grade reading level. For greater accuracy in meaning, I sometimes choose from the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), the New King James Version (NKJV), or the English Standard Version (ESV) which use a formal or a dynamic equivalence, all with an 11 th or 12 th grade reading level. To new students and young adults, I sometimes use the New International Version (NIV) or New Living Translation (NLT), because they use a balanced combination of formal and dynamic equivalence, with an 8 th grade reading level. I will pick a formal version to give an exact meaning, a dynamic version to give a general interpretation, or a paraphrase to give an ‘in other words’ meaning to a concept. When writing an article or essay, this author tries to determine which is best needed to relate to the audience. So when you wish to use another translation, keep in mind what type you want formal, dynamic, or paraphrase. Many translations are hybrids (or balanced) works combining different approaches. The common categories 1 are: (1) the formal (or verbal/word-for-word) translation which tends to emphasize what a word literally means in modern English, but not all there is to know about it, (2) the dynamic (or free) translation which tends to emphasize a more natural interpretation with less literal accuracy, and (3) the paraphrase translation which is a restatement of the original text, reproducing the meaning in a different form that gives the same general impression. There are a variety of approaches to Bible translations. For a beginning Bible Student, I would suggest looking at both the New International Version and The Living Translation. Generally I reply that they should examine two or three popular versions and choose the one with which they are most comfortable. I have also been asked, many times, which Bible version I would recommend. Even English words have changed over the last few hundred years, so it is a difficult and labor-intensive project to produce modern Bible translations. Many ancient words and their meanings have changed over the thousands of years and some words just don’t translate into any English words, at all. But unless you are an ancient languages expert with a lot of time on your hands, you probably want a translation.Īll the different English versions are dependant upon how they were translated. My answer is that there is only one accurate Holy Bible and that is what is written in the original ancient languages of Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. I have been asked, many times, which Bible is the most accurate. This information includes the publisher and the year of publication. When you see a notation after a scripture, such as NIV, NRSV, EVS, REB, and so forth, you can look-up these notations to see the full name of the Bible version or translation the scripture came from. It is not complete by any means, but is a list of most of the English language Bibles used on The Outlaw Bible Student web site. This feature is the ‘Bible Versions Chart’ which lists the translations used in our articles and posts. There is a new feature listed in the main menu bar at the top of all pages.
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