BIBLE VERSIONS

WITH SO MANY VERSIONS OF THE BIBLE AVAILABLE, HOW DO | KNOW WHICH ONE TO CHOOSE? WHICH IS THE RIGHT OR BEST ONE?

Many asked this question; ‘Which version of the Bible is the best?’

UNDERSTANDING THE METHODS OF TRANSLATION

Formal Equivalence

In order to choose a version of the Bible, it helps to under-stand that there are three basic approaches to translating the Bible. The first is called formal equivalence. This translation is done “word for word” or is literal in its approach. A good example of formal equivalence is the New American Standard Bible (which I think is a great, literal translation). However, since the Bible was written in ancient Hebrew, Aramaic, and Koine Greek, this approach sometimes produces a clunky (awkward), less readable translation that doesn’t always fully capture the meaning of ancient idioms or translate ancient syntax into modern sentences. Galatians 2:4 is an example of this: “But it was because of the false brethren secretly brought in, who had sneaked in to spy out our liberty which we have in Christ Jesus, in order to bring us into bondage.” We almost need a roadmap to follow the thought of the apostle Paul here in the NASB.

Dynamic Equivalence

The second approach to Bible translation is called dynamic equivalence. This method translates “thought for thought” and some popular examples of this would be the New Living Translation and the New International Version; both are very helpful translations. This method tries to bring the idioms and figures of speech into modern language, with an emphasis on making the text of Scripture clear and readable. The weakness is that sometimes these kinds of translations can take liberties with thoughts. This method of translating the text can become so interpretive that it may not always completely reflect the biblical author's true intention or become so interpretive that it leaves out other options for possible interpretation. An ex-ample of this is in Romans 1:5, a verse that uses the phrase “the obedience of faith.” But the NIV translates it “the obedience that comes from faith”—a valid interpretation but not the only possibility. Alternatively, the phrase can mean “the obedience that is faith,’ meaning obedience to God’s command requires trust in Him. The problem is that many readers of Scripture would prefer the literal translation so they can determine the meaning for themselves.

Optimal Equivalence

There is a third method of translation that tries to strike a middle road between formal and dynamic equivalence. Some have called this method optimal equivalence. Some examples of this method include the original Holman Christian Standard Bible, the Messianic Bible version called the Tree of Life Bible, and the English Standard Version. These translations tend to be more readable than a formal equivalence version, using English style and adapting idioms. Nevertheless, this method still allows some room for readers to interpret the meaning of the text since they’re reading a more literal translation of a passage than the dynamic equivalent version. Here’s how Galatians 2:4, the verse that was so wooden in the NASB, reads in the CSB: “This matter arose because some false brothers had infiltrated our ranks to spy on the freedom we have in Christ Jesus in order to enslave us.” It’s a much smoother read and therefore, easier to understand.

CHOOSING THE BEST TRANSLATION

So, which version should you read? All of these methods of translation are valuable, and we should definitely read them all. For deep study, it is suggested to use a formal equivalence translation like the New American Standard Bible. Many read this all the time, but it may be more helpful when doing an in-depth study because it gives the most literal rendering of the text. For times when we want to read quickly, covering a huge portion of Scripture, we will turn to a dynamic equivalence version like the New Living Translation or the New International Version. But for our regular daily reading of Scripture, we often love the middle choice. The combined approach (optimal equivalence) to be most helpful most of the time. That’s why most choose the original Holman Christian Standard Bible for regular reading of Scripture. (Note that when the original Holman Christian Standard Bible version was revised into the Christian Standard Bible, it only changed 10 percent of the text, but it changed some of my minor preferences, like using the word “languages” (HCSB) for “tongues” (CSB) or “Messiah” (HCSB) for “Christ” (CSB). The new version is good but many still prefer the original.)

CAUTIONS FOR CHOOSING A BIBLE TRANSLATION

The King James Version

Here are three cautions for choosing the best Bible translation. First, be careful not to consider the King James Version as the only legitimate Bible translation. The KJV was a great English translation into the common English spoken in seventeenth-century England. It also used the best biblical manuscripts available at the time. We should all be grateful for this beautiful and accurate translation. But, in the last 400 years, the English language has changed dramatically, making it hard to understand the archaic usages found in the KJV. For example, the KJV uses a word like “conversation” when it actually means “conduct” or the word “suffer” when it really means “permit.”

A more serious problem with the KJV is that we know so much more today about the original manuscripts of Scripture than was known in 1611. Many of the manuscripts available today were not even known when King James sat on the throne of England. In fact, the New Testament of the KJV is based on the Greek text of the New Testament produced by Desiderius Erasmus (1469-1536). He used several Greek manuscripts, none of which contained the entire New Testament or were earlier than the twelfth century. Moreover, they were all from one family of manuscripts from the same geographical area. Since then, many more Greek manuscripts have been found going back to a much earlier date, including some papyri dating from as early as the second century, from a variety of geographical locations. Although none of the textual differences found in the KJV affect any doctrinal or ethical teaching of Scripture, it is best to use a Greek text of the New Testament that makes use of the earliest and best Greek text types.

The KJV Old Testament is based on the Masoretic Text (a Hebrew text preserved by Rabbinic Judaism which is based on the earliest extant complete Hebrew manuscripts of the Old Testament) which was certainly the best available. However, in 1896 many Hebrew texts were found in the Cairo Genizah (a burial or storage place for Scripture in an ancient synagogue).

Also, in 1947, the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, biblical texts and fragments found at a place called Qumran in the Judean wilderness, provided a deeper understanding of the original Hebrew text. These Hebrew fragments and texts date from 150 BC to AD 70 and contain at least parts of every Old Testament book but Esther. One scroll of the complete book of Isaiah is from the first century BC and is virtually identical to the Masoretic text that is dated one thousand years later. Although modern Bible translations still rely on the Masoretic Text, the more recent discoveries of these ancient scrolls and fragments in Egypt and Israel refine our understanding of the original Hebrew Bible. Unfortunately, when the KJV was produced, the translators did not have access to these early manuscripts.

While the KJV is a beautiful and good translation, we must not assume it is the best or only true version. Modern translations are more accurate because they are based on the earliest and best manuscripts of the Bible.

Translations with a Theological Agenda

A second warning is that we should be careful not to use a translation with a theological agenda. An example would be the New World Translation, which tries to justify the theological errors of the Jehovah's Witnesses. While these specialized versions may translate some parts of Scripture accurately, in many passages their translation is flat out wrong. The New World Translation seeks to justify Jehovah’s Witness false doctrine and so the translation corrupts the truth found in Scripture. One example from the Old Testament is Exodus 3:14: “God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM’; and He said, ‘Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.” But the New World Translation takes the phrase as “I Will Become What I Choose to Become.” And added, “This is what you are to say to the Israelites, ‘I Will Become has sent me to you.” This incorrect translation leads to a wrong understanding of Jesus’ words in John 8:58: “Before Abraham was born, I am.”

Another example is from the New Testament. In John 1:1, we read, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Since Jesus is the Living Word made flesh (cf. John 1:14), the first verse in John’s gospel is declaring that Jesus is God. To avoid affirming the full deity of the Lord Jesus, the New World Translation instead trans-lates the passage as, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god.” Since Jehovah's Witnesses do not believe that the Lord Jesus is fully God, they mistranslate these and many other verses that teach the Trinity or the deity of the Lord Jesus.

Idiosyncratic Translations

Finally, we should be wary of idiosyncratic translations— versions that reflect the views of just one person rather than a translation team. Examples of these would be Eugene Peterson’s The Message, or J. B. Phillips’ The New Testament in Modern English or David Stern’s Complete Jewish Bible. These may be helpful in our devotional readings, but we should be mindful that they really only reflect one person's perspective.

They don't have the safeguard of multiple translators checking each other’s work. In a sense, they’re just one person's interpretation of the text of Scripture and not really a thorough translation.

So although they may be helpful for personal reading or study, we should view these idiosyncratic translations as personal interpretations of Scripture.

FINAL THOUGHTS

The most important issue in choosing the best translation for you is to find one that you can understand and that you will actually read. Always choose “The one that you'll actually read, study, and apply.”