During a ministry that has now been involved in four different decades (Whew! Where has the time gone?!) one question has been asked of me more than any other. That question involves Bible translations and which one is the best to use. Most of the time it has taken this form: “Pastor, which Bible should I use?”
During the past few years the question has always made me smile inside as I remember a great story. It seems there were four pastors who were discussing the merits of the various translations of the Bible.
One liked the King James Version because of its simple, beautiful English. Another liked the New American Standard Version best because it is more literal and came nearer to the original Hebrew and Greek. Still another liked the Message paraphrase because of its up-to-date vocabulary.
The fourth minister was oddly silent for quite a while. When finally pressed to express his opinion, he replied, “I like my mother’s translation best.”
The others expressed surprise. They didn’t know that his mother had translated the Bible. But he said, “She translated it into life, every day of her life, and it was the most convincing translation I ever saw.”
Now that’s a translation any good pastor should be able to get behind!
Of course, I realize that is not what people mean when they ask me about translations. And I am not making light of the question. It is a good question to ask, and an important question in a time when there are so many various translations (not to mention study Bibles, formats, etc.) from which to choose.
For a great many years the only translation used in Bible-preaching churches on a regular basis was the venerable King James Version (KJV). Then, in the late 1970’s two main alternatives to the KJV came to the forefront of use in churches that took the Bible seriously. The New International Version (NIV) appeared in 1978. It is, hands down, the best-selling modern translation of the Bible. In fact, the NIV makes up about 30% of all Bible sales. The other is the New American Standard Bible (NASB), which I have used in my personal ministry for the last 24 years. Both translations have been used to spread the gospel, encourage and educate God’s people, and make disciples of Jesus Christ. But that does not mean that both translations have not had their problems.
The problem with the NASB is that, while being quite literal, it is not as readable as it might be. Even with its very helpful update in 1995, the NASB often uses English that is “stilted” for most users. And the NIV is really a type of paraphrase with so much unnecessary rewording and interpretation forced upon the text that an expositor of God’s Word has as much difficulty using it as they do the 400-year-old KJV! In other words, for most of the last 30 years Bible-preaching pastors have had to choose between the more readable, but less literal, NIV and the less readable, but more literal, NASB.
Now, if you have been reading carefully, you already know that I have always come down on the side of the NASB. After all, the most literal modern translation was the NASB, and I have desired for those under my ministry to use a Bible with the words as close to the original as possible. But I have also been aware that it is awkward and unnatural in its flow.
I am not writing this to bemoan these facts, quite the contrary in fact! What a great privilege has been ours to have the Bible in our own language and in a variety of translations! American Christians should lead the modern Church in Bible knowledge and appreciation because of this.
I am writing this because I believe there is now a very good alternative to the options that I have already mentioned. But, before I get to that, I really should lay some groundwork. After all, I would not be a very good pastor if I just told everyone what Bible I think they should use without establishing what makes a truly good translation of the Bible.
Please understand my list comes from a pastoral point of view. Certainly a list created by a theologian would consist of some other items. My own list would look different if it were for such an audience. However, when considering this question for Christians to use in their everyday lives, I believe these things are the essentials that make a good translation
- Honest and appropriate scholarship
- God-honoring philosophy of translation
- Readability for the average user
- Extensive usability
- Wide spread availability
Having provided a “list” of what to look for in a good translation it is probably wise to explain what I mean by each item in the list. Again, this is not exhaustive in scope by any means, but I trust it is helpful.
Honest and appropriate scholarship
This principle comes into play in a great variety of ways. First and foremost I mean by it that the translators should demonstrate a good sense of honesty with the text. In other words, there should be no agenda on the part of the translators other than providing as accurate a translation of the Word of God as possible. Recent years have seen a great number of new Bibles produced to “meet needs.” Sadly, this has often been a rationale used to develop so-called translations that are “gender neutral,” “politically correct” or “aligned with modern sensitivities.” These man-centered goals only serve to taint any Bible translation they inform. Honest scholarship will be free of any such driving motivation.
It is also desirable that the scholarship involved in a translation makes good use of all that God has allowed His Church to possess at this time in history. Specifically, I mean that a good translation of the Bible will take into account all the genuine families of manuscripts and ancient texts that are available.
From the eighteenth century until the present, scholars have devoted themselves strenuously to the study of the text, and many new manuscripts have come to light. Some New Testament manuscripts have been recovered which date from the third or fourth centuries A.D. A few scraps are even dated in the second century. In 1947 the world was electrified by the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls that provided Old Testament Hebrew manuscripts one thousand years older than any currently possessed. Any use of the text that ignores these wonderful discoveries is hardly honest or appropriate in its approach.
A final step in ascertaining whether or not the scholarship behind a Bible translation is worthy of consideration is knowing the identity of the translators. I don’t mean having a personal knowledge of the translation team, necessarily, but having the ability to know who was on the project and their credentials. Cults, such as the Jehovah’s Witnesses, have their own “translation” but the translators are a closely guarded mystery.
God-honoring philosophy of translation
There is no criterion in choosing a Bible more important than this! Some Bible versions (the NIV most notably) have followed a “thought-for-thought” rather than “word-for-word” translation philosophy. This has come to be known as emphasizing “dynamic equivalence” rather than an “essentially literal” meaning of the translated text. Obviously, such a “thought-for-thought” translation is more inclined to reflect the interpretive opinions of the translator and the influences of that translator’s culture. This is particularly problematic, as we believe that “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).
Taking this doctrine of inspiration as a starting point, it becomes clear that what is needed in translation is as close to a “word-for-word” approach as possible (there are always some difficulties going from one language to another). Currently, some are referring to this approach as an “essentially literal” translation. Such a work seeks as far as possible to capture the precise wording of the original text and the personal style of each Bible writer. That is a God-honoring proposition in coming to the Word of God.
This aspect in choosing a translation really cannot be stressed enough. Allow me to sum up the various reasons already mentioned or alluded to by listing four reasons to choose a more literal translation:
- Such a translation respects the original author’s way of writing and honors Scripture’s inspiration.
- Translators are fallible, and they may mislead the English reader if they use unnecessary paraphrases to bring out one possible meaning while even inadvertently concealing others.
- A more literal translation gives teachers of God’s Word more confidence that they can proclaim what the English text says with authority as it reflects what the original Greek or Hebrew text says.
- A more literal translation will preserve ambiguities that are really in the original, keeping open the possibility of new insight by future generations of Bible readers.
Readability for the average user
This is what most people look for first! And I certainly understand why. God’s Word is important and those who invest their time (wisely) in its reading desire to get as much out of their reading as possible. So, it stands to reason that a Bible that is readable is a great help.
However, it is important that we understand the difference between readability and “easy to read.” While there is a relationship between the two, there are also some differences that can be crucial. Some translations, in an effort to be easy to read, have taken key theological expressions and have, for lack of a better term, “dumbed them down.” I will not fault their desire to create something useable, but there are some concepts in God’s great redemptive plan that cannot be altered and still retain their truth.
Accordingly, a good Bible will retain certain theological terminology–words such as faith, grace, justification, propitiation, redemption, sanctification, regeneration, and reconciliation–because of their central importance for Christian doctrine.
There is a further principle at stake. Too often we are guilty of lowering the bar at every opportunity instead of realizing that some things are worth laboring to obtain. Hebrews 5:14 reminds us that, “solid food is for the mature, for those who have their powers of discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.” Certainly a good translation of God’s Word will assist the believer who desires to be trained rightly.
Extensive usability
As I mentioned earlier, my choice of a Bible translation is often informed by how well it may be used in preaching. However, I realize that there are a great number of other right uses of Scripture, and a good translation is one that will fit well into a variety of uses. It should be one that is easy from which to read in public (for both individuals and for the congregation). The translation should work well in a Bible study situation where it will be discussed by a wide variety of people. In counseling it will not need to have its wording explained before the meaning of the passages used become clear. I believe it is best if it can be readily used and understood by a good cross section of ages within a church body. All of these situations (and others) are enhanced by a good translation of the Bible.
Wide spread availability
Finally, I think a Bible needs to be obtainable. It does very little good to produce a great translation of Scripture is no one is able to get a hold of a copy! Believe it or not, that has actually been a problem with some translations when they first are released to the public. In our market-driven, retail-saturated society such a thing hardly seems possible, but it has been known to get in the way of a good translation being readily accepted.
So, there you have this pastor’s list of things to look for in choosing a good translation of God’s wonderful Word. Again, there are many other things I could mention, but these five should suffice to keep a person on a safe path when selecting a Bible.
For several centuries men have been translating the original Scriptures (Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek) into their native language. Each time a translation is produced there is the hope that it will be perfect. Of course, it never is; because translations, unlike the original writings, are the productions of fallible men. There will be some degree of skewed interpretation woven into the fabric of any Bible version. Admittedly, though, some translations are better than others. That is why the NIV and the NASB discussed earlier have had such wide acceptance. And yet, as also discussed earlier, both of those versions carry their own difficulties.
Well, we live in a wonderful time to be an English speaking person! No longer is the church limited to those choices (or any of the several lesser choices that have been around for years). In the autumn of 2001, a new English translation made its emergence known. Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers (Wheaton, IL) introduced the English Standard Version (ESV). I was privileged to obtain a very early copy of it and began the process of doing my own evaluation of its contents. About six months ago I began using the ESV in some of my pastoral counseling. Then, this spring, I used the text for a brief sermon series in 2 Corinthians 4. What I have discovered, to my delight, is that the ESV is far more literal than the NIV, and definitely more readable than the NASB. In other words, it provides a better balance of literalness and readability than any other English translation of which I am aware.
I do not think that it is a perfect translation, nor do I claim that the ESV is without its own level of “paraphrasing.” Some will always be necessary when going from one language to another. However, having looked at this translation for almost two years, and applying the five tests we have discussed (among others), I am ready to begin using the ESV full-time in the ministries of Elim Baptist Church. My desire is to see this worthy Bible become the standard among our congregation for personal Bible reading, study, memorization and witnessing, as well as our public uses of Scripture.
Hopefully, I am not coming across as a Bible salesman! I have no endorsement contract, nor do I receive a “kickback” for every ESV that the people of Elim Baptist Church obtain. But there are several reasons why I appreciate this translation and want to recommend it to everyone who has read this far! Let me briefly state some of these reasons for you (in no particular order).
I loved the translation team’s sense of history. The very first paragraph of the translation’s Preface demonstrates that historical awareness.
” ‘This Book [is] the most valuable thing that this world affords. Here is Wisdom; this is the royal Law; these are the lively Oracles of God.’ With these words the Moderator of the Church of Scotland hands a Bible to the new monarch in Britain’s coronation service. These words echo the King James Bible translators, who wrote in 1611: ‘God’s sacred Word…is that inestimable treasure that excelleth all the riches of the earth.’ This assessment of the Bible is the motivating force behind the publication of the English Standard Version.”
Not only can you obtain a list of people who worked on the translation team, but you can also find out every person who labored with them in an advisory capacity! It is available on a website. Additionally, I know a few of the men on the team personally, and rejoice that they have been allowed to be a part of such a noble task.
Also on the website is a complete explanation of the Translation Philosophy used in creating the ESV. It is very good reading (if you have a little while), and it thrills my heart to read words such as “the ESV seeks as far as possible to capture the precise wording of the original text and personal style of each Bible writer.”
One of the great problems in our day has been the influence of feminism and political correctness on certain Bible translations. The ESV team addresses this situation head-on in the following paragraph from their Philosophy:
“In the area of gender language, the goal of the ESV is to render literally what is in the original. For example, ‘anyone’ replaces ‘any man’ where there is no word corresponding to ‘man’ in the original languages, and ‘people’ rather than ‘men’ is regularly used where the original languages refer to both men and women. But the words ‘man’ and ‘men’ are retained where a male meaning component is part of the original Greek or Hebrew. The inclusive use of the generic ‘he’ has also regularly been retained, because this is consistent with similar usage in the original languages and because an essentially literal translation would be impossible without it. Similarly, where God and man are compared or contrasted in the original, the ESV retains the generic use of ‘man’ as the clearest way to express the contrast within the framework of essentially literal translation. In each case the objective has been transparency to the original text, allowing the reader to understand the original on its own terms rather than on the terms of our present-day culture.”
This pastor’s response? Wahooo!!
Another aspect I treasure is in regard to the footnotes that accompany the ESV text. They are an easy-to-use and integral part of the ESV translation. They inform the reader of textual variations and difficulties, as well as showing how the ESV translation team has resolved these. That is just a great help to those who truly want to get into the study of their Bible.
Well, I am certain by now you understand that I am excited by and about this new translation of God’s Word. There is one other reason for this excitement. Now I know exactly how I want to answer when someone says, “Pastor, which Bible should I use?”
Posted on September 1st, 2007 by Pastor Larry
Filed under: Pastor's Occasional Papers
