Bible Translations

There is only ONE Bible: The Old Testament was written in Hebrew. The New Testament was written in Greek. Both the Old and New Testaments contain passages written in Aramaic. Most of us do not read Greek and Hebrew, so we must rely on Bible Translations. When translating from the original language into English, there are several approaches. Popular English Bible translations are generally categorized by their approach to translating original languages, ranging from word-for-word literal (like the ASB, ESV) to thought-for-thought functional (like NIV, NLT). Popular transitions are handled by a team of scholars, while some translations are done by a single person. like: J.N. Darby’s translation (similar to KJV), and Eugene Peterson’s The Message (contemporary paraphrase). There are unique translations, like The Amplified Bible (AMP), an English-language translation of the Bible. "Amplifications" are words or phrases intended to more fully bring out the meaning of the original text, but distinguished from the translation itself by a unique system of brackets, parentheses, and italics. See the love page for how love is translated.

Types of translations:

• Word-for-word literal: 1) Pro: a verbatim approach replacing each source word with its target language equivalent. 2) Con: Some words cannot be translated with just one word, as English may not have the correct word. Also, ignoring context for a direct, word-for-word translation.

• Thought-for-thought 1) Pro: Reads more like modern English, in which the translator tries to give the original writer's idea. More readability 2) Con: Higher risk of translator bias, loss of nuances in the original wording.

• General: Some cultural terms and humor do not translate directly.

• The King James Version was written in 1611 in William Shakespeare's English. While not a bad translation, the language has changed, and this is not useful. To fix this problem, the New King James Version was made. This is an OK translation, but modern translations are usually somewhat better. The New King James Version addresses some of these problems, but retains others, such as retaining the Latin word "firmament" in the text.

• With all that said, the Bible's key doctrines are clearly taught in all translations, see the Creeds page

  The primary reason for so many translations is that the Old Testament poses a problem. The original language is Hebrew except for chapters 2–7 in the book of Daniel, which is in Aramaic. In Biblical Hebrew, if one omits the names of people and geographical place names, has a vocabulary size of only about 3,000 words. The translation situation is easier for the New Testament, but only somewhat easier. The original language for the New Testament is Koine Greek. The number of Koine Greek words used in the New Testament is less than 6,000.

  Study tool:

1) Bible Gateway (many translations) https://www.biblegateway.com

The BibleGateway.com website grants full access at no charge to 55 different English translations of the Bible.

2) Blue Letter Bible (many translations, plus free Strong's concordance and dictionary (on some translations) https://www.blueletterbible.org/

Strong's concordance and dictionary assigns a number to each word found in the Greek and Hebrew Bibles. One can then look up the definition of the word and an outline of Biblical usage.

3) Verse of the Day and Bible reading plans

4) Study Bibles: Pro: Study Bibles are good at helping understand the text. Con: Some Study Bibles have the writer's bias added: Young Earth Christians (6,000-year earth) will place their view (non-Biblical) into the notes. Dispensationalists (gifts, miracles, and Israel have all ended) will add their thoughts (non-Biblical) into the notes.

______________

A few highlighted translation problems:

Gen 1:1: " heaven and earth": Biblical Hebrew has no word for universe, so Biblical Hebrew always uses the phrase "heaven and earth" to describe the entire universe: all space, time, energy, and matter. This includes the Sun, and moon, which are not created later.

Gen 1:2: "Now the earth was formless (wasteland, empty) and empty (void), darkness was over the surface of the deep (primeval ocean), and the Spirit of God was hovering (to brood as a mother bird would over her chicks, same Deut 32:1) over the waters."

"hovering " or "moving" is not the best word to use, as the other time this word (rāḥap̄) is used, it is for an eagle caring for its young. Thus, "hovering " or "moving" does not communicate any of the idea that the Spirit of God is caring for something in the ocean! The Amplified Bible adds the word brooding, to help understand what is going on here. Deut 32:1 "like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them aloft." So why is this important? The Record of Nature, that we now know, states that the early ocean had life in, it just as the Bible stated 3,500 years ago! As soon as the early oceans cooled, life appeared. Not just life but a very complex life, cyanobacterium (also called blue-green algae). It is very important that life starts early on Earth, as cyanobacteria have oxygenic photosynthesis that produces the oxygen needed for advanced life (currently at 21%).

Frame of reference, sun made when? : Gen 1:2 is also very important, as it sets the frame of reference for the rest of Gen 1. This is not a translation problem, but a reader's error. If you fail to set the frame of reference. If one fail to set the frame of reference, the Gen 1 "looks" as if it contradicts the Record of Nature. The point of view for the rest of Gen 1 is one over the surface of Earth's oceans, not one in outer space looking to Earth. Some claim that the Bible teaches that the Sun is made on the 4th day of creation. While light was created on the first day. The Bible does NOT teach this. 1) The Bible already states the sun was made on day 1 " heaven and earth": 2) The text says "Let there be lights"; the word "create" is not there, do not add or change the Bible. So why was it dark on earth, if there was a sun? Genesis is NOT the only Biblical creation account; the Book of Job is just as old as Genesis! The book of Job tells us why it was dark on early earth, and it was not for lack of a created sun as some falsely claim! Job 38:9 "when I made the clouds its (earth) garment and wrapped it (earth) in thick darkness." It was dark due to thick clouds. We now know this is about oxygen levels. With low oxygen on Earth, one cannot see the sun or the night sky. As oxygen levels went up, the air went from dark to translucent to clear, just as the Bible describes.

• “Let there be light”: On day one, the opaque atmosphere became translucent, just clear enough to allow the passage of light. However, an Earth-bound observer would not, at this point, have seen the sources of this light. (hāyâ—the Hebrew verb used in the phrase “Let there be light”—does not indicate that light came into existence for the first time on day one.)

• The Sun appears: Finally, on day four, the atmosphere cleared enough to become transparent, allowing an earth observer to see the sources of both daytime and nighttime light. The Hebrew verb used in Genesis 1:16 (‘āśâ) indicates the Sun, Moon, and stars had actually been created prior to day four.

Genesis 1:7 is about God starting the water cycle, water above (clouds, and atmospheric sky) and water below (ocean).

Good transitions: Genesis 1:7 Amplified Bible : "and God made the expanse [of sky] and separated the waters which were under the expanse from the waters which were above the expanse; and it was so [just as He commanded]."

Bad transitions: Genesis 1:7 NIV: "So God made the vault and separated the water under the vault from the water above it. And it was so." (There is NO Vault in the sky, this is not what the Bible says!)

Good Genesis 1:7 The Message: God spoke: “Sky! In the middle of the waters; separate water from water!” God made sky. He separated the water under sky from the water above sky."

Very Bad Genesis 1:7 KJV and NKJV: "Thus God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament; and it was so." (There is NO firmament, in the Bible! firmament is a carryover from the Latin firmamentum of the Vulgate. Why is a Latin word in an English Bible?)

Whole-Bible theories have arisen from the single word "firmament" (and "vault"), without then looking up what this verse is talking about. Claims God made some special place to store lots of water (that is nowhere in the text and it is clearly added to the Bible!) Some, often non-believers, claim this teaches "a solid, dome-shaped vault", it does not; this is Near Eastern cosmology, not in the Bible; it never taught this.

Ref:

Brian Thomas, “Study: Star Formation Is Virtually Finished

Rolf Güsten et al., “Astrophysical Detection of the Helium Hydride Ion HeH+,” Nature 568 (April 17, 2019): 357–359, doi:10.1038/s41586-019-1090-x; Hugh Ross, “Helium Hydride Detection Affirms Big Bang Creation Model,”

Davis Young, Christianity and the Age of the Earth (Zondervan, 1982), 135-148. His section on pages 141-142 is entitled, “Modern geology rejects substantive uniformitarianism.” Compare also Livingstone, Darwin’s Forgotten

C. John Collins, “Reading Genesis 1:1B2:3 as an act of communication: Discourse analysis and literal interpretation,” in Joseph Pipa, Jr. and David Hall, eds., Did God create in six days?, Southern Presbyterian Press and Kuyper Institute, 1999.

Antony Flew and Roy Abraham Varghese, There Is a God (San Francisco: HarperOne, 2007); Antony Flew and Gary Habermas, “My Pilgrimage from Atheism to Theism: A Discussion Between Antony Flew and Gary Habermas,” Philosophia Christi, vol. 6, no. 2 (2004): 197–211.

• Fang Li Zhi and Li Shu Xian, Creation of the Universe (Singapore: World Scientific, 1989): 173.

• Edward Harrison, Masks of the Universe (New York: Collier Books, Macmillan, 1985): 252.

• The Belgic Confession, in Ecumenical Creeds and Reformed Confessions (Grand Rapids: CRC Publications, 1988): 79.

• International

• Walton, The Lost World of Genesis One: 56–58, 94–95.

• An excellent decription of the founding, history, and achievements of the International Council on Biblical Inerrancy is provided at https://www.churchcouncil.org/1-biblical-inerrancy-chicago-statement-on-biblical-inerrancy.html (accessed 6/22/12) Council of Biblical Inerrancy (ICBI)/The Chicago Statement on Biblical Hermeneutics (Articles 19-22), https://www.churchcouncil.org/2-biblical-hermeneutics-chicago-statement-on-biblical-hermeneutics.html.

• The four literal definitions of yôm are (1) part of the daylight hours; (2) all of the dalight hours; (3) a 24-hour period; and (4) a long but finite period of time.