Which Bible Translation?
Bob Rakestraw
“The Benediction
Project”
Until Jesus returns, Christians will continue to make new
translations, versions, revisions and editions of the Bible. (For the purposes
of this essay I am using these terms more or less interchangeably, even though
they have different meanings in academic studies.) On the one hand this is a
good thing, in that it shows the great interest in and respect for the Bible.
It also may indicate (and I hope it does) that those responsible for these new
versions believe that as language changes and recent archaeological discoveries
cast new light on the ancient biblical manuscripts and languages, we should be
reading, studying and meditating in the most accurate Bible in our language.
On the other hand, since the Bible is the best-selling book of all time, many publishers—religious and otherwise—want a piece of the financial pie regardless of the message of the Bible. There are other motives as well for producing a new version, not the least of which are ideologies and agendas (such as how to render faithfully the original languages with respect to both male and female readers), and commitment to certain translation principles (such as literal, paraphrase or somewhere in the middle).
Every Bible version worthy of its name should have as its
overarching goal the honoring of God. Second to that should be the producing of
a Bible that is as faithful as is humanly possible to the intentions of the
original writers as these may be discerned by careful study today.
Not every Bible version on the bookstore shelves or online
sites needs to be in your personal book collection, no matter how “essential”
or “indispensable” its promoters say it is. Such a requirement would take a
good chunk of our income regularly and probably force us to build or buy more
bookshelves. I’d rather have one or two excellent translations than eight or
ten that are not of the highest quality.
Before I go on, however, I want to put your (possibly
troubled) mind at ease. Whichever Bible version you have been using, in
whatever language, as long as it was produced with God-honoring intentions, you
will not be led astray if you are searching sincerely for God’s truth. The Lord
said in the book of Jeremiah, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me
with all your heart” (29:13).
Throughout the millennia, God’s people all over the world
have yearned for the Bible in their own language, since most people on earth do
not know the Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek in which the Bible was written. Many
hundreds of translations, therefore, have been made in many (I hope all, very
soon) languages, to meet this longing for God’s word. Some of these
translations were not well done by today’s scholarly criteria. Yet multitudes
have read them and have come to salvation through the Christ presented in their
pages. And they have learned how to live the life of the Spirit as God intends.
For example, the Bible of the early church for most
Christians was the Septuagint, a translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into
Greek that is, except for the Pentateuch, not a high-quality piece of
workmanship. As an illustration, the writings of the prophets are often
rendered in paraphrase (a free-flowing departure from the original in order to
make the meaning more clear, yet which often changes the original intention of
the writer). Yet this was the Bible Jesus used when he referred to the
scriptures in Greek, and this is the main Bible the Spirit of God used to “turn
the world upside down” through his followers!
It is far more important to read and meditate in the one
not-so-great Bible translation you may possess, with a heart open to hear and
follow all of God’s truth, than to have a half-dozen excellent translations you
never use or which you use only for intellectual pursuits. Ideally we will have
both: an excellent Bible translation and a heart and mind yearning for God and
his truth.
To conclude this much-too-brief introductory piece I want to
mention the versions that I recommend and use most. My favorite by far is the
New International Version, copyright 2011. I highly recommend the 2011 edition
because it is a significant improvement over the earlier editions of the NIV.
The same is true for a study Bible: the best is the NIV Study Bible, 2011
edition. I intend, as far as I know now, to use this study Bible as my main
Bible for the rest of my life. I know two of the three editors well, and think
highly of them and the third editor. You will always benefit by consulting this
version, as well as the Study Bible notes (over 20,000 of them), even if you do
not use this version as your preferred one.
Two other versions that I recommend are The New Revised
Standard Version (a very accurate, reasonably literal translation) and the New
Living Translation (also accurate and very readable, but using paraphrase
more). If you use the NIV Study Bible (2011) and the NRSV (latest edition) for
studious work, and the NLT (latest edition) for situations when an
easier-to-read translation is preferred, you will likely do well for years to
come.
There are many other worthwhile Bible versions and study
Bibles on the market, and I think it is good for you to become familiar with as
many of them as possible. But do not feel compelled to purchase every new,
“must-have,” Bible version that comes on the market. There will probably be a
new “indispensable” version within the next few years! We do not need more
Bible versions, especially in the English speaking world. Revisions, of course,
are beneficial as language changes, but the many millions of dollars spent
every year to produce and advertise new Bible versions in English would be much
better used to support the translation and distribution of God’s word where
little or no Bible exists in the language of the people.
And remember always that our trust in and obedience to the
scriptures is far more important than certain details of translation that do
not affect the overall meaning of a text. May the grace of God be with you!
