How we got the Bible (Translations)

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How we got the Bible – Part 4

Translation into Secondary Languages 
  1. Introduction:
    1. Recalled that the study of “How We Got the Bible” can be summarized into four areas: -

·        Inspiration - This area deals with what God did, namely, “breathing out” the Scriptures (II Timothy 3:16). Inspiration is what gives the Bible its authority.

 ·        Canonization - This area deals with how the inspired books of God came to be recognized as Holy Scripture. ·        Transmission - Transmission deals with how the original autographa of the Bible were copied and whether the copies accurately reflect the original (textual criticism). ·        Translation – This deals with the translation of the Bible into other languages and whether the Bible in our language accurately reflects what the manuscripts said.
  1.  
    1. The outcome of textual criticism is a Hebrew or Greek text that accurately reflects what was written in the original autographa. A number of these texts are used today as the basis for translation into English or other secondary languages.
    2. Some of the more recognized products resulting from modern textual criticism include:

·        The Wescott & Hort Greek New Testament

·        Eberhard Nestle Greek New Testament·        United Bible Society (UBS) Greek Text, 4th Edition (1994)·        Nestle-Aland, Novum Testamentum Graece, 27th Edition (1993) 

 

  1. Brief History of the English Translations
    1. Earliest Attempts:

·        Aldhelm (639-709) – He was a monk who was able to write and speak Greek, was fluent in Latin and able to read the Old Testament in Hebrew. He translated small portions of the Scriptures into English.

·         Venerable Bede (673-735) - a Benedictine monk who translated the Gospel of John.·        Ælfric (955-1010) – Abbott of Eynsham – translated many parts of the New Testament into English.
  1.  
    1. John Wycliffe (1320 – 1384):

·         Wycliffe believed that the Bible ought to be the common possession of all Christians, and needed to be made available for common use in the language of the people. He is the first person to make an English translation of the Bible. He used the Latin Vulgate to do this.

·         Due to his constant teaching against the Roman Church he was declared a “stiff-necked heretic and under the ban of the Church.” All his books were ordered to be burned!  
  1.  
    1. William Tyndale (1494 – 1536):

·         He produced the first English translation from Hebrew and Greek texts, and to take advantage of the new medium of print, allowing for its wide distribution.

·         In 1535 Tyndale was arrested, jailed for more than a year, tried for heresy and treason and then strangled and burnt at the stake for producing this Bible.·         Much of Tyndale's work eventually found its way into the 1611 King James Version.
  1.  
    1. Other Historical English Bibles:

·         Myles Coverdale Bible (1535) – First completed printed English Bible that was circulated without hindrance.

·         Matthew Bible (1537) – produced using the Tyndale & Coverdale texts and eventually declared as the official English Bible – Also called “The Great Bible”.·        Taverner’s Bible (1539)·        Geneva Bible (1560) – Was also called “The Family Bible” and was the most popular Bible prior to the King James Version. It was not liked by the English Church due to its commentary which reflected the teachings of John Calvin and other Reformers.·         Bishop’s Bible (1568/1572) – The 1572 revised edition was prescribed as the base text for the 1611 King James Version. It was basically the “Great Bible” with a Church approved commentary.·         Rheims-Douai Bible (1582) – A Roman Catholic English translation from the Latin Vulgate with extensive commentary reflecting the views of the Roman Church.
  1.  
    1. The King James Version

·         Translated by 47 scholars working in 6 committees based in 3 universities. Of these 46 were ordained priests - some were puritan sympathizers - striving for impartial text rendering.

·         Work started in 1604 until its publication in 1611 as a compromise between the Bishop’s Bible and the Geneva Bible. The Bishop’s Bible was used as a guide.·         Many changes have occurred over time to the 1611 version. In 1613 a 2nd edition was published with over 400 changes to the original. The KJV of today is not the same as 1611. 
  1. The Rationale for Modern Translations
    1. God has preserved His Word for us in it original languages. However most people cannot read those languages and therefore need translated works.
    2. There is a debate regarding the use of other translations besides the more popular King James Version. The heart of the debate is the accuracy of the manuscripts from which the translations are made. The KJV used Erasmas’s Testus Receptus which was based on six manuscripts which were not older than the 10th century.
    3. The authority of God’s Word does not lie in any particular translation of the Bible but rather in the accurate copies of the original autographa. There are many important manuscripts that are nearer to the original autographa that are available today but were not available in 1611 e.g. Codex Vaticanus, Codex Sinaiticus and the Dead Sea Scrolls.
    4. Some in the KJV only camp claimed that the KJV “preserves the original Greek text better than does any other version.” Doubts are now cast on this claim due to the newer manuscript discoveries.
 
  1. Translation Philosophies
    1. There are two basic translation philosophies:

·         Word for word equivalence – In this philosophy each Greek or Hebrew word is translated individually into its English equivalent.

·         Dynamic Equivalence – Also called “thought for thought”, this philosophy for translation suggests that there may be a better way to express what was intended by the authors based on today‘s understanding in place of the literal word for word equivalency.
  1.  
    1. In reality most translation employ both of these philosophies to one extent or another.
 
  1. Modern Revisions to the King James Version:
    1. American Standard Version (1901) – Masoretic OT and Wescott & Hort NT.
    2. Revised Standard Version (1952) – Masoretic OT and improved eclectic Greek Text.
    3. New American Standard Bible (1971) – Rudolf Kittel’s Biblia Hebraica, The Dead Sea Scrolls, and Nestle-Aland, 26th edition Greek NT.
    4. New King James Version (1982) – Masoretic Leningrad Codex OT and Scrivener’s Revised Textus Receptus.
    5. New Revised Standard Version (1989) - Masoretic Leningrad Codex OT and UBS 3rd edition Greek NT (1983).
 
  1. Other Modern Translations (Versions)
    1. The Message (2002) – A paraphrase version whose aim is “to convert the tone, the rhythm, the events, the ideas, into the way we actually think or speak.” It was translated by one man – Eugene Peterson.
    2. New Living Translation (1996) – Used the Masoretic Leningrad Codex OT and UBS 4th edition Greek NT (1993). This translation was based on the dynamic equivalence philosophy but is closer to the actual meaning than The Message because it was done by a team of scholars.
    3. New International Version (1978) – Used the Masoretic Leningrad Codex OT, UBS Greek NT and the Nestle-Aland Greek NT. It combines both word of word and dynamic equivalence translation philosophies and is very popular for both its accuracy and readability.
    4. English Standard Version (2001) – A word for word translation from Greek and Hebrew texts. It used the Masoretic Leningrad Codex OT, UBS Greek NT and the Nestle-Aland Greek NT and is considered to be highly accurate.
 
  1. Questions to consider
    1. What translation philosophy is better and why?
    2. Is it essential to know Greek or Hebrew to read the original texts?
    3. What consideration should be made when choosing a translation?
    4. Can Bible software be used to assist in understanding the original autographa?