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Results from: Answered Bible Questions, Answers, Unanswered Bible Questions, Notes Ordered by Verse | ||||||
Results | Verse | Author | ID# | |||
1 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | Bobby1971 | 197716 | ||
Hello, I'm new to this forum and have recently purchased a NASB Bible. On the Lockman Foundation's website, the following is said with respect to the NASB Update: "Proper names or titles have been used in place of pronouns only when the context made it clear who the person was..." Does anyone know exactly what this means? Would this mean that a masculine pronoun referring to God would be, or could have been, replaced with a "gender neutral" term like "God"? If the Hebrew uses pronouns, why not continue to do so? Thanks, Bobby |
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2 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | DocTrinsograce | 197717 | ||
Hi, Bobby... Welcome to the forum! No, it doesn't mean that the translators changed the gender on a pronoun, nor does it mean they removed pronouns. It means they used a pronoun instead of a person's name or title only where it might sound better. For example, let's make up a sentence: "Bobby came to the forum and Bobby posted a question." What they are saying is that they might have taken a sentence like that and translated it as: "Bobby came to the forum and he posted a question." You see how the second "Bobby" was replaced by the pronoun "he?" Sometimes things translated directly, although correctly, sound awkward. By substituting a pronoun, the correct the original meaning is retained, while improving the sound to the modern ear. What they are saying is that they are maing certain that when they do this, they will be sure that the proper antecedent of the pronoun is obvious. By the way, this sort of license is not unique to the NASB. The KJV did the same thing. In a slightly different example: "And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they saddled him." (1 Kings 13:27 KJV) The last word "him" does not actually appear in the text. To the average English reader in the 15th and 16th centuries, the addition of the pronoun helped the verse's clarity. They weren't as persnickety about antecedents as we are today. Hence, the verse to our ears is distinctly humorous. In Him, Doc |
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3 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | Bobby1971 | 197719 | ||
Hi Doc, Actually, I was thinking they meant it in the opposite way you referred to. For example, if the Hebrew had "He is sovereign. He is Lord. He is Immanuel." The way their explanation is written, e.g., "Proper names...have been used IN PLACE OF PRONOUNS only when...", they're saying they are replaying the pronoun with a proper name or title. Thus, the previous statement could become, "God is sovereign. God is Lord. God is Immanuel." Thus the masculine pronoun is no longer present and in its place if the word "God." This caught my eye because the translators of the NAB (Catholic translation) did the same thing with their revised translation of the Psalms. If I remember correctly, many conservative Roman Catholics reject this translation of the Psalms due to it having both horizontal and vertical gender neutral language. I remember one of the Psalms said something like, "He is great. He is wonderful." and so on. The NAB took out the "He" and replaced it with God. An example where the NAB does this is Psalm 121: " 1 A song of ascents. 2 I raise my eyes toward the mountains. From where will my help come? 2 My help comes from the LORD, the maker of heaven and earth. 3 God will not allow your foot to slip; your guardian does not sleep. 4 Truly, the guardian of Israel never slumbers nor sleeps. 5 3 The LORD is your guardian; the LORD is your shade at your righthand. 6 By day the sun cannot harm you, nor the moon by night. 7 The LORD will guard you from all evil, will always guard your life. 8 The LORD will guard your coming and going both now and forever." (NAB) Thanks, Bobby |
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4 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | DocTrinsograce | 197720 | ||
Hi, bobby... You're right. Sorry... I should have read your quote more carefully! In Him, Doc |
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5 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | Bobby1971 | 197723 | ||
I'm sure there must be a reasonable explanation for their statement. I believe the NASB is highly regarded by conservatives, so I doubt gender-inclusive principles had anything to do with it. Maybe it's something along the lines of when when referring to individual men within a group when you know what their titles are, replacing their individual pronouns with their titles would remove any ambiguity or uncertainty in the understanding of which particular person is stating or doing something. | ||||||
6 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | DocTrinsograce | 197724 | ||
Hi, bobby... I don't see them suggesting they will change the gender of a pronoun. At the risk of a second misunderstanding, let me see if we can create another example: "Bobby is new to the forum. He has posted a question. His post was answered." They might then do the following: "Bobby is new to the forum. The new forum member posted a question. Bobby's post was answered." Note that the pronouns are replaced first with a title and second with the name. Maybe it isn't a good example, but I think it demonstrates the quote you gave us. This could be done without altering the strict meaning of the text. Indeed, it might make it more clear to the target language readers. As I pointed out in my first reply, how we look at antecedents has changed over the years. Certainly there must be significant differences of just that nature when going from one language to another. Anyway, I think you've got the right sense of their objective in the last sentence of your last post. In Him, Doc |
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7 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | Bobby1971 | 197728 | ||
Doc, Yes, your example is right on. That's exactly what was done in the Catholic NAB translation. They replaced the masculine pronoun "He" when it referred to God with the word "God" itself. That brought them under fire for "vertical inclusive language." People felt they were trying to avoid referring to God has a "He", thus they replaced the masculine pronoun with the word "God." I seriously doubt that would happen with the NASB though. |
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8 | Pronouns in NASB? | Bible general Archive 4 | DocTrinsograce | 197733 | ||
Interesting, Bobby... thank you for the information! | ||||||