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NASB | 2 Thessalonians 2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | 2 Thessalonians 2:7 For the mystery of lawlessness [rebellion against divine authority and the coming reign of lawlessness] is already at work; [but it is restrained] only until he who now restrains it is taken out of the way. |
Subject: Why is 2 Thess. 2:7 mis-translated? |
Bible Note: Greetings Taleb! Your examples are good examples of why I hesitate to use the term 'mis-translation'. Though the translations of Hos. 11:12 are completely opposite in meaning, they are both possible in Hebrew. Here is what the footnote in the NetBible says about this verse: ***************************************** The verb (?to roam about freely?) is used in a concrete sense to refer to someone wandering restlessly and roaming back and forth (BDB 923; Judg 11:37). Here, it is used figuratively, possibly with positive connotations, as indicated by the preposition (?with?), to indicate accompaniment: ?but Judah still goes about with God? (HALOT 3:1194). Some English translations render it positively: ?Judah still walks with God? (RSV); ?Judah is restive under God? (REB); ?but Judah stands firm with God? (NJPS); ?but Judah remains faithful? (CEV); ?but Judah yet ruleth with God? (KJV). Others adopt the negative connotation ?to wander restlessly? and nuance in an adversative sense (?against?): ?Judah is unruly against God? (NIV) and ?the people of Judah are still rebelling against me? (TEV). ********************************************** The NetBible actually goes with a positive sense, but they recognize that it can be translated in a negative sense as well. Concerning Job, it seems obvious to me that 'barak' is used in a negative sense in Job. For instance, Job 1:11 says, "But stretch out your hand and strike everything he has, and he will surely curse you to your face.? Here 'curse' is 'barak'. Was Satan challenging God by saying that if God allowed Satan to test Job that Job would pass the test? :-) Or, was he challenging God by saying that Job would not pass the test, but would curse God? The same context occurs in Job 2:4, "But stretch out your hand and strike his flesh and bones, and he will surely curse you to your face.? Even the context of Job 2:9 makes it clear that Job's wife is asking him to do something wrong. Notice v. 10, "He replied, ??You are talking like a foolish woman. Shall we accept good from God, and not trouble?? In all this, Job did not sin in what he said." If Job's wife was asking him to 'bless' God, why would Job rebuke her? While the normal meaning of 'barak' definitely is 'to bless', it appears that in Job it has the opposite meaning. This may be simply a less used meaning or it could reflect an older meaning which dropped out of use latter, since Job is beleived to be a very ancient writting. In addition to the other difficulties which translators face, there is no 'dictionary' to which they can appeal for word meanings. Even if there are 'dictionaries' from a certain time perioed, word meanings change over time. For instance, even in English, note the change in meaning for the word 'let'. During the time of King James, 'let' meant 'hinder', now it means 'allow'. :-) So, translators must rely on context quite a bit. The context of Job is clear that 'barak' (at least in Job) means 'to curse', in my opinion! :-) p.s. - I too appreciate you my brother! You bring an unique perspective to some of these questions, having actually been on the mission field and dealing with the real life applications of some of these issues! :-) Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |