Subject: Good News Bible? |
Bible Note: Greetings Steve! The real issue here concerns the translation theory behind each of these versions. We have no real "literal" translations. I used the example of John 1:1 in another post. To literally translate it word for word, it would read: "In beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the God, and God was the Word." The problem with this is that it is very difficult reading. We simply don't speak that way. So translators have to decide how literal or how dynamic they are going to be. Some translation are very literal, while others try to bring out the meaning in a way that is understandable to a modern reader. I think both are necessary. Not every Christian know Greek or Hebrew. I'm fortunate, because I can simply go read the original Greek (fairly easily) or Hebrew (with much sweat). The example of Gen. 4:26 is a good example. Personally, I would translate it "call upon the name of the Lord" and let people figure out for themselves that this means "worship." However, the meaning is clear. The TEV simply uses a Dynamic theory of translation. This particular word, even in the KJV, is translated many ways. According to Strong's, it is translated in the following ways: call 528 times, cried 98 times, read 38 times, proclaim 36 times, named 7 times, guests 4 times, invited 3 times, gave 3 times, renowned 3 times, bidden 2 times, preach 2 times, and 11 other words in 11 other verses. My point simply is that I don't see the TEV as a bad translation. They are simply trying to make the meaning clear to a modern speaker. Personally, I wish every Christian would learn Greek and Hebrew and study the original texts themselveves. But, this will never happen. So, most are stuck depending upon a group of translators to translate God's Word for them. My advice is: Use a more dynamic translation for reading, but use a more literal translation for study. Your Brother in Christ, Tim Moran |