By Aaron Budjen, a translator with good insights Source: Internet public post on pnet.religion.talk

The worlds best seller for all time has also been one of the most influential books in the history of the world. As the most influential book, many people have been concerned about its accurate translation from the languages it was written in. Visiting any bookstore here in America you can easily find up to a dozen different translations into the English language. The question virtually everyone asks is why? Christians and non-Christians alike ask why there are different translations and which one can they trust to be accurate. After all, if they are correct, why are they not the same?

As a translator, I have found merits in all Bible translations. The Amplified Bible does a beautiful job of expressing the definitions of certain words. The NIV relates some passages well in today’s common English. I have found few good passages in the New World Translation but I have managed to use it to show Jehovah’s Witnesses the deity of Christ Jesus. With their merits they all have their shortcomings. The KJV neglects translating some words. The NKJV and NIV insert strong doctrinal biases in some places. The descriptions I wind up giving is that some translations do a fair job of translating one verse and others don’t do a fair job with the same verse. Regrettably, there are some verses that are totally in error in all translations.

Every Bible translation I have read has translated one verse in Hebrew/Greek in to one verse in English. This is a reasonable method if the languages share a common level of expressiveness. The problem is that Greek and Hebrew are much more expressive than English. Therefore an exact translation is only possible if the translator is willing to break the mold of a one to one, verse by verse translation. There are some verses which can be translated this way, but most require a whole if not a composition in English to express the full meaning. Because of this challenge – all English translations I know of (presently in print and on the market) are more accurately called paraphrases.

Translating the Bible into English is not where this controversy began. It began when the Jews were taken into captivity after the Babylonian invasion in 586 BC. After being in a foreign country for a couple of generations the Jews adopted the language of the surrounding people and forgot the Hebrew language. Only the Rabbis and the students in the Synagogue knew Hebrew. The common people only knew Aramaic. The services and readings in the Synagogue were done in Hebrew. Therefore, the common Jews would seek someone to interpret for them during the services. The interpreter was called the Methurgemen, and many synagogues began to employ them. The Methurgemen was allowed to verbalize, paraphrases of what was being said or read, but he was strictly forbidden to write it down. The reason for that was because the Rabbis were concerned that the translation, or paraphrase would be recognized as having equal authority as the original Hebrew. Some writings were still done in time and they became known as targums. [essentially “commentaries” on Scripture].

What the Rabbis and scribes were concerned about almost two and a half millennia ago has happened today. In America, the English texts for sale in the bookstores are wrongly looked upon as having equal authority as the original Hebrew as well as the Greek of the New Testament. I will admit that the truth is revealed through them and the lives of people are changed by the power of God. However, the study of the original languages is neglected by virtually every Christian and Jew in America today because of the deception that what they are reading is accurate and with authority. In knowing the original languages you will know which verses that have been translated into English are accurate and have authority.