Translations part II

Now let us look at the Amplified Bible

Same Corinithians 15 quote from the ESV I quoted

³ For I passed on to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to [that which] the Scriptures [foretold], ⁴ and that He was buried, and that He was [bodily] raised on the third day according to [that which] the Scriptures [foretold],

This add’s a lot not just in word but in thought.Here is again Romans 10.9

⁹ because if you acknowledge and confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord [recognizing His power, authority, and majesty as God], and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.

Here is Psalm 23 the classic again

⁴ 
Even though I walk through the [sunless] valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil, for You are with me;
Your rod [to protect] and Your staff [to guide], they comfort and console me.

We can quickly see here the Amplified Bible is too liberal and adds to much that is never in actual scripture.I would recommend this version because it leaves the inexperienced not knowing what was original and what is not.

Now what about the Peshitta

The Peshitta is a Syriac Aramaic version of the Bible not to be confused with the Judeo-Aramaic (Daniel is actually Imperial Aramaic using Hebrew letters) used in parts of the Bible and Talmud.It uses a different script but the word Peshitta means simple which is similar to peshat which means simply in Hebrew ,so there is some similarity in the semitic languages.And it is a base line for the Oriental Orthodox Church that includes Armenian,Assyrian,Coptic and Tewahedo churches.

Many people swear by this saying it is the best and most authentic Bible out there.And some argue that the New Testament was originally in Syriac Aramaic.None of these arguments have been proven and most scholars put the Greek scripts used for the NT in the 5th century ce and have not been spefically identified.There is nothing wrong with the Peshitta but it is not the original Bible some believe it is ,it is not a magical document in any way Hebrew roots folks ok.It would be Assyrian roots not Hebrew roots anyways.

So what are the advantages of word for word Bibles like the KJV,NKJV,NASB or ESV as opposed to more thought for thought types like the NIV.

The first thing to point out is that modern English words no not really fully translate from the ancient languages exactly and often capturing the thought makes the most sense.Or often ancient semantics or idioms are ignored.

Let us look at Genesis 1:1-2 ok using the New King James NKJV

1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

Now the ESV The English Standard Version

1 In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. ² The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.

Also let me add the more thought for thought NIV says about the same thing.

This here is a thought for thought translation from a Jewish Bible from the Chabad Tanakh version

1 In the beginning of God’s creation of the heavens and the earth.

2 Now the earth was astonishingly empty, and darkness was on the face of the deep, and the spirit of God was hovering over the face of the water.

Why does it do this ,because of the “imperative absolute” with the back to back words tohu and vohu תֹ֨הוּ֙ וָבֹ֔הוּ both meaning empty or void or chaos .So unlike the others that say formless and void ,this says astonishingly empty which is correct in Hebrew grammar.If the text says tov tov ,you don’t think good good but “very good” or “excellent”

Hebrew often doubles a word or uses to different words meaning the same thing for “special emphasis” and this is why astonishingly empty is right.

Let us look at Genesis 2:17

יזוּמֵעֵ֗ץ הַדַּ֨עַת֙ ט֣וֹב וָרָ֔ע לֹ֥א תֹאכַ֖ל מִמֶּ֑נּוּ כִּ֗י בְּי֛וֹם אֲכָלְךָ֥ מִמֶּ֖נּוּ מ֥וֹת תָּמֽוּת:

Here is uses mot twice or mot tamot מ֥וֹת תָּמֽוּת

This does not mean die die ,but you will “surely” die and even most word for word Bibles get that one right.

Here is the NIV a though for thought Bible on this

but you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat from it you will certainly die.”

Here is the ESV

“You may surely eat of every tree of the garden, ¹⁷ but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die.

Now notice the phrase “in the day” put in ,and that is more word for word to the Hebrew.

The advantage of the thought for thought style is if the translator knows what they are doing then the core point is far better expressed.

The advantage of word for word is that if we assume that translator’s make mistakes then those small mistakes are mitigated in the word for word style.Meaning that lacking in spirit but a given that people who do the translations will make mistakes the word for word mitigates those mistakes a bit more.However when grammatically accurate the thought for thought is better.

What do I recommend:

The New International NIV (thought for thought)

The New King James NKJV (word for word)

The English Standard Version ESV (word for word)

Some other good ones:

The Authorized King James ,has held the test of time well

The Tree of Life Version, a lot of Hebrew idioms good for Hebrew readers but not great for non Hebrew speakers ,but a good solid translation

The American and New American Standard ,not my first choice but they work.

The only one I did did not like in review was the Amplified Bible ,a bit to thought for thought ,I would not read that one personally.

I wish I could review more for you but I am not a verse comparer ,I’m not the type always checking a verse in various translations.I think I have shed some light on the most popular translations out there and if you have any questions please put them in comments ,thanks and God Bless all !