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 | The King James Version and some other translations are attempts to translate the original Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek into English on a word-for-word basis. Others, like the New Living Translation, paraphrase the original text; they are attempts to preserve the original meaning without necessarily translating each word of the original. Finally, there are some versions in which the translators attempt to compromise between the word-for-word approach and the meaning-preservation approach. | ||||||||
| Most Bibles have been translated by experts from a single or narrow range of denominations. Their theological beliefs inevitably affect the translation. | ||||||||
| Some translations print the words that the Gospel writers believe that Jesus said in red, for easy reading. | ||||||||
| Translations are available with special features. Some have:
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| Version | Theology | Date | Priority | Features |
| Amplified Bible | Evangelical to mainline | 1987 | Word translation |
The meanings of passages are expanded with brief in-line notes. Large print available. |
| Contemporary English Version (CEV) | Evangelical to mainline | 1995 | Meaning | Written in basic English, for young readers or adults with restricted reading skills. Reads well out loud. |
| English Standard Version ™ | Evangelical | 2001 | Word | Stresses "accuracy, simplicity, dignity and beauty of language..." |
| Good News Translation (GNT) | General | 1976 | Meaning | Revised 1990. a.k.a. Today's English Version and Good News Bible. Simple to read. Uses a limited vocabulary. Has many illustrations. |
| God's Word Bible | Evangelical, Lutheran | 1995 | Meaning | Uses contemporary English expressions. Large, diverse group of translators. |
| King James Version (KJV) | Evangelical, Episcopal | 1611 | Word translation | Second most popular version for pastors. Language may be difficult to follow for some. |
| New American Bible (NAB) | Roman Catholic | 1970 | Word | Written in basic English. Includes Apocrypha books. Available in large print. |
| New American Standard (NASB) | Evangelical | 1995 | Word | Update of the American Standard Version; Formal translation; "Accurate" |
| New Century Version (NCV) | Evangelical | 1987 | Meaning | Some paraphrasing used. "Easy to understand." Jesus' words in red. |
| New English Translation™ (NET) | Evangelical | 2001 | Meaning | Available in printed form and online. Can be downloaded free. See: http://www.bible.org/ Has extensive notes. |
| New International Version | Evangelical | 1978 | Word & Meaning | Most popular version. "Smooth reading." "Reliable and responsible translation" |
| New Jerusalem Bible | Roman Catholic | 1986 | Word & Meaning | First modern Catholic translation. Includes Apocrypha books. "Accessible language." |
| New King James Version (NKJV) | Evangelical | 1982 | Word | The KJV, but with modern words substituted where the original words have changed meaning. |
| New Living Translation (NLT) | Evangelical | 1996 | Meaning | Updated version of the paraphrasing Living Bible. Words of Jesus in red. Available in large print. "Wonderful flow" |
| New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) | Mainline | 1990 | Word and Meaning | Modern version of the KJV. Dignified language. Includes the Apocrypha |
| The Message | Evangelical | 1995 | Meaning | New Testament, Psalms, and Proverbs. "Earthy," "Vivid idiom" |
| Today's English Version (TEV) | Renamed Good News Translation. | |||
| Today's New International Version (TNIV) | Evangelical | 2002-APR | Word &Meaning | An update to the New International Version. About 7% of the text is changed. * |
| Transparent English Version | General | Not yet released | Word | A translation that tries to allow the reader to "peer through" the English translation and to "see, hear and even feel the dynamics of the original text" 1 |
* The publishers advertise this as a "gender accurate" version. Critics call it a "gender neutral" version, and have criticized it as being politically correct. "Sons of God" has become "children of God." "A man" became "a person." "Brothers" has become "brothers and sisters." The translation is also less anti-semitic: "The Jews" has become "The Jews there." Only the Christian Scriptures (New Testament) will be published in 2002-APR. The complete Bible, containing the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) as well, will be published in 2005.
Which versions do pastors use most?
Ellison Research conducted a random survey of over 500 clergy from Protestant churches, asking what "one version or translation of the Bible they personally rely on most for their work." 2 This is not necessarily the version from which they read at services; it is not necessarily the "official" version of their denomination.
Results were:
| Version | % of pastors |
| New International Version (NIV) | 34% |
| King James Version (KJV) | 24% |
| New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) | 10% |
| New King James Version (NKJV) | 10% |
| New American Standard (NAS) | 9% |
Margin of error: ±4.3 percentage points
The remaining 13% of pastors preferred other versions, such as the Amplified Bible, Contemporary English Version (CEV), God's Word Bibles, the Living Bible, The Message, New American Bible (NAB), New American Standard (NASB), The New Century Version (NCV), New Jerusalem Bible, The New Living Translation, and Today's English Version. But none of these was the favorite of more than 2% of the pastors sampled.
There were major differences among pastors whose denomination are affiliated with the two main umbrella groups: the National Council of Churches and the National Association of Evangelicals. Other pastors described their church as Evangelical, mainline Protestant, Pentecostal or Charismatic:
| Group | NIV | KJV | NRSV | NKJV | NAS |
| National Council of Churches: Methodists, Presbyterian, Evangelical Lutherans... | 20% | 11% | 40% | 6% | 5% |
| National Association of Evangelicals: Assemblies of God, Church of the Nazarene, Baptist General Conf... | 49% | 24% | 2% | 12% | 8% |
| "Evangelical" | 47% | 22% | 9% | 10% | 8% |
| "Mainline Protestant" | 18% | 8% | 51% | 3% | 7% |
| "Pentecostal & Charismatic" | 21% | 45% | 3% | 19% | 6% |
Recommendations:
For serious Bible study, you might consider purchasing a multiple translation or parallel Bible. These have many versions, side-by-side, on each page. Another option is an interlinear Bible. It typically has the KJV translation of a verse in bold, followed by the same verse in one or more other translations. Some are:
| Parallel New Testaments:
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| Parallel Bibles:
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| Interlinear Bibles:
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References:
- "An introduction to the Transparent English version (TEV)," Original Bible Project (OBP), at: http://www.centuryone.org/IntroOBP.pdf The OBP home page is at: http://www.originalbible.com/
- "American pastors name their favorite version or translation of the Bible," Ellison Research, at: http://www.ellisonresearch.com/Pastor%20Study/
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Home page > Christianity > Bible > Versions > here |
Copyright © 2000 to 2006 by Ontario Consultants on Religious
Tolerance
Originally written: 2000-NOV-2
Latest update: 2006-NOV-26
Author: B.A. Robinson
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