What kind of Bible translation should I use? Which version of the Bible is best? Is one type of Bible translation better than another?
If you are a new Christian looking to buy a Bible or trying to choose a version from an app, here is a quick summation: The Bible was originally written in Hebrew, Aramaic & Greek. Different English versions came into being because several forces (God, Christians, religion, politics, culture, technology, etc.) were driving & shaping them at different times throughout history. A good translation will be directly translated from the original languages. God wants us to understand His written Word to us, so select one that is readable to you (I do not mean all the content will be easy to understand – some of it will be new & difficult – that’s why we need to study it & learn from other Christians who have). Below is a basic list of modern English translations I would recommend.
Recommended English Bible Translations
ESV - English Standard Version
NASB - New American Standard Bible
NIV - New International Version
NKJV - New King James Version
NASB - New American Standard Bible
NIV - New International Version
NKJV - New King James Version
20-Oct-06
I’ve recently been thinking about the old controversy over the different translations of the Bible and which one is supposedly the “best”. It seems that if you really want to get the most out of God’s Word, you should learn the language in which the original text was written, that is Hebrew and Aramaic for the Old Testament and Greek for the New Testament. While you’re at it, it would be beneficial if you could learn about the Jewish and Greek cultures of the time, but that’s not quite as easy, yet not impossible.
However, there are some who in defense of a particular translation, refer to the Deuteronomy 4:2, Proverbs 30:5-6 & Revelation 22:18-19 warnings about adding to God’s Word. This is a misapplication and these rather apply to the writings of Joseph Smith’s & the like! Anyone who has ever learned much of a foreign language will know that many words and phrases do not translate directly. In fact, often times, the same text can be translated a variety of ways and this is exactly how many doctrinally sound translations came about (KJV, NKJV, NIV, RSV & NASB to name a few). This is why, if possible, it’s a good idea to study many translations so the entirety of the original message can be captured. I’m sure there are even multiple versions for other languages that have came about in the same manner.
Christ obviously intended for His Word to be translated since He instructed us to “be (His) witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth.” in Acts 1:8 (NIV). Especially since God is the one who came down to “confuse their language” and scatter them “over the face of all the earth” in Genesis 11:7-8 (NKJV).
If you want to get picky, the original Hebrew & Aramaic alphabet only has 22 letters (not including variants for p/ph, s/sh & t/th) while the Greek has 24. Knowing that English has a whopping 26 letters, is it going too far to translate it to English? Not at all and I praise God its not! Consider Revelation 1:8, 21:6 & 22:13, all Christ stating “I am the Alpha and Omega” (RSV). Thankfully the rest of these verses clarify that this means “the first and the last” and “the beginning and the end” or unless someone was scholarly, we would never know in English because Alpha and Omega are the respective first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Why wasn’t it translated A and Z?
What about I Corinthians 1:19 where Paul references “For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent” (KJV) which is Isaiah 29:14b that reads “for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.” (KJV)? Why the difference? Paul was a “Hebrew of Hebrews” (Philippians 3:5) and probably knew both Hebrew and Greek languages. Perhaps the difference came about by translation variations? If his letter to the Corinthians was written in Greek, then he must have translated this Isaiah passage from Hebrew. The original Corinthian verse (Greek) and the original
Isaiah verse (Hebrew) were then independently translated to English, but no meaning was lost.
OK, so maybe you’re like me and don’t have time to learn Hebrew and Greek (Although I’d like to!). Greek & Hebrew dictionaries and concordances (i.e. Strong’s Concordance) are very helpful for in depth studies.
Further, in I Corinthians 3:3-7, Paul writes about divisions in the church, particularly about what leader they were arguing about following. It seems you could play “fill-in-the-blank” with any issue that is dividing the Christ’s body. Try this: “You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like men? For one says, “I read KJV,” and another, “I read NIV,” are you not mere men? What, after, all, is NIV? And what is KJV? Only translations, through whom you came to believe – as the Lord has assigned to each his task. Reading KJV planted the seed, reading NIV watered it, but God made it grow. So neither that which
plants nor that which waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (modified NIV).
I will warn you not to use the New World Translation (NWT). This translation was created & is occasionally revised (should be a red flag) to fit the false doctrine of the Jehovah's Witnesses. Primarily, passages regarding the deity of Christ have been tampered with, i.e. John 1.1, 14, Col 2.9, etc. Seeing that they don't believe in a literal hell as Christ & His Word clearly teach, there is likely tampering with those passages as well.
However, there are some who in defense of a particular translation, refer to the Deuteronomy 4:2, Proverbs 30:5-6 & Revelation 22:18-19 warnings about adding to God’s Word. This is a misapplication and these rather apply to the writings of Joseph Smith’s & the like! Anyone who has ever learned much of a foreign language will know that many words and phrases do not translate directly. In fact, often times, the same text can be translated a variety of ways and this is exactly how many doctrinally sound translations came about (KJV, NKJV, NIV, RSV & NASB to name a few). This is why, if possible, it’s a good idea to study many translations so the entirety of the original message can be captured. I’m sure there are even multiple versions for other languages that have came about in the same manner.
Christ obviously intended for His Word to be translated since He instructed us to “be (His) witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the Earth.” in Acts 1:8 (NIV). Especially since God is the one who came down to “confuse their language” and scatter them “over the face of all the earth” in Genesis 11:7-8 (NKJV).
If you want to get picky, the original Hebrew & Aramaic alphabet only has 22 letters (not including variants for p/ph, s/sh & t/th) while the Greek has 24. Knowing that English has a whopping 26 letters, is it going too far to translate it to English? Not at all and I praise God its not! Consider Revelation 1:8, 21:6 & 22:13, all Christ stating “I am the Alpha and Omega” (RSV). Thankfully the rest of these verses clarify that this means “the first and the last” and “the beginning and the end” or unless someone was scholarly, we would never know in English because Alpha and Omega are the respective first and last letters of the Greek alphabet. Why wasn’t it translated A and Z?
What about I Corinthians 1:19 where Paul references “For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent” (KJV) which is Isaiah 29:14b that reads “for the wisdom of their wise men shall perish, and the understanding of their prudent men shall be hid.” (KJV)? Why the difference? Paul was a “Hebrew of Hebrews” (Philippians 3:5) and probably knew both Hebrew and Greek languages. Perhaps the difference came about by translation variations? If his letter to the Corinthians was written in Greek, then he must have translated this Isaiah passage from Hebrew. The original Corinthian verse (Greek) and the original
Isaiah verse (Hebrew) were then independently translated to English, but no meaning was lost.
OK, so maybe you’re like me and don’t have time to learn Hebrew and Greek (Although I’d like to!). Greek & Hebrew dictionaries and concordances (i.e. Strong’s Concordance) are very helpful for in depth studies.
Further, in I Corinthians 3:3-7, Paul writes about divisions in the church, particularly about what leader they were arguing about following. It seems you could play “fill-in-the-blank” with any issue that is dividing the Christ’s body. Try this: “You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like men? For one says, “I read KJV,” and another, “I read NIV,” are you not mere men? What, after, all, is NIV? And what is KJV? Only translations, through whom you came to believe – as the Lord has assigned to each his task. Reading KJV planted the seed, reading NIV watered it, but God made it grow. So neither that which
plants nor that which waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow.” (modified NIV).
I will warn you not to use the New World Translation (NWT). This translation was created & is occasionally revised (should be a red flag) to fit the false doctrine of the Jehovah's Witnesses. Primarily, passages regarding the deity of Christ have been tampered with, i.e. John 1.1, 14, Col 2.9, etc. Seeing that they don't believe in a literal hell as Christ & His Word clearly teach, there is likely tampering with those passages as well.