GROWING TOGETHER

John Wycliffe (fourteenth century) distinguished himself by preaching in his native English to the ordinary person and translating the Scriptures into that language. In the sixteenth century William Tyndale translated the entire New Testament into English and a substantial portion of the Old Testament. Myles Coverdale was the first person to publish the entire Bible in English, but, by the middle of the seventeenth century the King James Version (KJV)—published in 1611—became the dominant translation.

Steadily displacing its rivals, the KJV or Authorized Version (AV) became the standard by which all other efforts were measured. However, in the nineteenth century the recovery of ancient manuscripts and papyri accelerated rapidly while the English language developed and changed continuously. These factors launched efforts to revise the Authorized Version and publish entirely new translations.

The dawn of the twentieth century saw one major English effort finished—the Revised Version (RV) completed in 1885—and an American revision of it in process—the American Standard Version (ASV) published in 1901. Since then we have seen numerous translations (attempting to match word for word the meaning of the original text) and paraphrases (attempting to match the meaning of the original text by using phrases common to everyday language). Each version has its strengths and weaknesses and place in the community of faith. Below are some of the English versions available accompanied by a brief annotation.

The Living Bible (LB). A paraphrase of English translations by Kenneth Taylor that is checked against ancient texts for accuracy. More wordy than its sources, it uses idioms and expressions common to the U.S. and a limited vocabulary for clarity and understandability. Text divided into paragraphs with a minimum of verse notations. Excellent for reading out loud to children.

The Message (TM). Translation/paraphrase of the New Testament and Psalms by Eugene Peterson whose work is being compared to J. B. Phillips' pioneering effort. (Eugene is presently translating the rest of the Old Testament. He works from the standard Greek and Hebrew texts.) Like Koine Greek—the language of the New Testament—this version specializes in "street" speech (without its vulgarities) that is peculiar to the U.S. No verse notations other than at the beginning of chapters and major sections. Tends to be wordy but excellent for devotional and contemporary use.

New American Standard Version (NASV). A second generation (ASV the first), modified literal translation undertaken by the Lockman Foundation. Evangelical in approach, the style is viewed by some language specialists as rather wooden and awkward. Prints each verse as a new section or paragraph with the number notation at the left. Excels as a study and comparison Bible.

New International Version (NIV). A completely new translation sponsored by the International Bible Society. Over one hundred Evangelical scholars worked from Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts to insure accuracy. Maintains verse notations while text is divided into paragraphs. Good for study and as a bridge between a modified literal translation and a paraphrase.

The New Jerusalem Bible (NJB). An update of the original Jerusalem Bible (JB) that was translated into English from a French translation of original languages. Used by Roman Catholics as an alternative to the Douay Bible and RSV. With Apocrypha. A very readable and unique version. Good for new insights into familiar texts and for comparison with other versions.

New King James Version (NKJV). Retains the poetic style and beauty of the original but updates words that have changed meaning. The revisers consulted recovered manuscripts and papyri in order to refine the version. Unfortunately, it does