What would be the best version of the bible for me?
Upvote:-2
No other translation measures up to the King James.
The modern versions are based on very different texts that fundamentally change doctrine, and omit words. (The NIV is about 36k words shorter than the King James Bible.)
The chapters, words, letters and verse numbers have precise meanings that are lost when the text is changed.
For example one of the most loved verses is:
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.
The word "begotten" qualifies Jesus as the only one born of God so allows other sons, which is a marvellous thing, since:
John 1:11 He came unto his own, and his own received him not.
1:12 But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
which instructs us that we can become sons of God.
This is butchered in e.g. the ESV which has:
"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life."
When Christ speaks to his disciples in Matthew 5-7, it is precisely stated:
Matthew 5:1 And seeing the multitudes, he went up into a mountain: and when he was set, his disciples came unto him: 5:2 And he opened his mouth, and taught them, saying,
The NIV paraphrase for verse 2 is:
"and he began to teach them."
This omits the word "mouth" so losing the connection with the quote from Deuteronomy in the previous chapter (Matthew 4:4).
You will hear arguments against the King James Bible mostly using outside sources, but its own words remain a consistent witness to the truth.
Upvote:0
For Bible Study and research digital bibles with links, and references can be very helpful. There is an nice App for Android "MySword - Free Android Bible" where you can compare many different versions of the bible. It has the KJV linked with Strong's Concordance.
For Bible reading, i personally recommend a paper bible. One of my favorites is the New Jerusalem Bible.
- It is easy read.
- It uses Yahweh in stead of LORD
This bible is not so common in the online bible portals because the copyright is still active. But there are digital and online versions to try it.
Upvote:1
In addition to Lesley's excellent answer, I recommend to FIRST check out BibleGateway.com which offers customizable parallel translation of dozens of English translation such as Psalm 91 in NLT,NIV,ESV so you can have a preview. Make sure too choose passages that have archaic sounding language; Psalms, Proverbs, and prophetic books (like Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel) are good ones to compare. Once you decide on a translation, you can focus on choosing the binding (leather, paperback, etc.), the print (small, normal, large), and the extra features (maps, concordance, dictionary, articles, notes).
The website bible-researcher.com offers many objective resources to evaluate translations, including a convenient "one stop shop" to read each translation's Preface where the translation committee describes in great detail the translation principle used. You can find reviews and prefaces of common translations suggested by Lesley here:
- New King James Version (NKJV 1982): 1997 Preface, Review, Wikipedia
- New International Version (NIV 1984, 2011): 1984 Preface, 1984 Review, 2011 Preface, 2011 Review, Wikipedia
- New American Standard Bible (NASB 1995): Preface, Review, Wikipedia
- English Standard Version (ESV 2001): 2011 Preface, Review, Wikipedia
- New Living Translation (NLT 2004): Preface, Review, Wikipedia
Finally, some popular translations such as NIV and NLT have gone through different editions, so pay attention to the year of translation as well, which affect inclusive language (NIV after 1984 experimented with this, backtracking some in the 2011 edition), or on the other hand more neutral translation (such as the 2004 (2nd) and later editions of the NLT). Great index of all those years:
Which translation is today's best seller? See the April 2020 CBA Bible translation list.
Upvote:5
The major translations of the Bible are the King James Version (KJV), the New International Version (NIV), the New American Standard (NAS), the New King James Version (NKJV), the English Standard Version (ESV), and the New Living Translation (NLT).
The KJV and NAS attempt to take the underlying Hebrew and Greek words and translate them into the closest corresponding English words as possible (word for word), while the NIV and NLT attempt to take the original thought that was being presented in Greek and Hebrew and then express that thought in English (thought for thought). There are pros and cons to each type - the article will help to explain.
You may find this article helpful - it gives insights into these different translations. https://www.gotquestions.org/most-accurate-Bible-translation.html
For more detailed information into the history of how the Bible has been translated, and what those translations are, please refer to this article: https://www.gotquestions.org/Bible-versions.html
I realise this presents you with more information than you might need, but, if you are to make an informed decision as to which Bible to buy, then this is a good way to go about it. One thing I would recommend is that you buy a Bible which contains cross-references, maps, a concordance and so much more to make the Bible come alive and to answer questions that will undoubtedly arise as to start to read.
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