Food For Thought: Comparing Bibles

When I was a teenager, I thought the Bible was simply the Bible. I thought all Bibles were the same only some were fancier than others. Some had leather covers, others had spots for pictures and family trees.

Even as a young adult I never paid attention to the fact that not all Bibles are the same. I tried to discover how many different Bible translations there are in English, but my research couldn't pin it down. What my research did find was that when placed side-by-side, they don't all read the same.

Some translators attempt a word-for-word translation. Others attempt a thought-for-thought translation. There are some authors who have attempted a paraphrase of the Bible in order to make it more readable. But again, they don't all read the same.

Some people say this is due to the fact that translating from one language to another is difficult if not impossible in some places. Others point to the fact that it all depends on the source documents used in the translation. 

I'm fortunate because I work in an Orthdox Jewish school. So if I have a question about what's written in the Hebrew scriptures (Old Testament), the rabbi can simply pull out the scroll and read to me from the original language. And through this process I have found that most of the Bibles one finds in the book stores don't read the same as what is written in those scrolls, at least when the Old Testament is concerned. Let me offer an example. 

A very popular passage many are familiar with is Isaiah 9:6. The NIV reads:

"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace." 

But what does the Hebrew actually say?  The Hebrew reads, "For a child has been born to us, a son has been given to us, and the dominion will rest on his shoulder; the Wondrous Adviser, Mighty God, Eternal Father called his name Prince of Peace."  

Can you see the difference? If you can't, read it again.  And this isn't the only difference between the Hebrew scrolls and modern Bibles. The list is long.

Fortunately for us, the Internet has the resources to allow anyone to compare the dozens of Bible translations in existence. And as archeaology continues to discover more writings, Bible translators will continue to improve translations.

I feel fortunate we live in a time and in a country where we have access to these things without fear of punishment or condemnation.