Which version of the Bible is best to read?

Question

Which version of the Bible is best to read?

Answer 1

depends on what you are looking for... KJV is poetic but hard to follow, the NASB is my favorite it's closest to the Greek and in my opinion still sounds beautiful, NIV is very easy to read, NKJV is also a favorite of mine, the message is easy to read but it is not something i'd suggest without having another version next to it since it is a paraphrase and not a direct translation

Answer 2

In English, the NRSV (New Revised Standard Version.) This is the version we use most often in divinity school for several reasons.



First, is in important to understand that the King James Version was published in 1611. Since that time several things have happened. Hundreds if not thousands more Biblical manuscripts have been discovered since then. These manuscripts were not available to the KJV translators. The KJV translators did not even use all the manuscripts that were known at that time, they used the ones most available to them, and some of them were quite flawed. The increased number of manuscripts gives scholars a better understanding of the textual traditions and help them understand why some changes have been made.



Secondly, in the intervening 400 years, scholars also have a much better understanding of not only biblical Hebew and Greek, but the languages that are related to them. This is especially important for biblical Hebrew. The number of unknown Hebrew words has decreased dramatically since the KJV was published.



Third, like English, both Biblical Hebrew and Greek use masculine gender to refer to eiher mixed or unknown genders. This tends to make the text much more male centered than the writers would have intended.



The NRSV solves several of these problems. First, it uses all available manuscripts and research. Secondly, it points out where and how manuscripts differ with translation notes. Finally, it attempts to use Gender neutral language where it appears appropriate.



The NIV is also a good translation, although it does not attempt to use the gender neutral language. The TNIV however, does, making it the second best choice in my opinion.



Don't get me wrong, the KJV is a remarkable acheivement for its time. Modern translations provide a more accurate representation of the original Greek and Hebrew.

Answer 3

I am assuming you are an American.



If you are looking for a poetic book that is inspirational, technically accurate and will provide more depth than usual, I recommend the New Jerusalem Bible. JRR Tokien also happens to be the translator of Job.



If you are looking for a book that is more literally accurate with good footnotes, pick the New American Bible.



Just a note on the above using the KJV or Erasmus, DON'T!



The KJV when it was retranslated in 1890 removed 20,000 major errors. Although technically acceptable, it tends to favor language to support its prior translations. It is a good, second quality version that is wonderfully beautiful as a piece of literature, but not so much as a bible.



Erasmus' work is quite poor, though he could not have known it. The "Textus Receptus," is just that the text received by the public library in Geneva. It is a very poor quality manuscript. The errors are monumental. It is, however, the base text for the Protestant movement. He was in a competition with another set of translators to publish a Greek text. Unfortunately speed won out over accuracy, and his single source text was missing substantial parts of the bible, which took from Latin, translated into Greek and this then formed the basis of early Protestantism. In particular, Revelations is truly and remarkably poor. None of it comes from the Greek and in no way matches it.



You should consider reading "Misquoting Jesus," by Bart Ehrman.

Answer 4

None. A "version" or translation of a Bible is just that: a translation; and it is impossible to perfectly translate an original language into another language without altering the figures of speech, idioms, and hard to interpret words contained in that language.



Your best bet is to buy multiple translations, dictionaries, and interlinear Bibles. Get a good interlinear Bible so if you are unsure about a certain word, you can look at the original Greek, and see the translation under it.



My favorite English translation is Rotherham's Emphasized Version, and I recommend it, but I still recommend Interlinear Bibles over it any day.



If you would like me to e-mail you some book titles, send me an e-mail.



Also, e-sword and scripture4all are excellent FREE programs and you can download almost any Bible translation for them, including Rotherham's Emphasized Version.



If anyone is interested in some links or titles, e-mail me.

Answer 5

Hi, George:



I wanted to know the same question, and have read ten different translations cover to cover, even the Jewish Holy Scriptures without a New Testament.



They all tell the same story, that Jesus is our Creator, Redeemer, Savior, and the Last Adam, to reign on earth for eternity.



I would recommend you leave the paraphrased translations, like the Living Bible, alone. They say things that are not in the translations.



The King James Bible is quoted the most, and when I read it, in my mind I read it as modern English. But to study, I use the New King James Bible because some archaic words have changed meaning, such as LET reallly means ALLOW.



In addition to recommending the NKJV, I invite people to read a Bible code that proves Jesus is the Messiah at http://abiblecode.tripod.com



Blessings and AGAPE, Balaam

Answer 6

The original King James Version and this is why: When the bible was translated into english the scholars had to add words to make it make sence linguisticly. In the (old) KJV the added words are in italics so you can read what it says with or with out them and compare, I don't know of any other version that does this, including the New King James Version.

Plus a lot of people think its the most accurate cause it's the original engilish version, but thats more a matter of opinion i reckon.

Answer 7

If you're going to believe in and read the bible, it is important to understand the differences in versions and translations. Many christians believe that the KJV is the only version (based primarily on tradition rather than validity of the translation).

You should research and understand the difference between dynamic and literal translations.

Answer 8

The NLT (2004) is the easiest to read that is a completely translated Bible. The NASB is the most accurate and closest to the Greek, but more difficult to read. The NIV is kinda middle of the road. The HCSB is the newest one out that is real good and may be the best for accuracy and ease of reading.

Answer 9

wow i have a pretty good answer for u actually..my answer is from a similar question that was proposed, so some of it might not make sense:





OMG..don't you all see that having so many different versions of the Bible indicates a corrupt religion? Many authors, editors, revisors, etc. of the Bible only changed/deleted/added verses to appeal to Christians so they would remain faithful (in other words through lies) and to appeal to people who are interested in converting (the same way). Converting through lies and putting in what people WANT to hear is corrupt. For all we know, the all-loving peaceful Bible could have had some ugly verses that were deleted or replaced with more peaceful ones so that Christianity could not look like a culprit or evil religion in the future. CORRUPTION!



An imperfect, flawed religion indicates that it is disqualified as being the true religion.





When you said, "I think people are seeing the question they want to asnwer, not asnwering what has been asked..."



Well, thats kind of like the Christians changing the Bible into what they want their religion to be like (aka allowing more freedoms, making bad deeds seem less impactful, etc.), not seeking the truth or caring about what is really meant for them.

Answer 10

King James or New King James version



Compare this one verse for example, Revelation 22:14, look it up in all the versions...(there are hundreds more verses like it that are erroneously translated)



The other versions blatantly change that verse from the original Greek. That was enough the persuade me.

Answer 11

The most accurate.



That would be, of course, the least popular in the world.



It has the works of Westcott and Hort.

It has the Vaticanis Codex 1209 in it, along with other, oldest manuscripts known.



I can go on and on, but once you see what it is, it won't matter.



It's the 'New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures'.

Answer 12

The New International Version. It doesn't have all of the "thees" and "thous", which makes it easier to understand, IMO. The New Living Translation is good, too.

Answer 13

If you get a copy of Erasmus translation from the greek you get closer to Yeshua's teaching but unless you have an Interdimensional transphasic warp converter in your transport that can bend spacetime to take you to Nicea in 413 CE or so they are all fairly derivative.

Answer 14

the original King James version is the best for authenticity of the times, the amplified is best for explanation and the message is good for easy read and understanding.

Answer 15

The King James Version is the most poetic.



But if you want to get to the meat of things right away, I recommend http://www.evilbible.com

Answer 16

The comic book version.

Answer 17

The older the bible is, the better it is to read.

Answer 18

For readability and reasonable accuracy, the NIV is a good version.

For greater accuracy but less readability, I recommend the NASB.

There are numerous other worthy translations.

Check out some for yourself at:



http://www.biblegateway.com/

Answer 19

Cliff's Notes.

Answer 20

See source.

Answer 21

Nowadays there is no copy of the original Bible.

Answer 22

I read all the previous answers. Some of them were pretty good. I felt that none addressed the issue in detail.



First, I'll assume that you are not a member of a sect that demands using the King James Version or any other particular version. (Unfortunately, most of these sects do not actually use the whole King James Version.)



At this stage you want to decide what your bible should contain. Do you want a bible that contains 1) all scripture or 2) a selection of scripture? Besides editions that contain all scripture, there are editions that contain only new testament books, others containing only books from the hebrew bible, and still others (the majority) which exclude several books in a somewhat cavalier fashion.



I will assume that you intend to read the entire bible, or at least wish to have the entire bible at your disposal. In this case, you must obtain a bible that includes the Apocrypha. There are some sects teaching that the apocrypha is not inspired scripture, and if you are a member of one of these sects then simply avoid the editions which contain these books. Otherwise, there is no reason to avoid the so-called apocrypha and every reason to get a bible which includes them. Here is a more in-depth discussion about this topic: http://www.jimpettis.com/bibles/dc.htm .



In my conclusion I will consider two cases:

1) You want a "complete" bible (Complete)

2) You don't care if the apocrypha is included or not (Open)



The next stage is to decide if you want a bible merely for reading and learning the text of the bible itself, or if you intend to study scripture more deeply and intensely in order to gain a greater understanding and to help you interpret the scriptures accurately. This is the difference between a "standard" edition bible and a (scholarly) study bible. I will refer to this as "purpose" when I make recommendations below.



Finally, you need to decide whether you want a translation that offers 1) ease of reading 2) literalness of translation or 3) accuracy of translation. I separate these even though they are not *necessarily* mutually exclusive. Different versions *do* (must) follow primarily one of these three criteria, however, and so should you when you make a decision. I will refer to this as "style" when I make recommendations below.



A note about the King James Version: although excellent for its time, and including nearly the entire body of scripture, as well as marginal notes from the translators providing possible alternate translations (making it a passable study bible), the King James Version uses 400-year-old English, 400-year-old scholarship (read: they didn't know as much as scholars today), and texts that lacked the last 400 years of archaeological discoveries. By no means was the King James Version the first English version of the bible. It's main advantage today is that most people use some form of the King James Bible and it is often useful to use the same version as others in discussions of scripture.



Recommendations: you can look at a fairly thorough comparison of technical details of different versions here: http://www.jimpettis.com/bibles/chart.htm , but what follows is my recommendations.



Comparisons of "literalness" of translation can be found here: http://www.preceptaustin.org/tool_commentary.htm#obt and here: http://www.cs.indiana.edu/~port/teach/relg/bible.scale.html and here: http://www.zondervan.com/images/cms/Bibles/bible_transchrt_js.jpg



Style: Translated for Ease of Reading

....Purpose: Reading (Ease of Reading is not a relevant style for a study bible purpose)

........Content: Complete

............CEV (Contemporary English Version) - may have difficulty finding a complete version in print, but available as an e-book on CD. Second choice: NAB (New American Bible) - not as easy to read but still easy, translation accuracy may be slanted slightly by Roman Catholic bias.



Style: Translated for Ease of Reading

....Purpose: Reading

........Content: Open

............NIV (New International Version) - one of the easiest-to-read modern translations with higher marks for accuracy than most easy-to-read bibles



Style: Literalness of Translation

....Purpose: Study

........Content: Complete

............RSV (Revised Standard Version), New Oxford Annotated Bible - one of the most literal translations with some of the most scholarly study notes, though somewhat archaic language. 2nd choice: NET (New English Translation) - literalness uncertain but copious translator's notes help the reader achieve this goal. Deutero-canonicals incomplete.



Style: Literalness of Translation

....Purpose: Study

........Content: Open

............NASB (New American Standard Version), Scofield Study Bible - most literal modern translation, but study notes are for the most part independent of the translation. 2nd choice: RSV (Revised Standard Version), New Oxford Annotated Bible - not as literal as the NASB but more comprehensive and scholarly study notes.



Style: Literalness of Translation

....Purpose: Reading

........Content: Complete

............RSV (Revised Standard Version) - most literal complete version, but somewhat archaic language



Style: Literalness of Translation

....Purpose: Reading

........Content: Open

............NASB (New American Standard Version) - most literal modern-text bible, high marks for accuracy



Style: Accuracy of Translation

....Purpose: Study

........Content: Complete

............NJB (New Jerusalem Bible), Regular Edition - copious study notes, word use demonstrates great concern for accuracy of translation, my favorite version, now hard to find. 2nd choice: NRSV (New Revised Standard Version), The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Augmented Third Edition - includes complete deutero-canonicals, excellent scholarly study notes on par with NJB, but translation suffers slightly from over-zealous use of "inclusive" language



Style: Accuracy of Translation

....Purpose: Study

........Content: Open

............Same as above. New Oxford Annotated available without the Apocrypha.



Style: Accuracy of Translation

....Purpose: Reading

........Content: Complete

............NJB (New Jerusalem Bible), Reader's Edition. 2nd choice: NET (New English Translation) - copious translator's notes may make this the most accurate translation, but requires study to absorb the translation; deutero-canonicals incomplete.



Style: Accuracy of Translation

....Purpose: Reading

........Content: Open

............NJB (New Jerusalem Bible), Reader's Edition. 2nd choice: NET (New English Translation). 3rd choice: NIV (New International Version) - highly regarded non-biased translation, not as careful as NJB but easier to read.





Recommendations for the true bible student (who doesn't know Greek or Hebrew):

1) Software including NASB, KJV, NRSV, NJB and NIV - I use Ellis (lacks NIV) but there is at least one other *affordable* (under $100) package providing this selection. Make certain a Strong's Concordance is also included.



2) NJB Regular Edition - get it if you can, don't settle for the Standard Edition.



3) NASB - make certain to get the latest version. Get it in print if your software doesn't have it. Most literal translation.



4) The New Oxford Annotated Bible with the Apocrypha, Augmented Third Edition - NRSV translation is over-zealous with inclusive language but the study notes are invaluable, perhaps better and less biased than NJB.



5) Oxford Authorized King James Version with Apocrypha - the complete books of the 1611 King James Version with printers errors removed and spelling modernized. No marginal notes.



6) KJV New Cambridge Paragraph Bible with the Apocrypha - the complete 1611 edition, *including* marginal notes, with modernized spelling. Probably more valuable than 5), but it's a tough call.



7) A good bible dictionary, such as HarperCollins Bible Dictionary. There are a few equally good alternatives.



Honorable mentions:



1) Tanakh, 1995 edition, by the Jewish Publication Society - scholarly translation of the Hebrew Bible by Jewish scholars, very highly regarded.



2) NWT (New World Translation), With References - a very literal bible with some excellent though incomplete study notes. Shows significant but infrequent Jehovah's Witness bias and is available only from the WatchTower Organization (Jehovah's Witnesses). Reading this with the awareness of the bias (which is mostly documented in the bible itself) can be quite worthwhile to a student of the bible.



I hope this helps.



Jim, http://www.jimpettis.com/wheel/