Question:
bible study i need a bible that is close as the original.?
john
2015-10-05 17:07:51 UTC
i need one that is not revised to make it all look good to feminists.
i need the most accurate translation to english out there.
not the one king james worded and manipulated for there own needs.
close to the original greek as possible but in english but not the old english words
is there such a thing?or what kind of bible should i use for bible study that is accurate and closest to the real words and not what men decided it should say.
please n thank-you
23 answers:
BJ
2015-10-05 21:26:00 UTC
Up until 1950 the teachings of Jehovah’s witnesses were based mainly upon the King James Version of the Bible, but in the course of years the publications of the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society in English alone have quoted from more than seventy (70) different Bible translations produced in Christendom.



This does not take into account the fact that our literature is published in more than 125 languages and that these foreign languages do not have the English New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures.



In all parts of the world Jehovah’s witnesses are proving their Bible-based beliefs to the people by the copy of the Bible that the householder may have or that he may recognize as authoritative.



So the New World Translation comes along merely as a confirmation of the correctness of the teachings of Jehovah’s witnesses and does not constitute the foundation of their teachings.





The KJ uses words that do not have the same meaning today as they did 400 years ago when the KJ was written, take 1 Cor. 10:25 it says (everything you find in the shambles you may eat) what does the word shambles mean to you today?



More than likely you would say ( a mess, this place is really a mess) the word shambles 400 years ago meant (a meat market) if a person was reading that scripture in the KJ they would not understand the meaning of the scripture.



The New World Translation of the Bible & some other translations corrects this scripture with the words (meat market) now you can understand the meaning of the scripture. There are also other words that have been corrected also.



Available in whole or in part in over 120 languages. For a complete list of languages, see www.jw.org.



Total Printed of All Editions of the New World Translation:

208,366,928 Copies

May 2014 Printing
Gloria
2015-10-05 18:15:34 UTC
The original manuscript of the New Testament has long been lost either through the ravages of time or more likely destroyed by the Catholic Church.. We do not have the originals of any of the books in the Bible. Before the invention of the printing press, books (originally scrolls) were copied by hand. Many copies were made of the biblical books for use in the early churches. What we have today are actually copies of copies. As far as what happened to the actual originals, we don't know but they probably deteriorated from use. Copies of the Greek manuscripts which we do possess today are kept in various museums and institutions, mostly located in Europe but there are a few in the United States. Scholars now must compare the various Greek manuscripts we have to try and determine what the original said. This process is known as textual criticism. The standard Greek texts of the New Testament are the Nestle-Aland 27th edition and the United Bibles Societies' 4th edition. They both contain footnotes throughout the text indicating where there are major differences between Greek manuscripts.



The Vulgate (/ˈvʌlɡeɪt, -ɡɪt/< the oldest known Bible, is a late fourth-century Latin translation of the Bible that became, during the 16th century, the Catholic Church's officially promulgated Latin version of the Bible.

The translation was largely the work of St. Jerome, who, in 382, was commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Vetus Latina ("Old Latin") collection of Biblical texts in Latin then in use by the Church. Once published, it was widely adopted and eventually eclipsed the Vetus Latina and, by the 13th century, was known as the "versio vulgata" [1] (the "version commonly-used") or, more simply, in Latin as vulgata or in Greek as βουλγάτα ("Vulgate").

It was made the Catholic Church's official Latin Bible as a consequence of the Council of Trent (1545–63).



The Textus Receptus from which many other Bibles are translated is largely the work of a Dutch scholar and priest who translated the Latin Vulgate back into Greek.



The closest English Bible to Erasmus' Textus Receptus, is the King James Bible. Since we do not have the original manuscripts of the Books of the New Testament, how much of the NT have been abrogated is anyone's guess. The best thing would be to study the King James Version and pray with a sincere heart that God will open your understanding to the truth.
cristoiglesia
2015-10-06 06:28:28 UTC
This is really an easy question for me as a former Bible translator. The best of the translations that are readable in English is the NRSV Catholic Edition. Be careful of so-called bibles that are not translations but instead are paraphrased versions of the Bible to support certain man-made doctrines like the NWT used by the Watchtower Corporation followers called ironically Jehovah Witnesses. God bless!



In Christ

Fr. Joseph
janaji63
2015-10-05 17:25:16 UTC
Sweetie there just isn't any bible out there closer translated from the original Greek & Hebrew texts than the King James. You might search for a Geneva Bible that was printed & translated in 1600. That's what I use in conjunction with a Scofield study bible. Be sure you get one with a good concordance in it. Then, if you want real spiritual meat, I would suggest you listen to some Les Feldick. He has all his material on his website in audio format. They are all free & I've never found better teaching material. You can find him at http://www.lesfeldick.org/ There is enough audio material to keep you busy & learning for years ! He's very easy to understand.
The Goat Nose
2015-10-05 17:26:06 UTC
Aside from the Greek and Hebrew versions try the New International Version. It's the most popular, but we generally use different translations to understand bias and literary style. The KJV is good for the poetry only. The ESV plays to the male gender.

It's important to stay true to the original translation or we would stray from the meaning using everyday language.



http://www.biblestudytools.com/bible-versions/
hillbilly
2015-10-05 17:31:02 UTC
Don't be misled by hearsay. The New King James Version has some printings using modern day English, not "Old English", and King James didn't contribute to the translation, he merely AUTHORIZED it to be translated into the English of his day, which then WAS modern English. The Dead Sea Scrolls found have the same text as the King James has. I was looking today for a Schofield Study Bible in large print, but didn't find one at Barns and Noble.
Kirei
2015-10-05 17:36:45 UTC
I use Bible Hub for checking verses and such.

You can compare versions, see the Hebrew and Greek verses with translations, see similar verses, etc.



As for a good Bible version...well, I am not sure.

Most of them have their faults, as some try to cover up issues or just translate the books oddly.

I mostly read the NIV and KJV, since they kind of cancel out the flaws together.
capitalgentleman
2015-10-05 17:55:32 UTC
Word for word combinations often don't work, as literal translations often make no sense. E.g., natives where I live say "drin hozo" to great each other. This literally translates to "day good." If you said day good to someone, they would have little idea of what you were talking about.



The NRSV is a very scholarly translation, and very close to word for word, with some reordering so that the wording makes sense. E.g., "drin hozo" would come out as "good day," whereas a translation like the NIV might render it "hello." The NIV is another excellent translation, but, it is more essence based. It is, however, an easier read than the NRSV.
Robert
2015-10-05 18:38:37 UTC
It is impossible to get such a document after being in the custody of religion for over 2000 years. During this period, the documents have been copied several times, when the original documents became unusable with time.
Linda
2015-10-05 17:38:52 UTC
The New World Translation published by Jehovah's witnesses is considered by scholars to be the most accurate. It is constantly scrutinized by an international team, comparing it to the oldest manuscripts available. When the slightest error is found, it is revised. I understand they are getting ready to revise it again.



The KJV has some very nice poetic structure in many places but it was printed in 1611 from a copy of a copy and has subsequently been found to have over 30,000 errors of translation. The truth is still there but it is harder to find.
?
2015-10-06 04:05:26 UTC
Feminist happy??? I am pretty sure every last one contains rape and murder. And oh you gave the best answer to a Jehovah Witness a 100 and something religion a baby compared to the ones that have been around for longer. I smell falsehood and the pure chance to market a religion. Did you really think no one would catch that?
anonymous
2015-10-05 17:17:37 UTC
Get a copy of the Greek interlinear from Jehovah's witnesses the book shows you the original language and the exact English word for it in plain American english
anonymous
2015-10-05 17:10:45 UTC
A person can better know the true meanings of verses from the Bible if he or she meditates on them while saying Hail Marys with care.
User
2015-10-05 20:03:45 UTC
Well...unfortunately, to some degree you are asking for conflicting things. But yes: there are translations that should suit your purpose.



First, the conflict: basically there is a conflict between:

a - most accurate translation

b - as close to the original Greek as possible



And the reason is this: English and Greek grammar are quite different (and also the other two Biblical languages, Hebrew and Aramaic). So, the quandary that results is this:

- Formal Equivalence translation methodology - sometimes called a "word for word" translation - the wording and the style is much more similar to the Greek, but the English is more stilted and the translation tends to be less accurate because the meanings of individual words instead of the meanings of entire phrases is rendered into English

- Dynamic Equivalence translation methodology - sometimes called a "thought for thought" translation - the reading is much less stilted and the translation tends to be more accurate, but also there is a greater tendency for translator bias to be injected into the translation



More info, a chart summarizing the benefits and consequences of these two translation methodologies (and a middle ground methodology and a fourth methodology that is not relevant to your purpose)

http://www.bibleselector.com/c_tm_wc.html?#Chart



Based on what you have written, I conclude that **accuracy of translation** is more important to you than **closeness to the original language grammar and wording**.



In my amateur, subjective but well-researched opinion, these are the best (most accurate and precise) English translations available at the current time, in order.

- New Jerusalem Bible

- Revised English Bible

- New Revised Standard Version

- Holman Christian Standard Bible 2010

- New International Version 2011



**Keeping those particular translations in mind**, I think it would benefit you to work your way through this step-by-step guide:

http://www.bibleselector.com/c_canon.html



If you don't want to work your way through that guide, here are my specific recommendations for someone

- who wants a translation without sectarian bias

- who wants the most accurate and precise translation possible and considers that more important than closeness to original language wording and grammar



#1 - New Jerusalem Bible

- - pros - -

- !important! - uses non-traditional wording in cases where the traditional wording is not the most precise or most accurate choice

- very unbiased translation in my opinion

- not a "compromise" translation where scholars from different Christian sects vote on wording and reach a compromise

- includes the Roman Catholic Deuterocanon (but see below)

- - cons - -

- available only with the Roman Catholic Deuterocanon, so there is no edition with the full English Protestant Apocrypha and there is no 66-book (contents favored by conservative Protestants) edition

- reading level is average (7th grade), which means it is slightly lower than is best for precision

- inclusive language use is average, which means it is less than ideal

- some readers may object to the somewhat frequent use of non-traditional wording, even though it noticeably improves the precision of the translation





#2 - Revised English Bible

- - pros - -

- very unbiased translation in my opinion

- available in two editions

- - - with Apocrypha (full English Protestant Apocrypha)

- - - 66-book edition (conservative Protestant)

- reading level is above average (10th grade), which tends to result in improved precision

- inclusive language use is nearly but not quite ideal

- - cons - -

- a "compromise" translation (such translations are described as "ecumenical" in the industry) where scholars from different Christian sects voted on wording and reach a compromise

- relies on traditional wording, which results in reduced precision in comparison to the New Jerusalem Bible





#3 New Revised Standard Version

- - pros - -

- very unbiased translation in my opinion

- available in three editions

- - - with Apocrypha (full Eastern Orthodox Apocrypha, the most inclusive, ideal)

- - - Catholic Edition (73 books)

- - - 66-book edition (conservative Protestant)

- reading level is above average (9th grade), which tends to result in improved precision

- has plentiful, terse but valuable translators' notes which provide alternate readings, a *very* nice feature

- - cons - -

- a "compromise" translation where scholars from different Christian sects voted on wording and reach a compromise

- relies on traditional wording, which results in reduced precision in comparison to the New Jerusalem Bible

- inclusive language use is excessive, as far as possible from the ideal

- more word-for-word literal than is best for accuracy, and for this reason and the inclusive language reason, I judge this translation slightly less accurate and precise than the previous two selections (but still very good)
Guru Hank
2015-10-05 17:36:52 UTC
The New World Translation is about as good as you are going to get.
anonymous
2015-10-05 17:15:17 UTC
the king james is close to the original .. it may have a 'romantic' flare in the elizebethan english is all .. if you think its been changed and manipulated youve been lied to, no other literary work i know of went through the scholarly scrutiny the king james did when it was put together ..
anonymous
2015-10-05 17:33:07 UTC
use a catholic bible.it has the full 73 books which were in the original bible
FAT MAN
2015-10-05 17:20:09 UTC
Darby Literal Translation is pretty good.



"In the issue of this translation, the purpose is not to offer to the man of letters a learned work, but rather to provide the simple and unlearned reader with as exact a translation as possible." - JN Darby, author. (1890)



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Darby_Bible
Dollar Bill
2015-10-05 17:22:10 UTC
http://www.biblestudy.org/question/which-bible-translation-is-closes-to-original-manuscripts.html
Beryllium
2015-10-05 17:08:36 UTC
The Torah.
Wes
2015-10-06 08:07:20 UTC
JW troll question for JW
anonymous
2015-10-05 17:09:09 UTC
Get one in Greek/Hewbrew
anonymous
2015-10-05 17:09:57 UTC
Try the KJV it's the first version of it


This content was originally posted on Y! Answers, a Q&A website that shut down in 2021.
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