I would like to comment on some news related to the Bible. I intended to comment on some of those for a long time; thankfully, now I can 🙂
1. ESV Sales Growing at a Fast Clip Worldwide. It is no secret that I am very fond of the ESV, which I regard as the best contemporary English Bible translation available. This post on the ESV blog says that I am not alone on my appraisal. Right now the ESV is distributed through partnerships with such powerhouses as the British and Foreign Bible Society, the American Bible Society, the Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, and the United Bible Societies. Furthermore, it is being increasingly used by Anglican and other churches worldwide; for example, in Singapore, the ESV is the selected translation at national cathedral of the Anglican Church. For once, it is heartwarming to see such «mainline» organizations and denominations turning to a literal, conservative translation.
2. Daily Office Lectionary from the Book of Common Prayer Available Online in the ESV. The folks at the ESV website came up with this wonderful new service. From now on, you will see a link to it under the «Liturgy» section of my sidebar. So, if you are liturgically minded, this is a great way to read the Bible daily.
3. Cheyenne Bible dedicated. Wayne Lehman of Better Bibles Blog fame recollects the wonderful time they had dedicating the Cheyenne Bible after several years of hard work. The Lord blessed the efforts of the translators, and now the Cheyenne people have the Bible in their own language. Kudos to all of them!
4. Words and Relevance: Removing Repentance is Unjustified. In this post, as well as in its sequel, Language: Don’t Lose It – Use It, Catez (of Allthings2all fame) makes a great case for the forensic/theological specialized terminology found in the Bible, and especially in the New Testament. (Incidentally, this is a response to a statement made by Wayne Lehman.) I was wondering about taking the subject for some time, but Catez said everything I wanted to, and much better. Therefore, this is strongly recommended reading.
Hi.
Thanks for pointing out Catez’s pieces. I felt prompted to respond on his site – I’m not sure I entirely agree with him, but I can see arguments both ways. I guess the choice is between accuracy for study purposes on the one hand and accessability for evangelism on the other hand. Where I live (UK) I feel that church life is far too inward looking, and that probably explains my bias.
Personally I use the NIV, which is ok if not brilliant in most situations. And I really don’t like it when people read “The Message” in church …
I’d be interested on your thoughts on Spanish translations of the Bible. Is there the same debate over the word “propiciación” – if that’s even a legitimate Spanish word?
Tom
My next Bible purchase will be the Geneva version.
Do you know where the ESV translators got the little Paragraph markers? There is no notation, yet there are 9 paragraph markers in Gen 1 alone. I see no info in the introduction. Any thoughts?
thanks,
Ruchamah