Restitutio

Colossians 1.15 presents an interesting test case to examine translation bias.  Well-meaning Bible students have taken this text in at least three different ways.  However, some translators, motivated by a fear that readers might see Christ as a member of creation, have increasingly pushed for translating this text so that it says Christ is superior to all creation and thus on the creator side of...

How should translators render the word προκσυνέω ( proskuneo ) into English?  Since this word has a range of meanings from bowing as a sign of respect to worshiping God, translators sometimes decide what English words to use based more on their theological presuppositions than the grammar or textual context.  For example, some translations (mostly those done by evangelicals) employ the language of...

This is our first of five examples of bias in translation. Today we’ll examine Philippians 2.6-7, specifically focusing on how translators render two important words (ἁρπαγμός harpagmon and μορφή morphe ). We’ll see how a couple of the most popular evangelical versions break free from the underlying Greek syntax in order to inject their own doctrinal bias into scripture. Regardless of...

Last time we evaluated two popular single-translator Bibles: the Message and the Passion Translation.  This time, we’re switching gears to consider committee-based versions.  I want to shine a spotlight on the whole subject of bias in translation in an effort to point out what often goes unnoticed.  We’ll consider both the committee effect that tends to eliminate non-traditional render...

Last time we looked at the King James version which is one of the strictest formal equivalence Bibles every made.  This time we are going to analyze two Bibles on the other end of the spectrum: the Message Bible and the Passion Translation.  These two versions share a number of characteristics in common.  For example both are very popular, both were done by single translators, and both employ a ve...

What do you know about the King James Version?  Is it an accurate translation?  Does it have flaws?  Should you use it as a measuring stick for other translations?  In today’s episode, we’ll cover the making of the KJV of the Bible, going back to William Tyndale’s courageous work before delving into four areas of evaluation.  We’ll examine the KJV’s manuscript base, t...

Did you know that controversies surrounding how to translate gender in the Bible had a major impact on Bible translation over the last 30 years?  In this episode we’ll briefly overview various feminist movements before examining the NRSV, which proved to be a forerunner for gender inclusive Bible translations.  Next we’ll take a journey through the NIVI and TNIV controversies at the tu...

Last time we focused on the two main translation theories: formal and dynamic equivalence.  This time, we need to take a look at five major default decisions translation teams make at the outset. Units of Measurement and Currency Hebrew Idioms English Vocabulary Editorial Enhancements God’s Name By becoming familiar with these five topics, you’ll be able to better assess English Bible...

Up until now we’ve focused our attention on the text of Scripture.  We took five episodes looking at the Hebrew Bible, including it’s sources, transmission, and how textual scholars go about deciding the initial text.  Then for the last seven episodes we did the same for the New Testament, examining the surviving source material and looking at the work of textual criticism.  Now, we ar...

Last time we covered two corrected corruptions (1 Timothy 3.16 and 1 John 5.7).  This time we’ll consider two uncorrected corruptions, including the long ending on Mark (16.9-20) and the passage about the adulterous woman that Jesus saves (John 7.53-8.11).  Although these two texts are not found in the earliest and best manuscripts and translators have known this for decades, they continue t...

Today we move from learning about manuscripts and textual criticism to actually doing textual criticism.  I’ve chosen two well-known corruptions to illustrate the process of textual criticism: 1 Timothy 3.16 and 1 John 5.7.  In each of these cases scribes have altered the text of scripture and we have the manuscript evidence to show exactly what happened. —— Books —— New Testament Text and T...

Last time we surveyed five hundred years of New Testament textual criticism.  Today we address the process by which these scholars have done and continue to do their work.  We’ll see how they weigh internal and external evidence.  We’ll cover reasoned eclecticism, the refined documentary approach, and the computer-driven coherence based genealogical method.  (Don’t worry if these...

Before we can understand how textual scholars do their work today, it’s important to understand the history of how they have endeavored to reconstruct the Greek New Testament over the years.  In this episode you’ll learn about the rich and important history of how our understanding of the Greek New Testament changed over the last five hundred years.  This history is vital for you to un...

We’ve been working our way through the various sources for our Greek New Testament.  We’ve looked at the papyri and the uncials, but there is so much more to consider.  In fact, the New Testament papyri and uncials combined make up less than 2% of our manuscripts.  Today, we’ll consider the other 98% of manuscripts including minuscules, lectionaries, quotations in the church fath...

Today we are moving into our second group of New Testament manuscripts–the uncials.  However, before describing them, we’ll need to focus on how Christian scribes went about their work.  As it turns out the situation is quite different than the Jewish scribes who preserved the Hebrew Bible.  Then we’ll follow the exciting career of Bible hunter Constantine Tischendorf as he broug...

Today we are shifting gears from the Old Testament to the New Testament, from Hebrew manuscripts to Greek ones.  We’ll begin with the earliest evidence for the Greek New Testament, the papyri.  Made from the papyrus plant, approximately 130 of these manuscripts survive today in museums around the world.  In this lecture you’ll learn the important role collectors like Chester Beatty and...

Today we are going to take a brief break from manuscripts and dip our toes into the pool of Bible translations.  Specifically, we’ll take a look at six of the most prominent Jewish translations of the Hebrew Bible, including: Jewish Publication Society (1917) Koren Jerusalem Bible (1961) New Jewish Publication Society (1985) Artscroll’s Stone Tanach (1996) Schocken Bible of Everett Fox (1995...

For our Hebrew Bibles we have three main groups of manuscripts to compare: the Masoretic Text group, the Samaritan Pentateuch group, and the Septuagint group.  Each of these groups contain many manuscripts with the Masoretic Text group containing the most.  In this episode of How We Got the Bible , we’re going to look at the history of how textual scholars have and continue to pour over all...

In How We Got the Bible , we’re continuing on in our quest to understand the sources for the Hebrew Bible.  We’ve already covered the Masoretic Text and the Dead Sea Scrolls, but we have one last important Hebrew source to look at before surveying several significant ancient translations.  As it turns out the Samaritans have their own Hebrew version of the Torah, commonly called the Sa...

Last time we looked at the Hebrew manuscripts known as the Masoretic Texts from the middle ages.  Today, we’ll focus on the earliest Hebrew manuscripts ever found, including those at the Cairo Genizah, the Ein-Gedi Scroll, the Nash Papyrus, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and the Ketef Hinnom Silver Scroll.  This is going to be very helpful for future lectures when we cover the process of figuring out...

Today we are beginning a major new class on how we get our English Bibles. I’m so excited about sharing with you so much about what I’ve learned in doing the research for this project. We’re going to have a great time together. My goal here is to cover the transmission of manuscripts and translation process so you understand where Bibles come from. In fact, I was thinking of call...

This is the fifth and final part of our parenting class .  Today you’ll learn about striking the balance between oversight and independence.  Although many parents today think their children are at risk of kidnapping and other terrible crimes, our society is actually much safer than it has been in decades.  The tendency to protect our children at all times has resulted in a culture of &#8220...

In part 4 of our parenting class , Ruth Finnegan tackles the issue of screen time for children.  Although technology itself is neutral, much of what our children spend their time doing with screens is self-destructive and worldly.  As parents our responsibility is to bring God and his scriptures into the family and curtail exposure to worldly entertainment.  Doing so may help prevent adolescent an...

Welcome to part three of our parenting class where Dr. Mary Ann Yaconis will help us deal with episodes of anger both within ourselves and our children.  This is such an important issue because childhood anger can lead to serious characterological disorders in adulthood if not dealt with appropriately.  In this episode you’ll learn about what’s underneath anger, what prevents anger, an...

In this the second part of our parenting seminar , we will broach the topic of disciplining children.  For many of us, this is the hardest part of parenting.  We’d rather enjoy harmony in our homes rather than having to lay down the law.  Even so, the scriptures call us to do the hard work of holding our children accountable.  In this brief but incredibly helpful episode, you’ll learn...