Why Are There So Many Different Versions Of The Bible?

• Defining The Issues: 

          -Several translations of the Bible have been produced in the English language and are in circulation today. Christians read from the King James Version, New King James Version, New American Standard Bible, New International Version, and others. Church groups often recommend specific translations over others and use them in pulpits. In fact, one may mistakenly infer that the existence of multiple editions of the Bible is a major cause of division throughout the church or that the manuscripts which underlie them are unreliable. There are different translations, which contain deviations in wording, sentence structure, and even sometimes differences in chapter verses. While it cannot be denied that some people are motivated by greed in producing them, the fact that so many exist showcases just how much the Bible has been revered and influential.

• Bible Translation Or Version? 

          -The word "version" is not necessarily the best way to describe a translation of a religious text. The science of translation works to find equivalents in one language so that different languages are able to maintain communication and understanding. Thus, the word "version" can give the misleading implication of intentional alteration or perversion with malicious motives. Generally speaking, the process of translating works to make deciphering a message in a foreign language possible to others. Creating a version of something can imply carving out wanted portions of any given text to fit one's underlying biases. In a sense, translating ancient manuscripts from different languages is no different than translating the words of a speaker from another country such as a foreign diplomat giving a news conference.

• Why There Are Many Different Bible Translations?:

          -Different translations of the Bible exist because there have been more manuscript findings over time. Different groups of scholars knowledgeable in the languages of Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic have collaborated at different periods of time to develop them. Various words are suggested and rejected in the involved process of translating. Words have a semantic range or a variety of meanings in a group of words that are appropriate to use depending on context. For example, the word "angry" has other words with similar connotations like mad, upset, irate, vehement, furious, and enraged. Those terms differ in degrees of forcefulness and may thus not fully convey what a person intends to say in various contexts. Hebrew and Greek syntax can even be obscure in certain parts of our manuscripts. Discoveries of textual, linguistic, and archaeological nature necessitate the improvement to already existing translations or the creation of entirely new ones. The meaning of the text, when considered in its entirety, overwhelmingly remains the same. There is, therefore, still one Bible.

          -The science of translation involves explanation or interpretation, since it is a process of making something known that could not otherwise have been known to those unfamiliar with such languages. Shades of Hebrew and Greek are inevitably lost to a degree in translation (this is true of translating any text from one language to another), which is good reason for one to have at least two to three different translations of the Bible. One cannot have perfect knowledge about such, unless he knows the original languages for himself. Further, words have changed in their meaning since four hundred years ago when Elizabethan English was spoken. A good example of this would be the word "gay" which is used in the King James Version of the Bible and how that same word is used today. How could Christians be required to agree on only one edition of the Bible when it needs to be translated into different languages beside English?

• Which Bible Translation Is The Best One To Read From?:

          -The three types of translations of the Bible available to us are word-for-word, thought-for-thought, and paraphrase. All existing contain their own weaknesses and imperfections. They were produced by fallible men, who did not have an inerrant set of manuscripts given to them. No one can claim that any existing manuscripts today are inspired by God in the same sense as the original text, since we cannot compare them to the first manuscripts of the Old and New Testaments. Whether we like it or not, there are certain limitations that we have no choice but to accept. Reliable translations convey accurately to a considerable degree what the authors of the biblical text said. The general similarity of wording present amongst them is nothing short of impressive. This is a matter for which disagreement can exist, and which does happen. Therefore, the answer to the question of which Bible is the best would be the one that an individual chooses to read. This is not to say, however, that all translations of the Bible are good or equally good. One also needs a primary translation to use for textual analysis.