Misquotes, errors, omissions in Bible translations

by LockedChaos 4 Replies latest watchtower bible

• 

  LockedChaos

  Been having another fine

  husband, wife theological discussion

  This one was on why so many

  Bible translations that can vary

  A LOT from each other - OT and NT

  (Certain disadvantage to possessing an

  extensive, evergrowing library)

  Was it simple scriber error or was it

  blatent addition to the original content

  Then comes up "When were these things

  written anyway and by whom?"

  I've read quite a bit on the OT

  Not so ever much on the NT

  (I'll keep the Gods (gods) name thing

  out of this conversation maybe)

  Any thoughts

  Anyone??

  I appreciate them all
• 

  hamilcarr

  Probably because every translation is an interpretation of the original text. Even though many Greek/Hebrew words have an equivalent in modern languages, we lack the sociocultural luggage to translate them accurately. Instead of including contextual factors, many have forced their own interpretation to the text.
• 

  Leolaia

  Yes, a combination of issues with the text itself and the inherent imperfections with translation. You should take a look at Bart Ehrman's Misquoting Jesus for a look at the former. As for the latter, the philological training, experience, and personal bias (as well as literary skill) of the translator matter a great deal.
• 

  Narkissos

  As a rule of thumb, when whole verses, sentences, or names/titles (such as "God," "Jesus," "Christ") seem to be missing in a relatively new translation (from the 20th or 21th century) as compared to an older or traditional one (like the KJV or NKJV), this is usually a textual issue, and the more recent and shorter translation has a good chance of reflecting an older reading, as found in the earliest available manuscripts. Iow, the charge of willful and unwarranted omission in a recent Bible (including the NWT) is generally wrong.

  When something seems to be added this is often a case of overtranslation (a rather frequent flaw in the NWT), usually extrapolating from a lexicon definition or explanation (which may be correct in some contexts, yet not a valid translation, and certainly not to be applied to any context).

  When nothing seems to be missing or added but the wording (and possibly meaning) is simply different each case must be assessed on its own merits.
• 

  Perry

  I am putting together a website addressing this very thing:

  www.wordfamine.com