Use of Parentheses ( ), Brackets [ ] and italic letters in Bible Text

by male30baroda 6 Replies latest watchtower bible

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  male30baroda

  In the Bible text translators use a parentheses and Brackets. Like in

  1. John 7: 50 KJV reads: ? Nicodemus saith unto them, (he that came to Jesus by night, being one of them,)?

  2. John 8:24 KJV reads: ?I said therefore unto you, that ye shall die in your sins: for if ye believe not that I am he, ye shall die in your sins.?

  3. Matthew 18:11 HCSB reads: [For the Son of Man has come to save the lost.]

  My question is why they wrap texrt in ( ), [ ] and italic text?

  What do these symbols mean to original bible canon text?
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  Narkissos

  It depends on which Bible version you use. Normally the special use of signs and symbols is explained in an introduction or foreword at the beginning of the book.

  As to your examples,

  John 7:50: the parentheses are used as a simple punctuation sign, according to the meaning of the text; they are not an indication of textual criticism: what is enclosed is part of the older manuscripts and retained as (relatively) original; but logically it forms an incidental remark in the sentence (and for this reason might be thought to be an early gloss or addition, but this is not what the parentheses mean in the book).

  John 8:24: here I suspect that italics are used, not for common emphasis, but rather to indicate that the "he" has no formal correspondence in the Greek text; egô eimi (lit. "I am") is globally translated as "I am He", so that formally the "he" is perceived as "added for the sake of meaning".

  Matthew 18:11: here the brackets indicate that the text was not part of the original of Matthew, and was added in traditional manuscripts at a later stage, under the influence of Luke 19:10.
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  Leolaia

  In the case of Matthew 18:11, this is a verse with dubious textual support and is deleted in many translations. The brackets would thus indicate a passage that may not belong to the original text.

  The italics is usually used to indicate a word that has been added to make sense in English but which is not present in the original Greek.

  The parentheses in John 7:50 appear to be marking a parenthetical digression, since usually the quotation appears right after the clause containing the introductory formula -- while here the material in parentheses intervenes between the introductory clause ("Nocademus was saying to them") and the quotation itself.
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  Narkissos

  LOL. I think we basically agree...
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  euripides

  Sometimes brackets are used to excuse a great liberty taken by the editor or translator. Cf. 2 Sam. 21:19 where many translations, to avoid an unusual contradiction, include [the brother of] before the name Goliath. At least it's more textually honest that simply inserting the additional words without note.

  Euripides
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  Inkie

  Sometimes the parentheses as in Revelation 20:5 (about the rest of the dead not coming to life unitl after the thousand years) means that this verse in not in the original writing of the Apostle John. This is a verse the Society admits in several places is not in the original text of the Apostle John's Revelation. Yet, the Society explains the "meaning" of this verse despite the fact that the Society admits it is not in the original text. How does that work?

  The punctuation marks known as parentheses did not exist at the time John wrote the Revelation. The the Society's book explaining the book of Revelation, Its Grand Climax, states that the Holy Spirit "inserted" this verse at this location. Ooops, the Holy Spirit made a mistake and had to put in a parenthetical clause.

  Inkie
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  Narkissos

  Inkie,

  I don't think the parentheses in Revelation 20:5a NWT are meant as text-critical (although there would be some textual basis for that appraisal). Rather they are interpretative, considering the phrase as a side statement.

  The Revelation book reads:

  14

  Whom, though, will these kings judge if, as the apostle John here inserts, "(the rest of the dead did not come to life until the thousand years were ended)"? (Revelation 20:5a) Again, the expression "come to life" has to be understood according to context. This expression can have varying meanings in varying circumstances. For example, Paul said of his anointed fellow Christians: "It is you God made alive though you were dead in your trespasses and sins." (Ephesians 2:1) Yes, spirit-anointed Christians were "made alive," even in the first century, being declared righteous on the basis of their faith in Jesus? sacrifice.?Romans 3:23, 24

  So to the WT it is part of the original text. But the parentheses (and accompanying explanation) are added to avoid the obvious meaning of the text, namely that the resurrection occurs after and not during the millenium.