Learn to Read the Bible Effectively - How to Choose Which Translation to Read

There are many different English translations of the Bible but there are only two different ways in which it is translated

The Bible comes from a selection of manuscripts written over thousands of years. Some are very large and some are just fragments. They have been compiled by linguistic experts into a Bible based on the original languages (the Old Testament was written in Hebrew & Aramaic and the New Testament in Greek) into a document called the "Textus Receptus" or the "Received Text" from which our modern English versions are translated.

There are two basic ways of interpreting and translating this document into English.

1/- One way is to translate it word by word. I used to have a Bible called "The Interlinear Hebrew" version where the Old Testament was translated word for word, it was written right to left as the original Hebrew is. It is the most accurate way to translate but it is difficult to understand and very difficult to read. A similar version of the New Testament is called "The Diaglot".

2/- The other way, the translator looks at the original language with an understanding of the customs and idiom of the time, then determines the overall meaning of a particular passage and finds a way to say it in English with the same overall meaning. This produces a Bible which is much easier to read and understand. "The Message" version is a good example of this.

The only problem with this way is it assumes that the translator is able to accurately determine what the intent of the original writer was in every case. I suggest that no translator can do this and be totally right all the time.

There are a number of "middle of the road" type of translations which are good. I personally prefer "The New King James Version" but when I come across a passage I don't understand or have doubts about, I like to look at both a more literal version and a more readable version to try and clearly determine the true meaning of the original.

Also, please remember to always interpret any given verse within the context of the surrounding verses.

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