Bible Translations: Old & New February 4, 2013 Issue

Grazing through the Bible

Pauline Hutchinson

The King James Version of the Bible with its beautiful prose and poetry is much loved by many readers, including me. I’ve found that new translations, written since the finding and deciphering of the Dead Sea Scrolls, and scholars’ alternative translations from ancient Semitic languages and Hebrew and Greek texts, can also be enlightening.

Having read the King James Version from cover to cover, my next adventure is to read all the New Revised Standard Version under the title The New Oxford Annotated Bible. The annotations provide the historical background, details of people and times, customs and legends. They include the derivation of certain words, cross-reference text, and give alternative translations of certain passages.

Such translations help throw light on obscure statements or give a fresh understanding of familiar passages in the King James Bible. The Message by Eugene H. Peterson is also very helpful in this regard. 