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What about the translation of Scripture?
Our next link to the truth of God is the translation of Scripture. When the books of the Bible were written the modern languages we use today did not exist. The Old Testament was written in Hebrew with a few portions in Aramaic (primarily in Daniel 2-7 and Ezra 4,6,7). The New Testament was written in Greek during the Koine period when it was the commonly spoken language.

As long as God's people spoke the languages in which Scripture was inspired, translation was not necessary. As soon as that was no longer the case it became crucial that the word of God be put into the language of the people. In Nehemiah 8:8 we come to such a time when after the long captivity many of the Jews didn't know the Hebrew language. When Ezra read God's word to them, he and others with him explained the sense of what each passage was about.

Nehemiah 8:8 So they read distinctly from the book, in the Law of God; and they gave the sense, and helped them to understand the reading.

The New Testament Greek Scriptures often quote the Old Testament but they don't always translate it into Greek in the same way. Sometimes they quoted from the Septuagint, a commonly used Greek version of the Old Testament. At other times they directly translated the Hebrew or Aramaic texts themselves. Regardless of which method was used, the translation was presented as the authoritative word of God.

The authoritative use of translated Scripture by other inspired Scriptures indicates that there remains a "quality of inspiredness" that adheres to translations to the degree that they accurately represent the words and meaning of the original. This means that they may properly be called the Inspired Scriptures, and the Word of God. But we must keep in mind that they are only authoritative as they convey the meaning of the originals. Only the autographa in their original languages can be considered infallible and inerrant.

Some have questioned why it's important to defend inerrant and infallible autographa if we don't have them or if people primarily use translations. But the question ignores the underlying cause of inerrancy and infallibility. The biblical view of inspiration mandates that the autographa be without errors and perfect. They are God's words as he superintended the writers to convey exactly what he wanted them to say. These inspired writings become the canon by which everything else is tested. We use the human talents and textual data God provides to determine the text and translation to the best of our ability. But all the while we know that underlying them is a perfect original which God himself has preserved and superintended enough so that good versions of the Bible today may be confidently trusted as the very word of God.

In God's providence and by his provisions, translations have been used throughout the ages so that the people not speaking Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek would be able to read and know the inspired word of God.

Approaches to Translation
There are different approaches to the problem of translation. On the one hand some attempt to be very literal. Each word and grammatical form is put into a modern language with as much direct correspondence with the original as possible. The problem is that no perfect correspondence exists between any two languages. Every literal translation will seem a bit stiff in its attempt to transform ancient idioms and cultural references into modern times while remaining as close to the original words as possible. Good translations in one era become confusing in later times because of changes that take place in the development of the modern language used. For example, many of the good words chosen in 1611 for the King James Translation have a very different meaning in the 21st century. Examples of a literal approach include: the King James Version, the New King James Version, the English Standard Version, and the early edition of the New American Standard Bible.

On the other hand there is the approach to translation called "dynamic equivalence." This method attempts to find idiomatic expressions that correspond between the languages. This second method involves more interpretive information and often obscures similarities between passages intended to explain one another. While dynamically equivalent translations read better, they may limit possible interpretations to only those in the mind of the translator. Examples include: the New International Version, the Good News Bible, and the Living Bible which takes paraphrase to the extreme.

Since translation depends upon what the translator believes best communicates today what the original language said, they are influenced by the assumptions of the translator. Arminian Theology is clearly promoted in the Living Bible, a liberal slant is seen in some parts of the Revised Standard Version, and a conservative view of the Bible is evident in the New International Version even though it tends to be less literal.

The Use of Translations
For the purpose of the non-linquist who wants to study the Bible it is best for him to use a variety of translations and compare them to see where differences occur, and more study is needed. Study is best done using one of the more literal translation as a starting point (such as the New King James or the English Stadard Version), and then compare with something like the New International Version. It's good to use the more dynamically equivalent versions as you would a commentary on the passage being studied.

There is a wide variety of translations available on the Internet for those wanting to compare more broadly than their books shelves at home allow. Most search engines will bring up huge libraries of versions that can be studied free of charge.

There is no substitute for knowing the original languages. This is why most conservative denominations still require their pastors to have seminary credit in both Hebrew and Greek. There are also many good inter-linear Bibles and English dictionaries of the biblical languages available. Some computer programs allow you to click on words in an English text to find out what the original words were and meant. Students often use the Strong's Concordance or similar helps to look up the meanings of the original words. We will say more about that in the lesson on interpreting the Scriptures.

God's truth has been revealed specially to chosen men, and inscripturated by the act of infallible and inerrant inspiration to form a canon of truth. The work of determining the best text and clearest translation requires prayerful and scholarly study by diligent students of the word.

We are told to be like the Bereans. In Acts 17:11 it says of them, "These were more fair-minded than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness, and searched the Scriptures daily to find out whether these things were so."

Jesus said, "You search the Scriptures, because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is these that bear witness of Me;" (John 5:39).

The results of reconstructing the original text, translation, and interpretation are neither infallible, nor inerrant. Among fallible humans there will always be differences which can be positive and helpful if they drive us to work harder and more prayerfully to improve our understanding of God's word. Sadly, in that fallen estate, disagreements and debates can lead to schisms, and divisions. They account for denominational differences. We can settle these differences properly to the degree that we work together to discover the meaning of the original inspired autographa. This is the work of the Bible student which culminates in exegesis and application of the text. This will be the next and last topic in this series of studies in Prolegomena.

Questions for Review and Thought
1. To what degree are the translations of Scripture to be trusted?
2. What evidences do the Scriptures give us that assure us that translations of the Bible remain the authoritative Word of God?
3. What differing principles underlie modern approaches to translation?
4. How can the non-linguist go about a reliable study of the Scriptures?

(Bible quotations in this chapter are from the New King James Version unless otherwise noted.)