There has been a topic that appears on the (Blind Christians) list from time to time, concerning versions of the bible. Which one is best, which one people prefer, etc. I have my preferences that I like and tend to like the ones that are readable, yet are true to original texts.
Some will swear by the good old KJV. The Authorized Version. I use it for study purposes sometimes. Some folks put too much weight on it and claim such nonsense that it is the language that Jesus spoke. In reality he likely spoke a combination of Hebrew (his national language), Aramaic (the common language of the people of the area), and maybe even some Latin or Greek (the language of the reigning governments). Who reads any of those any more? So how accurate are our English translations, including the King James? For the most part really pretty accurate.
I don't do a lot of study like the stuff that follows. Well, probably more than I want to admit but not enough to be publishing my own version of scripture any time soon. I make no claims to even know Greek and would be totally lost if some one were to break out in conversation with me in Greek. All I know I have gleaned from my copy of Strong's Dictionary, a version of the KJV that has been marked up with Strong's numbers and a copy of Scribner's Greek New Testament. I do the same thing in the Old Testament but I don't have a very good copy, or a very complete copy of the Hebrew language text.
What I do is to paste a short patch of Greek text into a notepad file, then open my Strong's KJV and look up each number that he has listed. I compare the root word he lists to what sometimes only vaguely resembles a Greek word in Scribner's. I say vaguely because of tenses of the word can make it very different from the root word. Finally, I look at the definitions that the word might mean, depending on it's context and stand on the shoulders of other's who have translated the scriptures over the centuries and try to pick the best word or phrase that fits. Most of the time my result ends up being awful close to what others have done. Just going through the process can shed worlds of light on scriptures that have been read and reread to the point of losing their meaning to me.
I mentioned different tenses of Greek words. It may sound wierd how the Greeks can butcher a simple word like the word, "the". It shows up in what seems as hundreds of shapes and sizes. There is a version for each gender, (male, female, and neuter) It has different forms to indicate singular, plural, having possession of something. And the list goes on. As I said I'm far from expert at it and when in doubt, I bail out and take it for granted that the translators of the KJV were smarter than me at languages.
Below I have included an annotated section from John 1:1-14. Pretty much the first paragraph of John. Use your own favorite translation of English text to compare it to. I chose this passage because once upon a time, a person who I worked with used the first few verses of John 1 to try to convince me that Jesus wasn't really God. That Jesus was only a man and not truely God in any shape or form. A prophet, certainly, a teacher and healer, surely, but in no way a divinity or omnipresent, omnipotent or omniscient.
I didn't have a responce to him at that time. I asked him if he gained his knowledge by reading the Greek or whether he trusted his own teaching from others and from a possible flawed translation of the scriptures. He told me he didn't even know where to get a Greek copy of the Bible and would know how to read if he did. After all these years, I have at least made the effort to give him his answer. Based on what I have found by my efforts, I still believe what I always have, that Jesus is the Messiah. That he indeed was a man, made of flesh and blood, but also just as much entirely God. It is a mystery to me but we were never meant to understand all that God does or has in store for us.
Let me know what you all think. I can send in more passages like this but it is somewhat time consuming and I do it at irregular intervals. If you think it is a waste of energy or something that nobody else but me is interested in, I won't (post this type of thing) any more. Well, at least not very often.
enjoy
1 en G1722 in arxh G0746 beginning/commencement hn G2258 was o G3588 the logoj G3056 word kai G2532 and o G3588 the logoj G3056 word hn G2258 was proj G4314 with/beside/nearby/towards ton G3588 the qeon G2316 God kai G2532 and qeoj G2316 God hn G2258 was o G3588 the logoj G3056 word 2 outoj the-same (lit. the-he) hn G2258 was en G1722 in arxh G0746 beginning/commencement proj G4314 with/beside/nearby/towards ton qeon G2316 God 3 panta G3956 all-things di G1223 via/through autou G0846 of-him egeneto G1096 was-being-made kai G2532 and xwrij G5565 separately/apart-from autou G0846 of-him egeneto G1096 was-being-made oude G3761 neither/not-even en G1520 one-thing o G3739 that gegonen G1096 was-made 4 en G1722 in autw G0846 him zwh G2222 life hn G2258 was kai G2532 and h G3588 the zwh G2222 life hn G2258 was to G3588 the fwj G5457 light/shine twn G3588 of-the anqrwpwn G0444 men/humans 5 kai G2532 and to G3588 the fwj G5457 light/shine en G1722 in th G3588 the skotia G4653 dimness/obscurity/darkness fainei G5316 shines/lightens kai G2532 and h G3588 the skotia G4653 dimness/obscurity/darkness auto G0846 it ou G3756 not katelaben G2638 seized/take-eagerly 6 egeneto G1096 was-being-made/became anqrwpoj G0444 a-man/human apestalmenoj G0649 sent-out/on-a-mission/set-apart para G3844 from qeou G2316 of-god onoma G3686 name autw G0846 of-him iwannhj G2491 John (Jochanan, Jehovah favored) 7 outoj G3778 the-same (lit. the-he) hlqen G2064 came eij G1519 enter-into marturian G3141 a-witness ina G2443 in-order-that marturhsh G3140 testify/being-a-witness peri G4012 around tou G3588 of-the fwtoj G5457 light ina G2443 in-order-that pantej G3956 all-those pisteuswsin G4100 they-might-believe di G1223 via/through autou G0846 of-him 8 ouk G3756 not hn G2258 was ekeinoj G1565 that-one-person to G3588 the fwj G5457 light all G0235 but-also/contrarywise ina G2443 in-order-that marturhsh G3140 testify/bearing-witness peri G4012 around tou G3588 the fwtoj G5457 9 hn G2258 was to G3588 the fwj G5457 light to alhqinon G0228 truth o G3739 which fwtizei G5461 shed-light/shone panta G3956 all-those anqrwpon G0444 men/humans erxomenon G2064 comes eij G1519 enter-into ton G3588 the kosmon G2889 world (orderly arrangement) 10 en G1722 in tw G3588 the kosmw G2889 world hn G2258 he-was kai G2532 and o G3588 the kosmoj G2889 world di G1223 via/through autou G0846 of-him egeneto G1096 was-being-made/came-to-be kai G2532 and o G3588 the kosmoj G2889 world auton G0846 him ouk G3756 not egnw was-knowing 11 eij G1519 enter-into ta idia G2398 his-own hlqen G2064 came kai G2532 and oi idioi G2398 ones-of-his-own auton G0846 him ou G3756 not parelabon G3880 received 12 osoi G3745 as-many-as de G1161 but-also elabon G2983 taking auton G0846 him edwken G1325 gave-to-them autoij G0846 them ecousian G1849 priveledge/ability/power tekna G5043 children qeou G2316 of-God genesqai G1096 to-become toij G3588 the pisteuousin G4100 believing-ones eij G1519 enter-into to onoma G3686 name autou G0846 of-his 13 oi G3739 which ouk G3756 not ec G1537 from/origin aimatwn G0129 of-blood oude G3761 not ek G1537 from/origin qelhmatoj G2307 choice/determination/will sarkoj G4561 flesh oude G3761 nor/neither ek G1537 from/origin qelhmatoj G2307 choice/determination/will androj G0435 of-a-man all G0235 but-also/contrarywise ek G1537 from/origin qeou G2316 of-god egennhqhsan G1080 were-born 14 kai G2532 and o G3588 the logoj G3056 word sarc G4561 flesh egeneto G1096 was-made-to-become kai G2532 and eskhnwsen G4637 encamped/resided/communed-with en G1722 in hmin G2254 with-us kai G2532 and eqeasameqa G2300 we-were-closely-looking-at thn docan G1391 glory autou G0846 of-his docan G1391 glory wj G5613 as monogenouj G3439 only-born para G3844 near/from/beside/with patroj G3962 father plhrhj G4134 complete/full xaritoj G5485 grace kai G2532 and alhqeiajG0225 truth