What is the most accurate version of the bible?
I am looking at a NLT (Chicken Soup for the Soul bible. A gift from my mom) and a KJV that I bought today.
Is there a version of the bible that is very accurate? I know there will never be a 100% accurate bible, but is there one that is close?
It is important to know that the King James Version is an (Old) English Translation of the Latin Vulgate, which was a translation from the original Greek.
Any versions that use the original Greek as their source are going to be less prone to error than a translation of a translation. There are many examples of King James translations where the translators just got it wrong. Now, I happen to like the NIV – it was a collaborative effort of many scholars using the original (and/or oldest) Greek Manuscripts available and when these old manuscripts differ, the NIV tells you so. The only challenge with the NIV is that it adds a LOT of words. The intent is to make it easier to read, but the translators did take some license that, in some cases, it could be argued they shouldn’t have.
If you want accurate, the Revised Standard Version (RSV) is good, it is just harder to read than the NIV and there aren’t many differences otherwise.
I hope this helps!
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May 30 2010 05:47 am | Bible
d.k.b.bff on 30 May 2010 at 11:12 am #
definitely the king james version (:
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Steve P - JW on 30 May 2010 at 12:00 pm #
New World Translation
Steve
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Bible
Dawn on 30 May 2010 at 12:31 pm #
The original Aramaic/Greek/Latin translated in English. These are supposed to be the best translations. They sell them at Christian book stores.
Beware of the NWT… sister this is the Jehovah Witness bible. Altered for their beliefs. You don’t want to go there.
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feyomi* on 30 May 2010 at 12:44 pm #
Something Jewish.
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denise t on 30 May 2010 at 1:33 pm #
New American Bible
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Irv S on 30 May 2010 at 2:14 pm #
None in English.
The trnaslation path was Grek and aramaic to latin, latin to edited latin,
and finally to ‘common’ languages.
The KJ version deliberately restricted itself to a ‘common’ vocabulary and
a lot of detail was lost.
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JJ on 30 May 2010 at 2:39 pm #
KJV is the authorized version and the best version to read. It has been around like 400 years and is the oldest translation.
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andrew a on 30 May 2010 at 2:44 pm #
http://www.fbbc.com/messages/brinkworth_word_of_god.html
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Donny on 30 May 2010 at 2:51 pm #
The bible was written by men who were moved by the Holy Spirit. It was written in a language other than English. God knows that and He has also been able to protect the integrity of the bible for thousands of years and through many translations into thousands of languages. Any direct translation of the bible is accurate as long as you have the Holy Spirit as a guide. Without the Holy Spirit as a guide it makes no difference as to which translation you read. I would discourage you from reading a paraphrased edition which would not be a direct translation but that is just my opinion.
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Dave RC on 30 May 2010 at 3:25 pm #
The Bible has been translated many times and many different ways. No matter which Bible you use, much of it is not meant literally. One can better know which parts of the Bible are meant literally and which are not by praying the rosary regularly. See the following promises.
The rosary is explained here:
http://www.medjugorje.org/rosary.htm
The fifteen promises of Mary to Christians who recite the rosary:
1. Whoever shall faithfully serve me by the recitation of the Rosary shall receive signal graces.
2. I promise my special protection and the greatest graces to all those who shall recite the Rosary.
3. The Rosary shall be a powerful armor against Hell, it will destroy vice, decrease sin, and defeat heresies.
4. It will cause virtue and good works to flourish; it will obtain for souls the abundant mercy of God; it will withdraw the hearts of men from the love of the world and its vanities and will lift them to the desire of eternal things. Oh, that souls would sanctify themselves by this means.
5. The soul which recommends itself to me by the recitation of the Rosary, shall not perish.
6. Whoever shall recite the Rosary devoutly, applying himself to the consideration of its sacred mysteries, shall never be conquered by misfortune. God will not chastise him in His justice, he shall not perish by an unprovided death; if he be just, he shall remain in the grace of God and become worthy of eternal life.
7. Whoever shall have a true devotion for the Rosary shall not die without the Sacraments of the Church.
8. Those who are faithful to recite the Rosary shall have during their life and at their death the light of God and the plenitude of His graces; at the moment of death, they shall participate in the merits of the saints in Paradise.
9. I shall deliver from Purgatory those who have been devoted to the Rosary.
10. The faithful children of the Rosary shall merit a high degree of glory in Heaven.
11. You shall obtain all you ask of me by the recitation of the Rosary.
12. All those who propagate the Holy Rosary shall be aided by me in their necessities.
13. I have obtained from my Divine Son that all the advocates of the Rosary shall have for intercessors the entire Celestial Court during their life and at the hour of death.
14. All who recite the Rosary are my sons, and brothers of my only Son, Jesus Christ.
15. Devotion to my Rosary is a great sign of predestination.
God bless!
Dave
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franc en stein on 30 May 2010 at 3:57 pm #
The following list shows the differences from the KJV (the MOST accurate Bible we have)
Number of differences. from the King James Bible;
NAS909
RV788
NWT767
NIV695
GN614
Amp484
Douay421
Old JW120
And the New King James has
Ignored the Textus Receptus
1200 times.
Some recommended reading:
Matthew 13:35
Isaiah 45:19; 48:16
Amos 3:7
Mark 4:22
Luke 8:17; 11:33
John 7:4
Psalm 12:6,7
Matthew 24:35
Altered / removed
(minor changes / Removed * part removed #):
1 Kings 18:21
Prov 8:22
Daniel 3:25
Matt 5:44
Matt 16:3
Matt 16:22
Matt 17:21 *
Matt 18:2,3
Matt 18:11 *
Matt 20:16
Matt 20:22,23
Matt 23:14 *
Matt 24:3
Matt 24:36
Matt 25:13
Mark 2:17
Mark 6:11
Mark 7:16 *
Mark 9:44 *
Mark 9:46 *
Mark10:21
Mark 11:26 *
Mark 15:28 *
Mark 16:9-20 *
Luke 2:14
Luke 2:72
Luke 4:8
Luke 6:48 *
Luke 11:2,4
Luke 17:36 *
Luke 23:17 *
Luke 23:45
Luke 24:40
Luke 24:51,52
John 1:1
John 2:11
John 5:4 *
John 7:8
John 9:4
John 5:39
John 8:1-11
John 16:23
Acts 2:30
Acts 8:37 *
Acts 9:5-6 #
Acts 9:29
Acts 13:42
Acts 15:23
Acts 15:34 #
Acts 22:16
Acts 24: 6-8 #
Acts 28:29 #
Rom 1:3
Rom 8:1 #
Rom 11:6 #
Rom 16:24 #
1 Cor 5:7
1 Cor 7:5
1 Cor 10:28
1 Cor 11:24
1 Cor 15:3,4
Gal 3:1 #
Col 1:16
2 Thess 2:2
Heb 1:2
Heb 7:21
Heb 9:28
Heb 10:21
Titus 2:13
Phil 3:20,21
1 Peter 4:14
1 John 4:3
1 John 5:7
Rev1:7, 11
Rev 5:14
Rev 13:8
Rev 14:5
Rev 22:14
Reference to Christ
Reduced:
Gal 3:17; 4:7; 6:17
Eph 3:14
Col 1:2; 1:14
1 Tim 2:7
1 Tim 3:16
2 Tim 4:22
May God bless you as you study His Word
<:)))><
References :
King James Bible
King James Bible
King James Bible
Pamela on 30 May 2010 at 4:16 pm #
The following is a statement by L. Ray Smith from his bible-truths website:
However, not all English Versions perverted and corrupted the words having reference to time into words that now stand for eternity, but have nothing to do with time at all. Here are a few. I use the first three quite regularly, but, I am not recommending you buy any of them.
Rotherham Emphasised Bible, 1959
Concordant Literal New Testament, 1983 http://concordant.org/catalog/orderblank/index.html
The Emphatic Diaglott, 1912 edition (Greek/English Interlinear)
The Holy Bible in Modern English (Fenton), 1903)
The New Covenant, 1884
The New Testament in Modern Speech, 1910
The Restoration of Original Sacred Name Bible, 1976
The New Testament of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Anointed, 1958
The New Testament a Translation, 1938
The Companion Bible, 1990 A King James Reference Bible
It is worth reading the full article at the link below:
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http://bible-truths.com/bible.htm
Don H on 30 May 2010 at 4:45 pm #
What you need to remember is that the bible was compiled under the auspices of the roman emperor Constantine in an attempt to bring all of the various belief systems of the empire under a common faith.
The result was to be the universal or catholic faith. The word Catholic is derived from the Greek adjective καθολικός (katholikos), meaning "universal".
There is nothing wrong with this and I do not mean for it to sound derogatory. You just need to realize that it is an amalgamation of the various faiths and the dogma and theology of these belief systems. Even assuming benevolence on the part of Constantine’s people, making this all make sense would have been a monumental task.
The bible relied heavily on Jewish scripture and the New Testament was highly modified to support Paul’s teachings, which included such localized ideas as blood sacrifices to wash away sins, virgin births and resurrection of deceased deities.
Sadly much of the central part of the Jesus theology was lost in the blended mythology. A mythology was created around a great teacher comparable to the Buddha and he was turned into an amalgam of all of the Mediterranean deities. His teachings on love and non-judgment were all but lost in a maze of judgmental often-vindictive gibberish that he would have never agreed with.
Sadly some of the greatest teachings of all time were all but lost in Rome’s effort to be all thing to all people
Love and blessings Don
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dawky on 30 May 2010 at 5:33 pm #
When you say accurate are you speaking scientifically or historically?
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Nerman on 30 May 2010 at 5:42 pm #
Bernaba Bible
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linda d on 30 May 2010 at 6:14 pm #
Check out a parallel Bible at the library. This will show 4 versions page by page and you will see that they are really similar (sometimes exact) in wording.
I like KJV, and Revised Standard for the poetry (Psalms, Proverbs, Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes).
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Alaba on 30 May 2010 at 6:47 pm #
According to Bible scholars , Theologians and linguistics is call Peshitta Bible but I don’t think is in English, Originally in Aramaic tough to be the language spoken by Jesus and I know is been translated in Spanish
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http://www.bible-reviews.com on 30 May 2010 at 6:53 pm #
Well – determining accuracy **objectively** is a tricky thing. However, there ARE some things that we can look at to help us judge the accuracy of a translation.
The two that you are looking at do *not* satisfy those criteria.
Here they are:
* source – Bible must be translated from the original languages
* recent – Bibles translated recently can take advantage of the most reliable source texts and can employ the most advanced translation scholarship. I recommend Bibles translated within the last 60 years.
* reading level – Bibles that are translated for "ease of reading" tend to be much less precise than other Bibles. Unless you need an "easy reading" Bible (like the NLT), get a more advanced Bible
* Bibles that are very word-for-word literal tend to be less accurate than bibles that are thought-for-thought literal
This should help you to choose a Bible version that suits your needs
http://www.BibleSelecter.com
These should also be helpful
http://www.bibleselector.com/reading_level.html
http://www.bibleselector.com/literalness.html
http://www.bibleselector.com/inclusive.html
I will be happy to provide more specific recommendations – especially once you narrow down your choices using the first link.
Jim
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Ozzie on 30 May 2010 at 7:24 pm #
It is important to know that the King James Version is an (Old) English Translation of the Latin Vulgate, which was a translation from the original Greek.
Any versions that use the original Greek as their source are going to be less prone to error than a translation of a translation. There are many examples of King James translations where the translators just got it wrong. Now, I happen to like the NIV – it was a collaborative effort of many scholars using the original (and/or oldest) Greek Manuscripts available and when these old manuscripts differ, the NIV tells you so. The only challenge with the NIV is that it adds a LOT of words. The intent is to make it easier to read, but the translators did take some license that, in some cases, it could be argued they shouldn’t have.
If you want accurate, the Revised Standard Version (RSV) is good, it is just harder to read than the NIV and there aren’t many differences otherwise.
I hope this helps!
References :
Greek Inter-linear Bible and various sources on KJV source
Fatcap on 30 May 2010 at 7:59 pm #
Actually, it’s impossible to tell because there are no original copies. One could assume that the older the source text the greater the accuracy. But that’s assumption, not proof.
The King James Bible, for example, replaced the word "slave" (gr. doulos) with "servant" (gr. diakonos). Look it up for yourself: http://www.bibleserver.com/#/text/NIV/Exodus21
You can switch between the translations. In German, however, all translations use the word "slave".
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