Hebrew to Greek

The nature of translating between any languages requires this to some extent.

For example, John 3:16, word for word (According to William Mounce, Greek For the Rest Of Us, p. 13) is:

Languages rarely translate to another word-for-word. Translators have to translate more than the words themselves. They have to translate grammar, expressions, etc. Translations are hardly either formal or dynamic, but more on a spectrum, with some elements of both...albeit, some more formal than dynamic and some more dynamic than formal.

It only stands to reason that Hebrew to Greek translations would have to do the same.

 

The LXX is somewhat free sometimes.

 

Sure, don't forget the NT itself Roby, how that most OT quotes in the NT are rarely word-for-word

Acts 8:

32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth:
33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.​

Isaiah 53
... he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shearers is dumb, so he openeth not his mouth.
8 He was taken from prison and from judgment: and who shall declare his generation? for he was cut off out of the land of the living... ​

Especially compare Acts 8:33 with Isaiah 53:8.

HankD​

 

Perhaps "on-line".

At amazon.com, it ranged from 30 bucks to $165.

I don't think that $165 is all that "free". :laugh: :laugh:

Sorry, couldn't resist the 'funny'!

Ed

 

John 3:16 was not a particularly good example of a non-literal translation since this verse translates wonderfully word-for-word. Lagardo cites Mounce --

so for he loved the God the world so that the son the only he gave so that each the one who believes in him not he might perish but he might have life eternal. ​

Now these 35 words translated from Greek are all that is needed to compose this verse in English. Greek is not dependant upon word order to convey meaning like our language does, so these words are simply not in the standard English order for clear understanding. Just rearrange the words and add some capitalization and puncuation. For example, move "for" to the front, followed by "the God", and the message can be constructed thus--

For He, the God, so loved the world, so, that He gave the Only, the Son, so that each (the) one who believes in Him, he might not perish but he might have life eternal.​

A quite literal translation. Nothing added, nothing left out. Now, you may be tempted to remove a "so" or a "the" that seem extraneous to help smooth out the verse for contemporary readers, which would be acceptable. But look at those definite articles: its not just any God, its the God; and its not just any son, its talking about the Son; God loved the whole world but this truth is written specifically to the one who believes (the reader is that individual)!

Translating has its difficulties, but this verse 'literally' speaks for itself. There are very few added words for clarity or use of dynamic equivalence in the KJV or most other formal equivalence versions at this verse... I just doesn't need it! BTW - The OP asked about Greek translations of the Old Testament .

 

My point was that in any translation, greek to english, hebrew to greek, etc there will be some changes. Even in John 3:16, which as you point out does not get many changes in most translations, is still not exactly word-for-word..

 

Why would you leave out a "so" or a "the"? I think they were included for a reason: Clarity. Although the definite article is not absolutely required to denote a specific (for example, in English, if I'm going to town, people know where I'm going), a definite article always denotes a specific.

I think they're important, and their ommittance by some has created much confusion.

Edited to add: FWIW, I am familiar with several Messianic Jewish assemblies, and all of the ones with whom I am familiar accept the LXX as closer to the "real thing" than the Masoretic text. This is anecdotal and not meant to be a sweeping statement, however, so don't attack me with, "Oh, yeah! My friend..." type of things.