Hooray!

My Pastor talked to me about switching to the NKJV for sermons during this past week. I run the powerpoint projections and at the last minute he asked me to put the sermon up in the Holman CSB.

Granted he is not an "only" at all, just KJV preferred.

But the situation is the same, he got tired of explaining the old language.

 

Seems like an odd reason to abandon the KJV.

Here is just a small list of words found in the NASB. I found these just flipping through the concordance of my NASB. I'm sure there are many more.

cohort
despoil
dirge
dross
extol
odious
pinion
phylacteries
portico
potsherd
praetorium
proselyte
raca
satraps
scourge
sinew
smite
sojourn
surety
tares
teraphim
tempest
tumult
vinedresser
votive
winnow

Do you think your pastor will grow tired of defining these words?

 

Hello Amy.G,

I was wondering do you know how many old words are in the NASB compared to the KJV?

 

No I don't. I have never made a comparison. I just flipped through the concordance of my NASB to find the list I made above.

My point is that unless we just keep dumbing down the language in our bibles, we will sometimes need to use a dictionary regardless of what translation we read.

 

Amy.G,

I can see your point. I have heard that this generation of children are becoming poor spellers and writers because of the common use of computers. It wouldn't hurt to learn new words and use tools such as a dictionary to accompany learning. Then again, why discourage the young from reading the Bible? "Dumbing down" as you called it may be in order. I don't consider myself intellectually sophisticated. I like easy reading. This issue seems complicated.

 

Hi Amy,

It's not only a question of "dumbing down" the language but its understandability to the 21st century individual as well.

Example:

KJV 2 Corinthians 6

11 O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged.
12 Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels.
13 Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged.​

NIV 2 Corinthians 6

11 We have spoken freely to you, Corinthians, and opened wide our hearts to you.
12 We are not withholding our affection from you, but you are withholding yours from us.
13 As a fair exchange-- I speak as to my children-- open wide your hearts also.​

HankD​

 

I have several NASB's but never heard of the NASBU. What is that?

 

NASB Update. There's actually very little difference between the updated NASB and the 1977 NASB which I have. They removed the thee's and thou's of the Psalms and changed a few words elsewhere. I really didn't understand the need for the update, ($$ maybe?)

 

I guess it depends on what you are doing from day to day, but I use most of these words regularly, the only exceptions being despoil, dross, pinion, potsherd, raca, satraps, tares and teraphim.

 

All right, thank you. I do have one of those but just didn't realize that is what it is called.

 

Hank, my point was simply that every translation has words that require defining, even the NIV. If we give up every translation because we "get tired" of defining words, we will be left with nothing.

It is also disturbing to me that people seem to be getting so lazy regarding bible study. Heaven forbid we should have to look up a word!

How many members here have been to college? College textbooks are usually not "easy" to read. Why is that? Should we make textbooks read like comic books so that students can understand better?

It's a slippery slope in my opinion. The more literal the translation is, the more we learn about God.

 

:thumbs::thumbs:

 

I understand what you're saying John, but for me personally, I want a translation that is as close to the original language as possible and still be able to understand it.

I am old enough :tongue3: to have witnessed trends in my years on earth. When I was a child, every child I knew read from the KJV. Somehow they seemed to grasp it. Now, we think children aren't intelligent enough to understand the more literal translations, so we have to provide bible translations just for children.
If this trend continues (that of simplifying scripture so that it is "easier" to read), what will the bible look like in 50 years? Each generation has a responsibility to the next generation. Today's preaching and teaching is a good example of how one generation gets slack and the next generation doesn't even know the basics of the Christian faith. I see this happening all the time.

This is all just my opinion. I'm not trying to tell anyone what they should read. That is not my right. :1_grouphug:


Also, my original post in this thread was simply to point out that a pastor that is "tired" of defining words in the KJV isn't going to get any relief from the NASB as there are many words in it as well that need defining.

 

Again, you're assuming that only a strict literal translation qualifies as being "close to the original" and I've adequately demonstrated that this isn't necessarily correct. It's a simple matter of koine Greek not having the same rules of grammar, composition, and syntax that English does. Koine Greek has five words for love, we only have one. Koine greek has the word "baptizo", and we have no exact word for it, so the word is transliterated in English.

Interesting that you say that, because the KJV uses a lot of dynamic equivalence, as already noted. A person desiring a strict literal itnerpretation of scripture would nto favor the KJV.

 

John, I said that I personally want a translation that is as literal "as possible" and still be able to understand it. I never said it had to be completely literal. I never said that some dynamic equivalence wasn't necessary.

I read from the NIV for years along with the NLT, Amplified, NASB and NKJV. From my experience, much more can be learned from a more literal translation.

Again, that is just my opinion. I can't prove it to you and don't want to argue with you.

 

That is NOT what I said. Go back and read. I have repeatedly said that my point was that the NASB also has many words that have to be defined, so I don't see how that is going to help your pastor with his tiredness of defining words.

 

:laugh: Sorry to hear your pastor seems to lack eloquence.

The beauty of the language should be explained to show the simple just how complex a thing the word of God is to the natural man!:godisgood::godisgood::godisgood: