Featured The "Mechanical Translation"--You must be joking!

But why assume the Greek word refers to a Roman cup in a Jewish context? And why only one word for translation? Sounds rather “Mechanical.”

Your illustration actually seems to emphasize that one must know the target language culture as well, which in this case sounds as if it has changed over time--a problem for older translations.

And I like the way you hedged with “can be used.”

 

Actually, I meant that the translator should not do any unnecessary interpreting, but that was obvious from the context. When a translator does not understand the context, that can be a big problem.

Of course I didn’t mean it to the extreme any more than you meant that no word could be translated mechanically in your criticism of that "method" in this thread.

 

Try reading the whole post, Sir, before you claim the message is unclear!

I agreed with the translations that said "made holy" or something to that effect (i.e. leading to holiness) and agreed with the translations that said "set apart" or something to that effect. And this is not Translation 101 because very few or none of the translations made those choices at Romans 6:19 and 1 Peter 1:2. But it is the way forward.

 

The reason many versions do not read "made holy" or words to that affect at Romans 6:19 is the failure to translate according to the contextual meaning. Instead, many translations leave the contextual meaning unclear. The reason many versions do not read "set apart" at 1 Peter 1:2 is the failure to translate according to the contextual meaning.

What is wrong, someone might say, with leaving the translation ambiguous, when we cannot be infallibly certain our view of the contextual meaning is correct? That is a good question.

But it seems to me we should move the needle toward our view of the contextual meaning and away from the ambiguous meaning because so many mistaken views on based on speculation concerning a vague text. See the "baptizing for the dead" thread for example.

 

It was possible in the target language (English) in both examples. When scholars are divided as to the contextual meaning, we could put the majority view in the main text and footnote the minority view.

Basically there is no good reason why our English translations do not reflect the most likely contextual meaning.

 

To demonstrate the ease of using the contextual meaning to translate a word with more than one meaning, here are all the cases for hagiasmos G38.

[Rom 6:19, 22 NASB] 19 I am speaking in human terms because of the weakness of your flesh. For just as you presented your members as slaves to impurity and to lawlessness, resulting in [further] lawlessness, so now present your members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in holiness. ... 22 But now having been freed from sin and enslaved to God, you derive your benefit, resulting in holiness, and the outcome, eternal life.

[1Co 1:30 NASB] 30 But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and holiness and redemption,

[1Th 4:3-4, 7 NASB] 3 For this is the will of God, your holiness; [that is,] that you abstain from sexual immorality; 4 that each of you know how to possess his own vessel in holiness and honor, ... 7 For God has not called us for the purpose of impurity, but in holiness.

[2Th 2:13 NASB] 13 But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through being set apart by the Spirit and faith in the truth.

[1Ti 2:15 NASB] 15 But [women] will be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and holiness with self-restraint.

[Heb 12:14 NASB] 14 Pursue peace with all men, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord.

[1Pe 1:2 NASB] 2 according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the setting apart work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: May grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.

 

We should all want to overthrow the proponents of less than the best translation methodology.
Translating source language word or phrase meanings consistently and unambiguously should be our goal.
That would set apart our efforts from some of the flawed efforts of the past.