Bible Translation and it’s relevance to the study of a scripture

 Who has not been in a different region of their country only to notice that the people there sound different from the people in our home town? This same nominally is present in the translations of the Bible.  To complicate matters, even more, the translations of the bibles used in the mainstream of westernized countries have been translated into their local dialect of mostly English.  To add insult to injury there are some substantial shortfalls for younger languages in relation to older languages.   

Adding to the complexities of the language they seem to evolve with time and the introduction of new concepts and technologies.  For the most part, ancient languages like Hebrew and Greek were created and used in a cultural setting that most westernized communities have limited or no understanding.  Let’s look for example to the word hell.

In the English language, hell is simply hell, but in ancient languages, the words Gehenna, Hades, Death, Sheol, Tarsus, and the lake of burning sulfur are all referring in some way to the concept of hell or has been translated into English as the word hell.  Needless to say, this makes it clear that at least in case of the word hell, the odds are about five to one that one could interpret the intended meaning of a biblical word hell incorrectly. 

Adding fuel to the fire of confusion is the fact that linguists have tried to interpret and rewrite the Bible into laymen’s terminology in an effort to break open the secrets of the Bible to the masses of people across the world.  In modern-day life we see the cultural diversity and regional influences in the English speaking world add its portion of confusion to the plot of making disciples of the masses.

As noble as the intentions of these bible translators are the benefits that these translations bring sadly also is compounding the side effects of our efforts to understand the Bible.  

An additional to language challenges, we face is the issue of canonized and non-canonized books in the Bible.  Perhaps I will have the opportunity to discuss this in more detail as this topic needs its own gallery of comments.

HOW THEN DO I GO ABOUT GETTING THE MOST OUT OF MY BIBLE STUDY?

Let’s start right at the beginning.  There simply no substitute for reading and absorbing large quantities of scripture.  What I find particularly helpful is reading Bible passages in complete chapters.   Usually, I find that there are concepts that stand out and those I like to research further.  Let’s look at one of my personal favourite Bible verses that has the biggest change in meaning when you get into it. 

Matt 6v33: “But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.” NIV.

Although I am a strong supporter of the Amplified Bible for my own reasons you should choose a Bible translation that you are most comfortable.  Try to get behind the meaning of what the verse if getting at.  on a glance, this verse means that we should put Gods kingdom and then his righteousness before our needs in order to meet them.

let us take this verse back to the original meaning of as many words as we can and then we will paraphrase it to clean up the meaning for our own understanding.

But seek (seek, crave, so as to find or meditate on ) first (in priority or level of importance ) his kingdom (Kingship or dominion) and his righteousness (to be in a condition that is acceptable to him), and all ( everything, whole) these things will be given(added to what you have ) to you as well.

Now let us revisit this verse as best we can while looking at the original meaning of the keywords.

Crave and meditate as a top priority God’s kingship and dominion over you while you do all you can to be completely acceptable to him so that everything you need can be added to what you already have.

The illustration is fairly condemnatory but shows the value of dissecting a bible verse down to as close as its original meaning.  It does mean that one will spend much more time working through a passage to get to its core meaning but from experience, I can attest that the revelation and change that it brings is a hundred times more rewarding than the investment to get there.

There is, unfortunately, no short cuts to getting the principles of Gods word out in the open and into your heart.  That is why Hebrews 11v 6 says that those who draw close to God must earnestly seek him.  In the end, it comes down to commitment and a passion to search for a greater understanding.  it is true that we face a gauntlet of challenges in our spiritual walk and it would have been really nice to have an easy time of it to learn about His Kingdom in our lives.   

The way to get around the challenges we face in dealing with the limitations of our bible translations is simply found in a commitment to work through them with commitment.  

There are a host of free applications one can download onto your mobile or online device that opens up the door to a deeper understanding of the Bible.   If you do not have access to a smartphone one can invest in a study bible.   

THE IMPORTANT THING TO REMEMBER IS THAT ALL LANGUAGES HAVE LIMITATIONS AND THE TRUE EXPERIENCE IN YOUR PERSONAL SPIRITUAL WALK WILL COME FROM A COMMITMENT TO A RELATIONSHIP WITH THE FATHER THROUGH HIS SON JESUS CHRIST.