Choosing a Bible

Recently we were looking to upgrade our children’s Bibles. For the first time in a while, we dove into the wonderful world of Bible translations. What in the world do you choose for a children’s Bible?

Translation is a tricky thing. In case you’ve never thought much about it, the scale works kind of like this: You have your literal translations, such as the NASB, KJV and NKJV. That means that as much as possible things are translated word by word, but still make sense in English. Then you have translations that go more idea by idea, such as the NIV or ISV. The more you get away from literal, the more interpretation or opinion is involved. The NLT, GW version or CEV are much more idea based, and finally on the extreme far end are paraphrases like the Living Bible or The Message.

Now of course the more idea based versions have advantages. They are generally easier to read, and they attempt to discover what the Bible would sound like if it were written today. The downside is that the less literal you get, the more opinion is in the text. Look for example at Matt 6:11:
NKJV says Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. That’s pretty literal compared to the Greek text.

Ok, now the ISV: May your kingdom come. May your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Ok, not bad. Seems to take out a bit of the certainty of the verse for me, but it may be accurate to the Greek.

How about the CEV? Come and set up your kingdom, so that everyone on earth will obey you, as you are obeyed in heaven.

Wait a sec – now the Father is personally coming to set up his kingdom, and the verse is exclusively referring to the future. These things may be true, but I’m not sure that’s exactly what the verse is saying. We can see opinion creeping in here. Is the verse only talking about people, as the CEV says, or God’s will in all creation?

How about The Message? Set the world right; Do what’s best– as above, so below. Now the whole concept of the kingdom is gone – that is, of the reign of God. Now He’s just setting things right. Heaven is gone, it’s now “above”. The idea of God’s will has been changed to “doing what’s best”. It’s pretty much just the opinion of the writer about what Jesus meant by what He said.

Now I’m not saying less literal translations are all bad. If you’re 100% literal, the passage would make very little sense to the modern reader. But the more opinion that’s involved, the less you’re really getting what the original text said. In the next verse, for example, The Message has Jesus praying that we would be kept alive with “three square meals”. Does “daily bread” really mean three square meals?

Then there’s the issue of gender inclusive language. Now there’s real controversy for you. Now I realize that in many places the Bible uses the male when it means both male and female. However, when you start trying to figure out what was intended, it gets tricky. And then comes the even more imprecise way that “they” replaces he (or he/she). Suddenly it could be talking about an individual or a group or someone else.

An article I read made a good point. If you want to make a translation at a 3rd grade reading level, you have to remember that the Bible simply wasn’t written at a 3rd grade reading level. So you simply have to change things to bring it to that level. And some passages are ambiguous, period. You can clarify them, but maybe that’s not what the writer intended. And if you take out those ancient expressions replacing them with modern ones, you may be missing out on subtle imagery that is brilliantly woven through Scripture.

There are no easy answers, but here’s what I think, and you can tell me what you think. No matter what version you use, take the wording with a grain of salt. But this especially applies to less literal translations.

1. If you have a less literal translation, make sure you have a more literal one to check it against (ie NASB, RSV, NKJV). Try to take the time to read from a more literal translation, not just an idea-by-idea one.
2. Learn to use tools like a concordance with reference to Greek words and word study books that can give you more precise meanings
3. When you memorize, every word counts. Consider using a more literal translation for memorization.

Remember, the Bible is something you have to learn and struggle with – sometimes it’s not so easy. Maybe we’re so obsessed with “reading the Bible for ourselves” that we’ve forgotten that. It takes teaching, a willingness to learn, the Spirit’s guidance, and it takes time to understand what God is saying. The Bible is clear on the essentials, yes, but no one ever said it wasn’t challenging. If you want the gems, sometimes you have to dig.

Zondervan has a page that simply shows the continuum of Bible versions. For more discussion on choosing a Bible, try Leland Ryken’s book Choosing a Bible: Understanding Bible Translation Differences, which is available through the link to buy or download for free. It’s worth taking the time to talk about – God’s Word is no minor issue.

What do you think? What translation do you use? What about your children? Why?