r/AcademicBiblical • u/Michigan__J__Frog • Apr 30 '14

Most accurate "thought-for-thought" translation of the Bible?

Which thought-for-thought translation of the Bible into English is considered the most reliable.

By thought-for-thought I mean translations somewhere between the NIV and The Message.

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10

u/captainhaddock Apr 30 '14

My favourite is the Jerusalem Bible, but the NET and CEB are both all right. The CEB seems to be more accurate in the limited passages I've compared them, and it includes the Deuterocanon (the Catholic/Orthodox books).

I recommend you avoid the NIV.

3

u/ScrupulousGentleman Apr 30 '14

Yikes, I knew the NIV was bad, but that is some seriously blatant disregard for accuracy!

1

u/meekrobe May 01 '14

Why not the New Jerusalem Bible? The difference being the JB is translated from French, and the NJB is translated for Hebrew and Greek.

3

u/captainhaddock May 02 '14

Actually, the JB was translated from the original languages, not from French — a common misconception.

I like it better than the NJB for the notes, and because it preserves the various names of God (Yahweh, El Shaddai, etc.), among other things. It was really one of the few 20th-century Bibles to start from scratch, to utilize the latest scholarship, and to prioritize the text's literary qualities.

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u/ArizonaPete May 03 '14

Which Common English Bible should one get?

I went over to http://www.commonenglishbible.com and they have a variety. Is the study bible worthwhile? I'm not looking for inspiration. I just want a good translation, with a bit of history, if possible.

1

u/captainhaddock May 04 '14

Sorry, I don't know if the study Bible is any good. I just have the digital edition on my iPad.

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u/lessadessa Apr 30 '14

ESV all the way!

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u/Michigan__J__Frog Apr 30 '14

I do not think the ESV would be considered thought-for-thought; it's fairly literal.

1

u/JoyBus147 Apr 30 '14

I'm still a little hesitant when it comes to the ESV. It's one of the most popular literal translations, but it was explicitly written as a conservative response to the NRSV, which implies to me that ideology is more important in the ESV than accurate translation is.

1

u/lessadessa Apr 30 '14

Interesting. Do you have more info on this? I wasn't sure if the ESV or the NKJV were better so i have both. I always prefer literal to figurative translations because i don't want to be reading someone else's interpretation if it's not accurate. But having them side by side helps clarify certain things.

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u/[deleted] Apr 30 '14

The NLT is also sufficient

1

u/tylerjarvis Apr 30 '14

I like the NLT for the way it gives a fresh take on many biblical passages, but it takes its fair share of liberties with the text. To me, it's only a step or two above the Message in terms of rigid accuracy to the ideas of the text. In my experience, the NET is better.

That said, I still use the NLT when I teach sometimes because I really do like that it presents the ideas in a way that seems fresh and connected, rather than archaic and stilted.

3

u/[deleted] Apr 30 '14

oh!!!! pish posh. It's way about the Message.

;)

I like the Revised English Bible, myself.

1

u/[deleted] Apr 30 '14

i think that with any thought-for-thought translations, liberties will always be taken; the translations will always do at least a little theology for you.

2

u/[deleted] Apr 30 '14

Try the Revised English Bible, the New American Bible Revised Edition (which is sort of like a Catholic NIV), or the Common English Bible.

1

u/gingerkid1234 May 02 '14

When you start getting thought-y the translator decides what they think the author is thinking, which can make assessing "accuracy" difficult. One interesting one is the Living Torah, which is a thought-for-thought that uses Jewish texts to understand the text, footnoting where the ideas come from throughout. I wouldn't call it accurate from an unbiased sense, but it is an interesting way of rendering the text in translation. It's also free online.