The Translations: Are They Trustworthy?

With the Holy Spirit …

I. His Church Will Be Witnesses Worldwide (Acts 1:7-8)

Not Our Responsibility

Following His resurrection, the apostle’s wanted to know when Jesus was going to restore the kingdom to Israel.

Jesus does not rebuke the disciples for asking.

He does not deny that such an event will one day happen.

He instead turns their attention away from something that is entirely out of their hands. It is not for them, or us, to know.

Isn’t it comforting to know it is not our responsibility to know the dates or times?

Many people have wasted countless hours and destroyed countless lives attempting to discover something Jesus says that the Father alone knows.

Our Reality

Verse 8 is not a command. It is an expectation. It is a reality.

Receiving the Holy Spirit births a new reality:

Christians receive power

Christians will be witnesses

Witness — to give report, to give testimony

Jerusalem was the epicenter of the explosion of the gospel message to the rest of the world.

Romans 1:16 NASB95

16 For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.

We are to witness:

In our local sphere of influence and beyond (our community, state, nation, world)

To those we know, and those we don’t.

To those we are similar to, and to those we are different from.

To those we like, and to those we don’t.

How is that possible?

With the power of the Holy Spirit, we will experience the reality of being witnesses — testifying of the goodness of God.

With the Holy Spirit …

II. His Church Will Be Witnesses in Every Language (Acts 2:1-13)

Unwillingly Scattered

At the Tower of Babel, humanity had set themselves in opposition to God:

They had congregated, rather than filling the earth and subduing it (Gen 1:28).

They had set out to make a name for themselves (Gen 11:4)

The result was God confusing the language and scattering the people across the face of the earth (Gen 11:8)

The Tower of Babel was an act of God’s judgment for disobedience.

Where the people wanted to make a name for themselves, when God made His covenant with Abraham He promised:

Genesis 12:2–3 NASB95

2 And I will make you a great nation, And I will bless you, And make your name great; And so you shall be a blessing; 3 And I will bless those who bless you, And the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”

Willingly Scattered

At Pentecost, the apostles waited expectantly for the reality Jesus had promised.

They had not left Jerusalem, waiting for the Father to send His gift.

They knew they would be witnesses to the world.

The Holy Spirit’s power enabled the apostles to speak in other languages.

The result was devout Jews from many nations heard “the wonderful things God has done!” (Acts 2:11)

Pentecost was God’s act of faithfulness: a reversal of Babel and a continued fulfillment of His covenant promises.

God confused the language at Babel — the Holy Spirit removed the barrier of language at Pentecost

The people were unwillingly scattered at Babel — the church was “willingly” scattered at Pentecost

The people tried to make a name for themselves at Babel —Jesus’ name was made great at Pentecost

The people tried to save themselves at Babel — the Holy Spirit revealed Jesus is the only way to salvation

With the Holy Spirit …

III. His Church Will Be Witnesses to the Way of Life (Acts 2:14-35)

Revelation

God the Father revealed His Son, Jesus Christ, through many miracles, wonders, and signs.

Witnessing

We have witnessed:

That Jesus is the Son of God

That Jesus lived and died

That “you nailed Him to a cross and killed Him” (Acts 2:23)

That God raised Jesus from the dead

That Jesus is the way of life

That Jesus is the first fruits

1 Corinthians 15:22–23 NASB95

22 For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming,

His Church’s message is …

IV. Trustworthy

Why Are There So Many Translations?

Because …

The Church will be witnesses worldwide

The Church will be witnesses in every language

The Church will be will be witnesses to the Way of life

The nature of Christianity necessitates that the gospel will spread, and it has from its very inception.

Yes, we see the physical spread of Christianity (e.g., missionary journeys), but we also see the written spread of Christianity.

That is why we see so many translations of the Bible, and:

Except for aberrant translations produced by sects or cults, every Bible on the market today is sufficiently faithful in its translation so that its readers can learn all of the fundamental truths of Christianity accurately.

Blomberg, Can We Still Believe the Bible?, 85.

Types of Translations

Translation teams begin the process by developing a philosophy of translation.

Formal Equivalence (Word-for-Word)

Prioritizes the form.

NASB, KJV, & ESV

Dynamic Equivalence (Thought-for-Thought)

Prioritizes the meaning.

NLT

Optimal Equivalence (Happy Medium)

Seeks to preserve as much as possible of both form and meaning.

NIV, CSB

Comparing Translations

We will take a random sample (1st chapter, 7th verse of every 11th book) allowing us to “examine” 12 different translations.

KJV (King James Version) & NIV (New International Version)

1 Kings 1:7 KJV And he conferred with Joab the son of Zeruiah, and with Abiathar the priest: and they following Adonijah helped him.

1 Kings 1:7 NIV Adonijah conferred with Joab son of Zeruiah and with Abiathar the priest, and they gave him their support.

ASV (American Standard Version) & GW (God’s Word)

Song of Solomon 1:7 ASV Tell me, O thou whom my soul loveth, Where thou feedest thy flock, Where thou makest it to rest at noon: For why should I be as one that is veiled Beside the flocks of thy companions?

Song of Solomon 1:7 GW Please tell me, you whom I love, where do you graze your flock? Where does your flock lie down at noon? ⌞Tell me,⌟ or I will be considered a prostitute ⌞wandering⌟ among the flocks of your companions.

ESV (English Standard Version) & NLT (New Living Translation)

Micah 1:7 ESV All her carved images shall be beaten to pieces,     all her wages shall be burned with fire,     and all her idols I will lay waste, for from the fee of a prostitute she gathered them,     and to the fee of a prostitute they shall return.

Micah 1:7 NLT All her carved images will be smashed.     All her sacred treasures will be burned. These things were bought with the money     earned by her prostitution, and they will now be carried away     to pay prostitutes elsewhere.”

CSB (Christian Standard Bible) & CEV (Contemporary English Version)

Acts 1:7 CSB He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority.

Acts 1:7 CEV Jesus said to them, “You don't need to know the time of those events that only the Father controls.

NASB (New American Standard Bible) & NET (New English Translation)

2 Timothy 1:7 NASB For God has not given us a spirit of timidity, but of power and love and discipline.

2 Timothy 1:7 NET For God did not give us a Spirit of fear but of power and love and self-control.

NRSVUE(New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition) & GNT (Good News Translation)

Revelation 1:7 NRSVUE Look! He is coming with the clouds;     every eye will see him, even those who pierced him,     and all the tribes of the earth will wail on account of him.

So it is to be. Amen.

Revelation 1:7 GNT Look, he is coming on the clouds! Everyone will see him, including those who pierced him. All peoples on earth will mourn over him. So shall it be!

Are there any bad translations?

Cultish/Sectarian Translations

The NWT (New World Translation) is used by Jehovah’s witnesses, and was intentionally and anonymously created because their theology does not agree with Scripture.

For example, any passage that demonstrates the deity of Christ has been changed, since Jehovah’s Witnesses do not believe Jesus is God.

The TPT (Passion Translation)

It was translated by a single man, Brian Simmons.

Modern translations are worked on by teams of individuals.

Brian Simmons claims an angel appeared to him and gave him secret knowledge of the Greek and Hebrew.

It is marketed as a translation, but the original words are changed, added to, and distorted.

NASB, a more “woodenly literal” translation (26 words in English)

Song of Solomon 2:13 NASB95

13 ‘The fig tree has ripened its figs, And the vines in blossom have given forth their fragrance. Arise, my darling, my beautiful one, And come along!’ ”

TPT (72 words in English)

Song of Solomon 2:13 TPT Can you not discern this new day of destiny breaking forth around you? The early signs of my purposes and plans are bursting forth. The budding vines of new life are now blooming everywhere. The fragrance of their flowers whispers, “There is change in the air.” Arise, my love, my beautiful companion, and run with me to the higher place. For now is the time to arise and come away with me.

Even the MSG, a very loose paraphrase, gives something similar to the original (25 words in English)

Song of Solomon 2:13 MSG Lilacs are exuberantly purple and perfumed, and cherry trees fragrant with blossoms. Oh, get up, dear friend, my fair and beautiful lover—come to me!

So which translation is best?

The Translation You Read.

There is no one translation that is best, and any Christian that claims otherwise does so to the detriment of Christianity.

Christians can prefer a particular translation.

It is a luxury of living in the West to argue over different translations.

Most world languages have one translation of the Bible, if they have one at all (!).

Some things to remember:

Every major, nonsectarian translation is more than adequate for teaching people everything God desires for them to know.

Every translation uses formal and dynamic equivalence.

e.g., There are places where the NLT is more formally equivalent than the NASB.

We should not think of “word-for-word” and “thought-for-thought” translations as different teams of Bibles. Instead, we should view them as different tools of Bibles on the same team.

A “literal” translation is not always better, nor is it truly possible.

Philippians 2:6-8

who in form of God belonging not prize considered the to be equal to God, but himself emptied form of slave having taken in likeness of men becoming and scheme having been found as man humbled himself becoming obedient until death, death but of cross.

Blomberg, Can We Still Believe the Bible?, 95 (his translation)

Philippians 2:6–8 ESV

6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, 7 but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. 8 And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.

An interlinear is the closest thing to a “woodenly literal” translation.

The best Bible translation is the one you will read.

His Church’s message is …

V. “This Jesus is Both Lord and Messiah” (Acts 2:36-42)

A One Verse Summary of the Bible

There are many verses that can provide a beautiful summary of the entire Bible, and I think Acts 2:36 is a strong contender:

Acts 2:36 NLT

36 “So let everyone in Israel know for certain that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah!”

Peter is drawing attention back to his reference to Joel 2.

Acts 2:21 NLT

21 But everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’

Those who call on the name of the Lord will be saved

And who is this Lord?

Jesus—He is both Lord and Messiah. He is both Lord and Savior.

Every modern translation we have today, barring the few exceptions we discussed, exists with one purpose in mind: to declare that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, to be both Lord and Messiah.