KJV and the Koren Jerusalem Bible?

Hi all,

I have been researching bible versions, translations, etc. I have read that the KJV, which is what I currently read, has been translated from Hebrew, to Greek, to Latin, and then to English, causing a loss in some of the original Jewish idioms, etc. Since I do not read or speak Hebrew (possibly yet) I was wondering if the Koren Jerusalem Bible might be a good choice?

I understand that it was translated to English directly from original Hebrew writings, thus skipping the Greek and Latin translations, hopefully minimizing any losses of Jewish idioms or misinterpretations.

Does anyone read this bible or know anything else about it? And please correct me if I have any of my facts wrong here. I am just trying to seek the Lord and the closest thing we might have to His holy word.
Thanks,

so small e

The Old Testament of the KJV is a translation of the Hebrew Bible. It is not a translation of a translation or anything like that. Most other modern translations are also translations of the Hebrew Bible. Occasionally a translation will opt for a reading from the Septuagint but that is usually noted in a footnote. The Koren is for the most part a revision of the KJV. As far as names go you will probably notice that the Koren follows the Hebrew more closely. Jesus and the Apostles quoted rather freely from both the Septuagint and the Hebrew Old Testament text (or at least the traditions behind them) so I don't think we should get too bent out of shape about Greek forms of Hebrew names. You should also keep in mind that there is no such thing as translation without interpretation. Jewish translations tend to translate passages in such a way that point us away from Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophecies, even other translations like the RSV do this sometimes.

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Poets have been mysteriously silent on the subject of cheese. - G.K. Chesterton

there is no accurate translation, especially of NT- where most of the original documents no longer exist.

Don't get hung up on the words, the message is what matters.

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Luck happens when skill meets opportunity. Everything else is Divine Intervention.

There are indeed accurate translations, especially of the NT. We have more than 5000 ancient manuscripts and fragments of the NT books, so reconstructing the original from the plethora of existing documents is a fairly straightforward matter.

If you don't have the words, you don't have the message. Messages are composed of words.

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we are called,
We can't have a scriptural message without words.

Why is it that we don't have an accurate translation of the NT? What determines accuracy?

Please be aware that Jewish translations (which the Koren version is) are made these days with an awareness that they need to be clear that their scriptures do NOT support the New Testament teachings.
When I first became a believer, I used the Jewish Publication Society translation of the Old Testament (Tanakh) and the Jewish New Testament as my scriptures, but I began to see problems with that.
When I first became a believer, I assumed that the Jewish Old Testament (Tanakh) translation were "impartial" and therefore useful to the Christian believer. This is not necessarily true due to the fact that all translations require decisions to be made and all translators have biases.
Jewish translators are aware of which verses are used as proof texts by Christians, and they can attempt to defuse those proof texts. It's not an attempt to deceive, just an attempt to prevent what they perceive to be misuse of scripture.

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I have never before heard that the KJV was translated into Latin before being translated into English. My understanding is that it was translated into English from Hebrew, unless it was based on the Septuagint, which is a Greek translation of the Jewish scriptures.

The Douay-Rheims, an English translation used by some Catholics, was translated into English from Latin.

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