Which Translation

I am a Reformed/Calvinist Christian and use the

  • NIV

  • KJV

  • NKJV

  • NLT

  • ESV

  • HCSB

  • The Voice

  • NASB

  • NIRV

  • other


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Tree of Life

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Which translation do you use and why? Which one does your Pastor preach from?

I use the ESV, NASB, NIV, and KJV as my top Bibles. I use all of these because there is no perfect translation. I believe that the NASB gives you the closest sense of the Hebrew and Greek and does a better job than the ESV most of the time. When the NASB and ESV disagree I almost always side with the NASB based on my own translations of the Hebrew and Greek. But sometimes I think that both the ESV and NASB get it wrong and the NIV nails it, though this is uncommon. Anyways, for reading and studying I would recommend using multiple translations with perhaps one dominant translation. For this dominant translation I would recommend the NASB or ESV.

I preach from the ESV. I preach from the ESV because it's a good translation, readable, accessible, and commonly embraced. I also tend to favor the essentially literal translation philosophy.
 
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stenerson

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My Pastor/Church reads and preaches from the ESV and I bought one this year. But I usually still carry around my well marked old KJV.
When quoting scripture from memory it's usually in KJV form. I want to start memorizing more scripture and am debating whether to stick with KJV or switch to ESV.
 
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JM

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KJV will always be my Bible, however, whenever I buy a new Bible I read nonstop for months. I may finally purchase an ESV.

If I wanted to memorize scripture KJV is the only way to go IMO. Even pagans recognize it as authoritative and tremble.
 
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stenerson

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KJV will always be my Bible, however, whenever I buy a new Bible I read nonstop for months. I may finally purchase an ESV.

If I wanted to memorize scripture KJV is the only way to go IMO. Even pagans recognize it as authoritative and tremble.

I don't know about that..But when explaining and quoting scripture to people I usually have it in KJV form in my head and translate the difficult words so that they can hear it in a more or less ESV form.
 
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High Fidelity

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I love the KJV for just the profundity of the language, but for study I use the NASB text block and occasionally an ESV study bible for the notes and occasional reading too.

The Pastor I listen to the most is John MacArthur and he preaches from the NASB.

The church I currently attend preaches from the NRSV(It's an Anglican church) and the church I am looking in to attending(and have been for a while, just awkward to get to) uses the ESV, as far as I know.

I consider the NASB to be the most accurate translation.
 
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TaylorSexton

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The HCSB is the translation I am currently reading.

Just for the record, I don't think there is a "best" translation. I know people typically say that there is no perfect translation, but I actually don't even want to say that, because it is so obvious. There is not even a best translation. Every single translation falters here and there simply because ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek cannot be fully rendered into English with all the nuance still intact. It is impossible; hence we have commentaries.

The NIV is just as good as the NASB. The ESV is just as good as the KJV. And, believe it or not, the NRSV is one of the finest translations I have ever used. I have actually found it to stumble less than most other translations. (I personally think the common complaints about gender neutrality and Isaiah 7:14 are a bit silly almost always overstated.)

In the end, the best thing to do is to learn the languages. That is the best way to read Scripture. And, to be perfectly honest, until someone knows the original languages, he or she really doesn't have any business evaluating any translation. I know that sounds harsh and elitist, but it comes from months and months of arguing about translation issues with people who can't even read Greek or Hebrew. Plus, it is common sense that (for the most part) people without knowledge of certain things should not make value judgments that require said knowledge.
 
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JoeP222w

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Which translation do you use and why? Which one does your Pastor preach from?

ESV. Because it is a very close word for word translation. And it is simply a preference issue. I try to refer to other translations as well. I am not an ESV- Onlyist. There are other valid translation.

My Pastor primarily preaches from ESV, sometimes NASB. Again, simply a preference, not a doctrine of salvation.
 
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JM

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I don't know about that...

lol I should've stated that it has been my experience...people seem to respond better to the AV. Even those who deny Christ will give a nod to the beauty of the AV and acknowledge it as a source of authority.
 
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JM

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The HCSB is the translation I am currently reading.

Just for the record, I don't think there is a "best" translation. I know people typically say that there is no perfect translation, but I actually don't even want to say that, because it is so obvious. There is not even a best translation. Every single translation falters here and there simply because ancient Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek cannot be fully rendered into English with all the nuance still intact. It is impossible; hence we have commentaries.

The NIV is just as good as the NASB. The ESV is just as good as the KJV. And, believe it or not, the NRSV is one of the finest translations I have ever used. I have actually found it to stumble less than most other translations. (I personally think the common complaints about gender neutrality and Isaiah 7:14 are a bit silly almost always overstated.)

In the end, the best thing to do is to learn the languages. That is the best way to read Scripture. And, to be perfectly honest, until someone knows the original languages, he or she really doesn't have any business evaluating any translation. I know that sounds harsh and elitist, but it comes from months and months of arguing about translation issues with people who can't even read Greek or Hebrew. Plus, it is common sense that (for the most part) people without knowledge of certain things should not make value judgments that require said knowledge.

Would you admit that some are better than others?
 
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TaylorSexton

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Would you admit that some are better than others?

Probably not, as long as we are comparing the same broad translation methodologies. In other words, "equivalence" is better than paraphrase. But, within the realm of "equivalence" (which includes every one on this poll except The Voice, the NLT, and the NIrV, with the addition of the RSV and NRSV), no single one is really better than any other one.
 
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JM

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Probably not, as long as we are comparing the same broad translation methodologies. In other words, "equivalence" is better than paraphrase. But, within the realm of "equivalence" (which includes every one on this poll except The Voice, the NLT, and the NIrV, with the addition of the RSV and NRSV), no single one is really better than any other one.

I'm sorry Taylor but that's just gibberish. :scratch: The NWT is just as good as the ESV? haha
 
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TaylorSexton

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I'm sorry Taylor but that's just gibberish. :scratch: The NWT is just as good as the ESV? haha

Please don't put words in my mouth. The NWT is an obvious corruption, not a translation. I am talking about Christian translations, here.
 
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JM

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Please don't put words in my mouth. The NWT is an obvious corruption, not a translation. I am talking about Christian translations, here.

Still, to claim all translations are equal doesn't make sense. Some are in fact better in conveying the meaning of the text better than others.
 
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Tree of Life

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Still, to claim all translations are equal doesn't make sense. Some are in fact better in conveying the meaning of the text better than others.

I do see his point though. The Hebrew and Greek texts are like motion pictures and translations are like snap shots. They each capture a certain frame of the original text but they cannot capture all the nuance and motion.

It's like asking: "what's the best snapshot of the grand canyon?" In order to get a true sense of the beauty of the grand canyon you either need to visit it in person (learn the languages) or study thousands of different snapshots (read lots of translations).
 
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stenerson

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And, to be perfectly honest, until someone knows the original languages, he or she really doesn't have any business evaluating any translation. I know that sounds harsh and elitist, but it comes from months and months of arguing about translation issues with people who can't even read Greek or Hebrew. Plus, it is common sense that (for the most part) people without knowledge of certain things should not make value judgments that require said knowledge.

LOL! so we layman aren't worthy of answering the OP question "Which translation do you use and why? Which one does your Pastor preach from?" :sorry:
 
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