Why is Douay Rheims so awesome?

[Sword of the Lord]

Ewww. The DRB version of Psalm 23 is so much worse than the KJV version. So much worse.

Mustard > Ketchup

 

[Athanasias]

I love it because it theologically phrases things for deeper then most bibles giving a rich theological reflection of deeper truths such as It is "consummated" and "She will crush his heel". Both which are beautiful deeper theological truths.

 

[Needing_Grace]

Ewww. The DRB version of Psalm 23 is so much worse than the KJV version. So much worse.

Mustard > Ketchup

Thank you. The DRB version of Ps 23(22) reads clunkily like a manual translated into English. The KJV version is poetic and paints a beautiful picture of a caring shepherd.

 

[Sword of the Lord]

Bias, it's very blinding.

 

[Rhamiel]

Thank you. The DRB version of Ps 23(22) reads clunkily like a manual translated into English. The KJV version is poetic and paints a beautiful picture of a caring shepherd.

I kind of like the vocabulary used in the D-R
like "ruleth me" is a stronger, more direct term then some pastoral imagery of being a shepherd

the KJV uses the term "enemy" also seems a little abstract
while the D-R uses "them that afflict me" is more concrete, these are people who have worked harm of some kind upon you, they have afflicted you

also the "chalice that inebriateth me" is more sensual then just a "cup runeth over"

the KJV psalm makes me think of overly abstract
I think of it being said by route by school children or at a funeral, with some kind of pastoral imagery

while the D-R seems more sensual, and while it is a bit more "clunky" I think that helps you slow down and really soak in the beauty of the psalm

 

[facingeast52]

How did King James get his name on a bible anyway.?

 

[Rhamiel]

Bias, it's very blinding.

hmmm this is possible
I could just be kind of a "fanboy" about all this
like "oh wow, this is old and catholic? hey I like old catholic stuff"

or it might be something more simple
it could be a sense of novelty since I was mostly familiar with the NAB and a little bit of the KJV and then I found something new (atleast it was new to me)
and also kind of counter cultural, feeding a sense of kind of hipster elitism

or maybe I just like the language and imagery?
and the fact that it has orthodox catholic footnotes

 

[Needing_Grace]

How did King James get his name on a bible anyway.?

He commissioned the translation and the translators wrote a letter to him and put it at the front of their Bible. "To the Most High and Might Prince JAMES..."

 

[Needing_Grace]

hmmm this is possible
I could just be kind of a "fanboy" about all this
like "oh wow, this is old and catholic? hey I like old catholic stuff"

or it might be something more simple
it could be a sense of novelty since I was mostly familiar with the NAB and a little bit of the KJV and then I found something new (atleast it was new to me)
and also kind of counter cultural, feeding a sense of kind of hipster elitism

or maybe I just like the language and imagery?
and the fact that it has orthodox catholic footnotes

Interesting. I came up on the KJV and the NKJV (which is my favorite translation), so I'm used to the wording. When I hear the NAB at Mass, sometimes the wording is shocking to my ears. During the Passion Gospels, the use of the word Nazorean instead of Nazarene always throws me.

 

[Rhamiel]

this is why I do not really like the NAB

this is from the introduction to the Book of Tobit

The Book of Tobit, named after its principal character, combines Jewish piety and morality with folklore in a fascinating story that has enjoyed wide popularity in both Jewish and Christian circles. Prayers, psalms, and words of wisdom, as well as the skillfully constructed story itself, provide valuable insights into the faith and the religious milieu of its unknown author. The book was probably written early in the second century B.C.; it is not known where

and

The inspired author of the book used the literary form of religious novel (as in Esther and Judith) for the purpose of instruction and edification. The seemingly historical data, names of kings, cities, etc., are used as vivid details not only to create interest and charm, but also to illustrate the negative side of the theory of retribution: the wicked are indeed punished

it talks about Tobit like it is a fairy tale.....

stuff like this hurts a lot, hope I do not sound too whiney

 

[facingeast52]

I really like the book of Tobit and I am left wondering about the comments in the NAB... But I just take the comments with a grain of salt and try to remember that all the versions I CAN read are translations..

“Every day, as long as this ‘today’ lasts, keep encouraging one another” (Heb 3:13).

 

[ebia]

Which manuscript? You do realize that what you asked is a loaded question, since the manuscripts written in the "original" languages don't always match up.

Original language manuscripts sometimes differ over the occasional word, or even have or don't have a whole paragraph, but they don't - can't - differ substantially in literary style.

 

[Erose]

Original language manuscripts sometimes differ over the occasional word, or even have or don't have a whole paragraph, but they don't - can't - differ substantially in literary style.

Sadly this isn't a true statement. The KJV Bible was translated from the Received Text for the NT and the Masoretic Text, with some Vulgate influence for the OT. Most Bibles today use the Received Text or the Majority Text for the NT as a foundation, but also use various other manuscript traditions as well for comparison and adjustments; and they use Masoretic Text as a foundation, plus various other manuscript traditions for the OT.

The question on whether or not the KJV Bible or any other Bible is translated corrected really requires going back to what manuscript tradition or traditions that it was translated from. Since the KJV Bible was translated exclusively from the Received text for the NT for example, while most modern Bibles are a conglomeration of various manuscript traditions; it makes since that there are going to be variations. The same goes for the D-R Bible as well, and for that matter the Vulgate, which was translated from manuscript traditions that we no longer are in possession of.

Just to give you an example of the differences between manuscript traditions, look at the link below which outlines the variations found between the Majority Text and the Received Text, which are the most popularly used texts for the NT.

The Majority Text Compared to the Received Text

 

[ebia]

Sadly this isn't a true statement. The KJV Bible was translated from the Received Text for the NT and the Masoretic Text, with some Vulgate influence for the OT. Most Bibles today use the Received Text or the Majority Text for the NT as a foundation, but also use various other manuscript traditions as well for comparison and adjustments; and they use Masoretic Text as a foundation, plus various other manuscript traditions for the OT.

The question on whether or not the KJV Bible or any other Bible is translated corrected really requires going back to what manuscript tradition or traditions that it was translated from. Since the KJV Bible was translated exclusively from the Received text for the NT for example, while most modern Bibles are a conglomeration of various manuscript traditions; it makes since that there are going to be variations. The same goes for the D-R Bible as well, and for that matter the Vulgate, which was translated from manuscript traditions that we no longer are in possession of.

Just to give you an example of the differences between manuscript traditions, look at the link below which outlines the variations found between the Majority Text and the Received Text, which are the most popularly used texts for the NT.

The Majority Text Compared to the Received Text

These are not significant differences of literary style

 

[Erose]

These are not significant differences of literary style

So phrases added or subtracted, words plural or singular, don't change anything? The point I'm making is that manuscript traditions vary and sometimes to a significant degree. You cannot judge the "errors" of one translation to another without understanding the manuscript tradition(s) used in the translating process.

For example the variations found in the Septuagint vs the Kniwn Hebrew texts, were assumed to be exclusively translation errors, until the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered. Then it was learned that in some cases the Septuagint was closer to the DSS manuscripts than the Masoretic text. Now many scholars are beginning to accept that perhaps the Septuagint is a translation of the Hebrew texts before a revision occurred of the Hebrew Texts. The Vulgate itself is a translation of the Hebrew OT, from an earlier witness than we had before the DSS.

The received text and masoretic text that most modern Bibles use as a foundation for their translation, are relatively new compared to the Bibles such as the Vulgate, Septuagint, and Peshetta. And when it comes to the received text there is more light being shed that there are significant variations between it and the earliest manuscripts.

My point being is that your original question is a loaded one, and not as simple to answer as you would like.

 

[ebia]

So phrases added or subtracted, words plural or singular, don't change anything?

They can change something. They don't substantially change the literary style of a single book.

The high, courtly, style of the KJ has nothing to do with the texts it's translated from but is a deliberate choice of style - pretty much the opposite of Tyndale's choice of style working from much the same texts.

 

[Unix]

Compare it to the 1865/1866 Common English Version New Testament (there is also a more rare 1912 Edition), it is one of the VERY few newer Bible versions based on the Textus Receptus = received text: https://www.logos.com/product/16808/english-bible-collection#022
... but bid $80 or else it's never going to make it into production! (Registration is free as well as the software.) The reason why the projected price is so low is because this collection used to contain much fewer Bibles and people had started to bid $30. The graph was lowered when Bibles were added to the collection. More Bibles = higher production costs which have to be financed by bids:

Douay Rheims version definitely has a sense of the "classic" feel to it, but I don't always get a sense of what is trying to be described in it, so if that's what I'm reading, I often check another version just to see what it says.