The Best Bible Translation

Sapphires | Jonathan Cahn

[WhatNot]

Which Bible translation is the best? There's the King James - a great old version that's very poetic, but it's not the best translation. There's the New King James which keeps much of the beauty, but in more modern English - but that's not the best. There is the New American Standard that presents a very literal, word for word translation - but that's not the best either. The best translation of the Bible is ...you. It's written in the Epistles that you are our epistle - written on human hearts. The best Bible translation is not written on paper, but on hearts and lives.

You are to be a walking, talking, living, loving translation of the Bible. everyone who meets you is "reading the Bible" in your life. As much as you believe, follow and walk in His Spirit, and people will read the Gospel in you, the Book of Acts in you, the Epistles in you. So you don't need to know Hebrew or Greek to translate the Bible. You just need to put the Word in your daily life and it will be the best Bible translation possible. And wherever you go people will read it in your life.

TODAY'S MISSION
Pick a word or verse you really want to live today. Practice living it and showing it to those around you all day.

[WhatNot]

Lord, give us a singleminded heart to serve You, and You only.

[StAthanasiustheGreat]

For a second, I thought this was going to be a debate thread. I was about to chime in with the Douy-Rheims, but I guess I don't have to now. God Bless

[StAthanasiustheGreat]

OK, as long as we exlude the New American Bible.

[cebadams]

The New American Bible had to be revised and republished in 1988 and again in 1991 with some changes mandated by the Holy See where the NAB text used so-called vertical inclusive language (e.g. avoiding male pronouns for God). It is now fully approved (but only these later editions) and is used for the readings at all Masses.

I prefer the Jerusalem Bible (1966) or the good ole Douai-Rheims.

For more info see EWTN's Bible Versions page.

[cebadams]

That's why I went back to the Douay-Reheims. It's supposed to be hard to read but I haven't found any problems reading it. And it's the only Catholic translation that has these famous lines:

Luke 1:28 "Hail Mary full of grace, The lord is with you."

Check your NAB and find "Hail, favored one, The lord is with you."

Anyway, I came to the conclussion that most of these modern translations are uninspiring (exept as I said before, I also like the Jerruselem version -- I have the full study version and the notes and references are wonderful). Besides the Douay-Reheims is available from several sources online and I even downloaded a version to my Palm.

[Salvation]

The USCCB is still using the New American Bible

Signature at the bottom of each page:

**New American Bible
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 4th Street, N.E., Washington, DC 20017-1194 (202) 541-3000
November 11, 2002 Copyright © by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops August 21, 2003 Copyright © by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops**

[cebadams]

The NAB is the only translation used in the Lectionary. I didn't mean to imply anything else.

[PFKEY]

Nice...thanks!

[Salvation]

Didn't the Pope pull back on the U. S. Lectionary, telling the bishops that it still needed to be fixed??.

Leaving for Mass. Catch up with you later.

[cebadams]

Don't know. But the NAB has been approved by the Holy Office after the translation was finally amended. Then in mid-1990s the USCCB updated the Lectionary to use only the NAB where before they also used the RSV. I think pre-1995 the RSV was used for New Testiment and the NAB was used for Old Testiment.

[cebadams]

I should have been a little clearer regarding my preferences when reading the bible. There at least four versions of the NAB floating around beginning with the first in 1970. I'm certainly no expert on translations so instead I prefer to avoid it by reading and enjoying these other wonderful translations.

I enjoy the Douay-Reheims because it contains all the verses we have come to know and love in our prayers and because it is freely available on the Internet. I've found online sites, download sites, and Palm PDA versions with a simple concordance. I have access to this version from practially anywhere I am.

I enjoy the Jeruselem bible for its prose. It is easy to read and quite enjoyable. I am fortunate to own one of the "study" editions with wonderful footnotes and references which are now sadly long out of print. Two last reasons: one of the translatos was JRR Tolkien; and Mother Angelica uses it.

Chaulk another mess up to the USCCB.

[narses]

I enjoy the Douay-Reheims because it is the closest to St. Jerome's Vulgate. It was translated FAR before PC was even thought of.

[cebadams]

Yahweh is my shepard,
I lack nothing.
In meadows of green grass he lets me lie,
To the waters of repose he leads me;
there he revives my soul

[NeoCaveman]

I was about to chime in with the Douy-Rheims,

I just got mine a few weeks ago on EBay, published in 1941. It's great.

[TotusTuus]

Now, is it the New American Bible, or the New Revised American?

I like the Catholic Edition of the Revised Standard Version. Sort of a revision to the revision of the King James being used at the time (late 50's- early 60's?). Catholic and Protestant translators worked on it (hence a Catholic edition in addition to the Protestant one). I believe it has been the translation that the Holy See uses in official documents in English. DO NOT confuse with the New Resived Standard Version, which is the "inclusive language" remake. I know Ignatius and Sceptre both publish it. It is also the translation used in 'Salvation's posts from the Navarre Bible - which, as with Scepter Publishing, is an Opus Dei enterprise.

Also, the Revised New American is the "inclusive blah blah crap' of the New American. Same with the Revised (or is it new?) Jerusalem compared to the original Jerusalem Bible (of which J.R.R. Tolkien was one of the editors).

Up until real recently, English speaking Catholic Churches here in America had the option of using either the RSV-CE, or the New American, or the Jerusalem, translations for the Lectionary - with the Psalms being the original Grail translation. I think 90% of churches used the New American, which is, well, an OK translation.

I think now, only one translation is supposed to be used which is the Revision of the New American done (and redone, etc.) special over the last 5-10 years by that select committee which had to correct ICEL's PC wanderings.

[Salvation]

**I enjoy the Jeruselem bible for its prose. It is easy to read and quite enjoyable. I am fortunate to own one of the "study" editions with wonderful footnotes and references which are now sadly long out of print.**

I've been wanting to get a Jerusalem study Bible, but are you saying that it is no longer in print?

My son loves the Douy Rheims because of the traditional language in it.