The Word: On the Translation of the Bible

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In the latter, the translator focuses on an accurate, even “literal,” rendering of the original text. Barton explores the many nuances of a dichotomy he characterizes as either “bringing the Bible to the reader” or “taking the reader to the Bible. He believes the Bible “presents a range of ideas about Jesus and about God that cannot be systematised”.

This book tries to walk that fine line that has been trod so many times before--how "literal" should a Bible translation be? The gospels (which show knowledge of the fall of the Jerusalem Temple in AD70) were written at least two decades after Paul’s epistles. But that would be to miss a fine piece of scholarship (eminently approachable) that goes well beyond its apparent remit: touching on faith, the complex unfolding of the Biblical canon, Jewish-Christian relations, the role of The Book in the lives of believers, the importance of community to the Christian life, the challenges of translation in general, what textual criticism can achieve and so on. Barton's book demonstrates that the history of biblical interpretation, with its vast implications for centuries of theology and politics, is inseparable from the issue of translation -- Daniel Rey * Literary Review * Fully displays John Barton's great gift for explaining complicated things lucidly and judiciously -- Robert Alter Enjoyable .

Barton] has a good eye for the sort of detail that carries readers with him into what might be unfamiliar territory. To his great credit, Barton outlines both approaches, lists their virtues and then raises what counter-theses might be considered. He is co-editor of The Oxford Bible Commentary , and his previous book A History of the Bible won the Duff Cooper Prize for nonfiction. Barton discusses a myriad of fascinating textual examples, linguistic nuances, and theoretical and theological principles.

Now, if you were to open the King James Version, you would get “Saul had reigned one year, and when he had reigned two years…” If you opened the New English Bible, lo and behold, it is “Saul was 50 years old when he became king”, and turning to the Revised English Bible, he is 30.Important: Your credit card will NOT be charged when you start your free trial or if you cancel during the trial period. When discussing gendered language of God, he admits "it seems to me that the Bible really does treat God as male. We have been a bold and influential voice in the church since 1888, standing up for traditional Catholic culture and values. I finished this book with a deeper understanding of and respect for the skills of a good translator: deep knowledge of the original language and a feel for its culture, and a nuanced, sophisticated command of (in this case) English.