Millions of Bible Translations.

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How much do you know about the different Bible translations?

Here's Philippians 4:6 in 9 different translations and a few facts about each translation...

King James Version (KJV)

Be careful for nothing; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Origin: The King James Version was first known as the Authorized Version. A Committee was formed with six subcommittees. There were 47 scholars, all approved by the king, who worked on the version.

Published: 1611

Derived From: Bishops’ Bible was the basis for translation, examined in the light of the Hebrew and Greek, English versions were also consulted

Translation Type: Formal Equivalence

Reading Level: High School

Unique Features: It greatly impacted the English-speaking churches and it was a great literary work

English Revised Version (ERV)

In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Origin: A committee of 65 British scholars from various denominations and 30 American scholars acting as advisors worked on this version.

Published: 1885

Derived From: King James Version was made into contemporary English

Translation Type: Formal Equivalence

Reading Level: High School

Unique Feature: It had good marginal notes and was textually superior to the KJV

American Standard Version (ASV)

In nothing be anxious; but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known unto God.

Origin: The American advisory committee of the English Revised Version had to wait 14 years after it’s publication before publishing another revision. They wanted to eliminate archaic words and phrases that the ERV retained from the KJV.

Published: 1901

Derived From: English Revised Version

Translation Type: Formal Equivalence

Reading Level: High School

Unique Feature: It translated YHWH as Jehovah

Revised Standard Version (RSV)

Have no anxiety about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Origin: 32 American scholars hoped to make the most of modern scholarship to work on a version in modern English for both public and private use.

Published: 1952

Derived From: American Standard Version

Translation Type: Between Formal Equivalence and Dynamic Equivalence

Reading Level: Middle School

Unique Feature: It translated YHWH as LORD

New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Origin: The Lockman Foundation hoped to revive the American Standard Version. 16 Old Testament scholars and 16 New Testament scholars worked on the Bible. The goal was to stay true to the original Hebrew and Greek texts and to be grammatically correct while making it understandable and glorifying to Jesus Christ.

Published: 1971

Derived From: American Standard Version

Translation Type: Formal Equivalence

Reading Level: High School

Unique Feature: The pronouns for God were capitalized and italics were added

English Standard Version (ESV)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God.

Origin: James Dobson called a meeting in response to gender-neutral Bible translations. Wayne Grudem, John Piper, and R.C. Sproul played a big part in this version. There were 12 translators (led by J.I. Packer), 60 scholars as translator advisors, and 60 evangelical leaders as advisors working on the ESV.

Published: 2001

Derived From: Revised Standard Version - only 5%-10% was changed from the RSV

Translation Type: Between Formal Equivalence and Dynamic Equivalence

Reading Level: Middle School

Unique Feature: Not gender-neutral

New International Version (NIV)

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.

Origin: It was initiated by the Christian Reformed Church. They met with the National Association of Evangelicals. There were 15 scholars on the Executive Committee, which was led by Edwin Palmer. There were 100 scholars from the USA, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. These 100 scholars were from 20 different denominations.

Published: 1978

Derived From: None - it was a completely new translation

Translation Type: Dynamic Equivalence

Reading Level: Middle School

Unique Feature: This version has the most thorough process of review and revision of any Bible translation

New Living Translation (NLT)

Don’t worry about anything; instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need, and thank him for all he has done.

Origin: It started as a simple revision to the Living Bible, but changed into a new English translation. 87 translators worked on it.

Published: 1998

Derived From: The Living Bible, but also the Greek and Hebrew texts

Translation Type: Paraphrase (somewhat a Dynamic Equivalent)

Reading Level: Middle School

Unique Feature: It was a fresh and new translation, the Old Testament reads very well

The Message

Don’t fret or worry. Instead of worrying, pray. Let petitions and praises shape your worries into prayers, letting God know your concerns.

Origin: Eugene Peterson worked for over two years writing the New Testament into contemporary English. He wanted to capture the tone of the text and the original conversational feel of the Greek, but in a modern language.

Published: it was published in segments between 1993 and 2002

Translation Type: Paraphrase

Reading Level: 5th Grade

Unique Feature: It was written for people who felt that the Bible was irrelevant and for people who had read the Bible all their lives and found it old and boring.

Pretty cool, huh?!