Guest Author: Doug S.

Doug S, a regular commenter on our blog from liveloud.net is guest authoring for us on a Stuff Christians Like, in the spirit of the topic, here is a link to our first stuff christians like: Bible’s with Puffy Covers & Handles

Stuff Christians Like: Multiple Scripture Translations

I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for new Bible translations, or new publications of the same one. When The Message//REMIX was released, I just had to have one! When the ESV Journal Bible—with it’s diary-like strap to keep the binding shut while traveling and its narrow-lined margins for writing in those touching and unforgettable thoughts you had while reading Leviticus—was released, I begged for it for Christmas. When I heard that Brian McLaren was part of a project called “The Voice,” I was eagerly awaiting the entire New Testament in “The Voice translation” (it’s really good, by the way). 

I just counted the Bibles I have: 12, not including my ever-accumulating “Everyone” commentary series by Tom Wright, which includes his own translation of each book as he released the commentary, and not including the few my wife own. I bought the ESV Journal Bible as a travel Bible with the ability to take notes (though I’ve made the thing sacred and rarely write in it!). I have a TNIV for church because it’s got wide margins and it’s near the NIV which my pastor uses. I have an NIV Reformation Study Bible when I want to read some deeper theological explanations. And I have the NIV/Message parallel Bible because those are my two favorite translations, and the size of the print and size of the Bible itself is great for traveling. 

You can tell we’re spoiled Christians in Western Civilization when we’ve got the luxury of different Bible translations competing in the free market for consumers’ attention. Like an automobile company offering features on the car that have little to do with the performance of the car itself, we even have publishers competing with various Bibles. Here’s a short list:

Study Bible (with about hundreds of options here ranging from just about every theologian to any people group)

Slimline

Wide Margin

Personal Size

Pocket Size

Backpack Size

Cross-referenced

Pre-highlighted

Journal Bible

LARGE PRINT

Parallel

Add to that the really cool “duo-tone” covers and fancy fake leather on most of them, and you’ve got a really nice selection to choose from.  

So what makes a Christian want different translations? What is so fascinating and enlightening about having over a dozen alternative ways of saying the same thing on your shelf? For starters (and I can only speak for me), some Christians simply want a different perspective. They’ve read the King James Version for years, and they wonder if the story could be told in a more understandable way in a language more common. Others may simply like having a new Bible because the other one is worn and very used, and so each new Bible is a new translation they are “trying out,” and so the different translations accumulate over the years. There are others who simply want freshness. If you’ve read the same translation over and over again, the same phraseology can get a bit stagnant, and in an ever-changing English language, it’s nice to get a different way of saying something. Pastors especially seem to enjoy using different translations to help communicate the message they are preaching. Why read the word “charity” in the King James when you really need to use the word “love”? 

I suppose we can be thankful for the opportunity to purchase any number of Bibles our budgets can afford. As long as we don’t delude ourselves into believing that it will get us closer to God, or make us more spiritual, more biblically informed, or more “diverse.” Or maybe the problem is that we’ve abandoned the King James… but that’s another topic!