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Line 1: − {{Bible translation infobox + − | image = [[Image:NewWorldTranslation blk-hdcovr.png|150px|New World Translation]] − | translation_title=New World Translation − | full_name=New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures − | abbreviation=NWT − | complete_bible_published=1961 − | NT_published=1950 − | textual_basis= '''NT:''' Westcott & Hort. '''OT:''' [[Biblia Hebraica]]. − | translation_type=[[Formal Equivalence]] with occasional ventures into [[Dynamic equivalence]]<ref>Jason David Beduhn, ''Truth in Translation - Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament''...Also see ''All Scripture Is Inspired by God and Beneficial'' published in 1990 pg. 326 pars. 32-33 Study Number 7—The Bible in Modern Times: New World Translation A Literal Translation....This requires an almost word-for-word correspondency between the rendering in English and the Hebrew and Greek texts...the degree of literalness should be as high as the original-language idiom permits... There have been occasional departures from the literal text, for the purpose of conveying in understandable terms the difficult Hebrew or Greek idioms. However, in the reference edition of the New World Translation, these have been called to the reader’s attention by means of footnotes that give the literal rendering.</ref> − | copyright=Copyright 1961 Watchtower Society − | genesis_1:1-3=In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth proved to be formless and waste and there was darkness upon the surface of the watery deep; and God's active force was moving to and fro over the surface of the waters. And God proceeded to say: "Let light come to be." Then there came to be light. − | john_3:16=For God loved the world so much that he gave his only-begotten Son, in order that everyone exercising faith in him might not be destroyed but have everlasting life. − |}} − {{BibleHistory}} − The '''New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures''' (''NWT'') is a modern-language translation of the [[Bible]] published by [[Jehovah's Witnesses]]<ref>Using the not-for-profit corporations [[Legal instruments of Jehovah's Witnesses|Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc.]] and the International Bible Students Association of [[Brooklyn, New York]]</ref>, published in 1961. It is not the first Bible to be published by the group, but is their first original translation of ancient [[Biblical Hebrew|Hebrew]], [[Ancient Greek|Greek]], and [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] Biblical texts. As of 2008, this Bible translation was available in whole or part in 72 languages with 143 million copies in several editions having been printed.<ref>[[Awake!]], November, 2007 p. 30</ref>+ − It is also available in electronic format on the [http://www.watchtower.org/bible/index.htm Watchtower Society official web site] − == History ==+ − Until the release of the NWT, Jehovah's Witnesses in English-speaking countries generally used the [[King James Version]] or [[American Standard Version#Usage of the ASV By the Jehovah's Witnesses|American Standard Version]] of the Bible. In the literature they have produced, Jehovah's Witnesses have quoted liberally from the King James Version and many other translations of the Bible over the years. − According to the publishers, one of the main reasons for producing a new translation was that the majority of existing Bible versions in common use employed archaic language. The [[English language]] has changed significantly since 1611, when the Authorised (King James) Version was first published, and many words in the KJV are no longer in common use today, or are used in a sense different from that in which the translators intended them.<ref>http://www.pronetisp.net/~diana/wcm.html list of KJV words and their modern meanings or counterparts.</ref> The stated intention was to produce a fresh translation, free of archaisms.+ − Additionally, over the centuries since the King James version was produced, more copies of earlier manuscripts of the original texts in the Hebrew and Greek languages have become available. In the publishers' view, better manuscript evidence has made it possible to determine with greater accuracy what the original writers intended, particularly in more obscure passages. Additionally, they feel that certain aspects of the original Hebrew and Greek languages are better understood by linguists today than previously.+ − In October 1946, the president of the Watch Tower Society, [[Nathan H. Knorr]], proposed a fresh translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures. Work began on December 2, 1947 when the "New World Bible Translation Committee" was formed. On September 3, 1949, Knorr convened a joint meeting of the board of directors of both the Watch Tower Society's New York and Pennsylvania corporations to announce that work on a modern-language English translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures was completed and had been turned over to the Society for printing. It was assigned to the [[Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania]] for publication.+ − The ''New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures'' ([[New Testament]]) was released at a convention of Jehovah's Witnesses at [[Yankee Stadium]], [[New York City|New York]], on August 2, 1950. The translation of the Hebrew Scriptures (Old Testament) was released in five volumes in 1953, 1955, 1957, 1958, and 1960, and the complete ''New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures'' was released as a single volume in 1961. Since then, it has undergone minor revisions, most recently in 1984. The 1984 edition is in much the same style as previous editions, the primary difference being the revised [[Cross-reference|marginal (cross) references]]. These had been included in the six volumes released between 1950 - 1960 but had not been included in the single volume editions from 1961 onward.<ref>Foreword, New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, 1984.</ref> The basic layout style much resembles the American Standard Version 1901 edition.+ + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + + − ====Translators and Editor====+ − The New World Translation was produced by the New World Bible Translation Committee. This committee was originally formed sometime in or around 1947 and, according to Nathan Knorr, its members had multinational background.<ref>New York Times August 3, 1950 p. 19</ref> The New World Bible Translation Committee requested that the publisher, the Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, not publish names of its members.<ref>[[The Watchtower]], September 15, 1950, p. 320</ref><ref>Walsh vs Honorable James Latham, Court of Session Scotland, 1954, cross examination of Frederick Franz pp. 90-92 "Q. Well then, which body decides? A. [by Frederick Franz] It is the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania [Corporation] that decides in these matters." (p. 90) "Q. Were you yourself responsible for the translation of the Old Testament? A. [by Frederick Franz] Again I cannot answer that question, in harmony with the gentlemen's agreement made by the Board of Directors and the Translation Committee." (p. 92)</ref> Former high ranking Watchtower staffers have proposed their identities<ref>Martin W, Kingdom of the Cults, Expanded Anniversary Edition, October 1997, Bethany House Publishers, p. 123. "''While the members of the [NWT] committee have never been identified officially by the Watchtower, many Witnesses who worked at the headquarters during the translation period were fully aware of who the members were. They included Nathan H. Knorr (president of the Society at the time), Frederick W. Franz (who later succeeded Knorr as president), Albert D. Schroeder, George Gangas, and Milton Henschel (currently the president)''."</ref><ref>Wills T, M.A., A People For His Name - A History of Jehovah's Witnesses and An Evaluation, Lulu, 2006. Originally published in 1967 by Vantage Press. "''[Frederick] Franz is a language scholar of no mean ability-he supervised the translation of the Bible from the original languages into the New World Translation, completed in 1961''." (p. 253) Of author Tony Wills, the Preface reads "''The Author has been intimately associated with Jehovah's Witnesses for many years, close enough to be able to think as one, but never, at the same time, losing his objectivity''." </ref>, though the Watchtower organization has never confirmed or denied the details. − ==Editions and languages== − As of 2008, the NWT has been published in 72 languages. Translation into other languages is based on the English text, possible because of the literal nature of the English translation itself, supplemented by comparison with the Hebrew and Greek.<ref>Jehovah’s Witnesses—Proclaimers of God’s Kingdom (1993) Chap. 27 p. 611, subheading Translation Into Other Languages.</ref> − The complete translation the Holy Scriptures is available in [[Afrikaans]], [[Albanian language|Albanian]], [[Arabic language|Arabic]], [[Cebuano language|Cebuano]], [[Chinese language|Chinese]] (Standard, Simplified, Pinyin), [[Bemba language|Cibemba]], [[Croatian language|Croatian]], [[Czech language|Czech]], [[Danish language|Danish]], [[Dutch language|Dutch]], [[English language|English]] (also Braille), [[Finnish language|Finnish]], [[French language|French]], [[Georgian language|Georgian]], [[German language|German]], [[Greek language|Greek]], [[Hungarian language|Hungarian]], [[Igbo language|Igbo]], [[Ilokano language|Iloko]], [[Indonesian language|Indonesian]], [[Italian language|Italian]], [[Japanese language|Japanese]], [[Korean language|Korean]], [[Macedonian language|Macedonian]], [[Malagasy language|Malagasy]], [[Maltese language|Maltese]], [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]], [[Polish language|Polish]], [[Portuguese language|Portuguese]] (also Braille), [[Romanian language|Romanian]], [[Russian language|Russian]], [[Serbian language|Serbian]] (Cyrillic and Latin scripts), [[Sesotho language|Sesotho]], [[Shona language|Shona]], [[Slovak language|Slovakian]], [[Spanish language|Spanish]] (also Braille), [[Swahili language|Swahili]], [[Swedish language|Swedish]], [[Tagalog language|Tagalog]], [[Tsonga language|Tsonga]], [[Tswana language|Tswana]], [[Turkic language|Turkish]], [[Xhosa language|Xhosa]], [[Yorùbá language|Yoruba]], and [[Zulu language|Zulu]]. + − − The Christian Greek Scriptures (commonly known as the New Testament) is available in [[American Sign Language]], [[Brazilian Sign Language]], [[Armenian language|Armenian]], [[Bulgarian language|Bulgarian]], [[Chichewa language|Chichewa]], [[Efik language|Efik]], [[Ewe language|Ewe]], [[Hiligaynon language|Hiligaynon]], Italian Braille, [[Kinyarwanda language|Kinyarwanda]], [[Kirghiz language|Kirghiz]], [[Kirundi language|Kirundi]], [[Lingala language|Lingala]], [[Ossetic language|Ossetic]], [[Samoan language|Samoan]], [[Sepedi language|Sepedi]], [[Sinhalese language|Sinhala]], [[Slovene language|Slovenian]], [[Sranan Tongo|Sranantongo]], [[Thai language|Thai]], [[Twi]], and [[Ukrainian language|Ukrainian]]. − ==Features of the translation==+ − Various editions of the New World Translation have been published. The 1984 reference edition has more than 125,000 marginal references (cross references), running headings at the top of most pages to assist in locating texts, footnotes about translation decisions (which mention some 90 different manuscripts and other sources that are listed in a table of abbreviations at the start), a concordance, and an index of footnote words and "further word studies" (giving pointers about a certain topic). Some of the footnotes also add transliterations from the original languages. The pronoun "you" is printed in small capitals to indicate plurality, as are some verbs when plurality is not obvious. Square brackets [ ] are added around words that were inserted editorially (double brackets indicate dubious material). − The standard (not reference) edition is printed in smaller type on thinner paper, lacks the footnotes, and adds a "Bible Topics for Discussion" section that outlines where to find scriptures about various doctrinal points. An even smaller "pocket edition" also lacks the cross-references.+ − Many of the non-English translations lack the footnotes, and some add footnotes of their own regarding notes about the translation into the other language.+ + + + + + − There are various appendices in the different editions published, including arguments for various translation decisions, extra data on certain aspects of manuscripts, conversion tables for weights and measures, an agricultural calendar, maps, and diagrams of the tabernacle and temple.+ − The translators use the terms "Hebrew-Aramaic Scriptures" and "Christian Greek Scriptures" rather than "Old Testament" and "New Testament", saying the use of "testament" was based on a misunderstanding of 2 Corinthians 3:14.<ref>Appendix 7E in the New World Translation reference edition</ref> When referring to dates in the supplemental material, the abbreviations B.C.E. (before the common era) and C.E. (common era) are used rather than BC and AD.+ − Verbs indicating continuous or progressive action are consistently rendered as such in English, for example "proceeded to rest" rather than "rested" in Genesis 2:2, or "keep on asking" rather than "ask" at Matthew 7:7.+ − ==Critical Review==+ − The New World Translation has received both commendation and criticism. In its review of bible translations released from 1955 to 1985, ''Harper's Bible Dictionary'' listed the New World Translation as one of the major modern translations.<ref>Robert G. Bratcher, "The English Bible," ''Harper's Bible Dictionary,'' Harper & Row, 1985, p. 266</ref> − ===Translation Committee qualifications===+ − Critics have speculated that the translators of the NWT insisted to remain anonymous because they were not formally qualified for making a Bible translation. Among the names rumoured as possible translators, none of them has adequate academic training in Biblical languages.<ref>For instance, the formal training of Frederic Franz was concentrated on Latin and classical Greek. According to the 1911-1913 University of Cincinnati transcript for Frederick W. Franz, he did in class 15 hours of Latin, 21 hours of classical Greek, and a single 2-hour credit class in a course titled “The New Testament—A course in grammar and translation.” However, according to A. H. Macmillan, one of the directors of Watchtower organization when the NWT was published, Frederic Franz, in addition to his native tongue of English, was fluent in Spanish, Portuguese and German, conversant in French, and a scholar of Hebrew, Greek, Syrian and Latin (MacMillan AH, Faith on the March, Prentice Hall, 1957, p. 181-182).</ref> Responding, the Watchtower Society claims that "the particulars of their university or other educational training are not the important thing” and that the translation testifies to their qualification.<ref>The Watchtower, December 15, 1974, p. 768</ref> Academic reviewers of the New World Translation have made statements in favour of the translators. Dr. Bruce Metzger stated for the NWT of the Greek Scriptures: "On the whole, one gains a tolerably good impression of the scholarly equipment of the translators.”<ref name=Metzger>Metzger, Bruce M, The New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures, ''The Bible Translator'' 15/3 (July 1964), pp. 150-153.</ref> Similarly, though critical, Samuel Haas, in his review of the first volume of the NWT of the Hebrew Scriptures, stated that “this work indicates a great deal of effort and thought as well as considerable scholarship.”<ref>''Journal of Biblical Literature,'' Vol. 74, No. 4, (Dec. 1955), p. 283.</ref>. On the NWT New Testament, commentator Alexander Thomson writes, “The translation is evidently the work of skilled and clever scholars, who have sought to bring out as much of the true sense of the Greek text as the English language is capable of expressing,”<ref>Thomson, A., The Differentiator, April 1952, pages 52-57</ref> and the Greek scholar Dr. [[Edgar J. Goodspeed]] wrote in a letter to the Watchtower Society, “I am [...] much pleased with the free, frank, and vigorous translation. It exhibits a vast array of sound serious learning, as I can testify.”<ref>“Loyally advocating the Word of God,” ''The Watchtower'' (15 March, 1982), p. 23.</ref> − ===Linguistic and theological review===+ − [[Charles Francis Potter]] has stated about NWT: "Apart from a few semantic peculiarities like translating the Greek word stauros, as "stake" instead of "cross," and the often startling use of the colloquial and the vernacular, the anonymous translators have certainly rendered the best manuscript texts, both Greek and Hebrew, with scholarly ability and acumen."<ref>''The faiths men live by,'' Kessinger Publishing, 1954, 239. ISBN 1425486525.</ref> − Regarding the NWT’s use of English, Dr. Harold H. Rowley is critical of what he calls “wooden literalism” and “harsh construction.” He characterizes these as “an insult to the Word of God” and offers a few sample renderings from Genesis. Specifically he cites Genesis 15:5, 4:13, 6:3, 18:20, 4:8, 19:22, 24:32 and 24:66. Rowley concludes these criticisms by writing, “From beginning to end this volume is a shining example of how the Bible should not be translated.”<ref>Rowley, H.H., How Not To Translate the Bible, The Expository Times, 1953; 65; 41</ref> + − Commentator Alexander Thomson wrote, “We heartily recommend the New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures, published in 1950 by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society.”<ref>Thomson A, The Differentiator, 1952, 55 No. 2, 6</ref> + − Various critics have accused the translators of rendering the NWT to conform "to their own preconceived and unbiblical theology."<ref>See Ankerberg, John and John Weldon, 2003, ''The New World Translation of the Jehovah's Witnesses'', accessible [http://www.johnankerberg.org/Articles/ATRI-Bible-School/Fall-Bible-School/fall-bible-school-jw-new-world-translation.htm online], which quotes a number of scholars regarding alleged theological bias of the New World Translation.</ref> To support a view of theology overriding appropriate translation, Drs. [[John Ankerberg]] and John Weldon cite several examples, such as the NWT's use of "for all time" in Hebrews 9:27: “And as it is reserved for men to die once for all time, but after this a judgment.” Ankerberg and Weldon cite Dr. Julius Mantey on this text as saying, “Heb. 9:27, which without any grounds for it in the Greek, is mistranslated in the J. W. Translation… the phrase “for all time” was inserted in the former versions without any basis in the original for it.”<ref>See Ankerberg, John and John Weldon, 2003, ''The New World Translation of the Jehovah's Witnesses'', accessible from [http://www.johnankerberg.org/Articles/ATRI-Bible-School/Fall-Bible-School/fall-bible-school-jw-new-world-translation.htm this site], which quotes a number of scholars regarding alleged theological bias of the New World Translation.</ref>+ − [[William Barclay (theologian)|Dr. William Barclay]] concluded that "the deliberate distortion of truth by this sect is seen in the New Testament translation….It is abundantly clear that a sect which can translate the New Testament like that is intellectually dishonest."<ref>Rhodes R, The Challenge of the Cults and New Religions, The Essential Guide to Their History, Their Doctrine, and Our Response, Zondervan, 2001, p. 94</ref>+ + − In his review of 9 bible translations, Dr. Jason BeDuhn states that the NWT is a ‘remarkably good translation’.<ref>BeDuhn, Jason D. ''Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament'', 2004: 165</ref> He also states, “While it is difficult to quantify this sort of analysis, it can be said the NW emerges as the most accurate of the translations ... judging by the passages we have looked at.” <ref>BeDuhn, Jason D. ''Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament'', 2004. Beduhn compared the ''King James'', the ''(New) Revised Standard'', the ''New International'', the ''New American Bible'', the ''New American Standard Bible'', the ''Amplified Bible'', the ''Living Bible'', ''Today's English'' and the ''NWT'' versions in Mattthew 28:9, Phillipians 2:6, Colossians 1:15-20, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 1:8, John 8:58, John 1:1.</ref>+ + − [[Bruce Metzger]] cites NWT renderings as instances of translating to support doctrine. He references the NWT’s comma placement at Luke 23:43 as “In the interest of supporting the doctrine of "soul sleep" held by Jehovah’s Witnesses.”<ref>Metzger, Bruce M, Persistent Problems Confronting Bible Translators, Bibliotheca Sacra / July-September 1993: 279</ref> Another example Metzger offers is the insertion of the word “other” four times in Colossians chapter 1 “thus making Paul say that Jesus Christ is one among ‘other’ created things.” Of this insertion, Metzger states it is “In the interest of providing support of [Jehovah’s Witnesses’] Unitarianism” and that the insertion is “totally without warrant from the Greek”.<ref>Metzger, Bruce M, The New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures, The Bible Translator 15/3 (July 1964), pp. 150-153.</ref> Dr. Jason BeDuhn disagrees on this point by stating “‘Other’ is implied by ‘all,’ and the NW simply makes what is implicit explicit.”<ref>BeDuhn, Jason D. ''Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament'', 2004: 85</ref> Dr. Bruce Metzger characterizes the NWT’s use of “Jehovah” in the New Testament as an “introduction.” He writes, “The introduction of the word ‘[[Jehovah]]’ into the New Testament text, in spite of much ingenuity in an argument filled with a considerable amount of irrelevant material (pp. 10-25), is a plain piece of special pleading.”<ref>Metzger, Bruce M., The New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures, The Bible Translator 15/3 (July 1964), pp. 150-153.</ref>+ + − [[Reachout Trust]] writer Tony Piper concludes it is not a "faithful translation of the Scriptures…", giving as examples Acts 2:42, 46 and 20:7, 11 and he objects that “the NWT translates it to read that the church simply shared meals together” rather than using the phrase “breaking of bread [...] to disguise the fact that the early church celebrated the Lord's Supper more than once a year.” <ref> Tony Piper, member of Reachout Trust examines the New World Translation http://www.reachouttrust.org/articles/jw/jwnwt.htm</ref>+ + − Greek scholar Dr. Rijkel ten Kate notes in reference to the NWT that in rendering different Greek words (bre′phos, pai‧di′on, and pais) employed to describe the successive stages of Jesus’ growth “that there is actually one Dutch Bible in which the different use of the three Greek words bre′phos, pai‧di′on, and pais is rightly taken into account,” after having previously reviewed other Dutch translations and concluded that “not one Dutch translation has rendered this adequately, that is to say, completely in harmony with the original text.”<ref>>The Watchtower, April 15, 1995</ref>+ + − Thomas Winter considers the Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures (part of the NWT project) as “highly useful” toward mastery of biblical Greek.<ref>Thomas N. Winter, Review of New World Bible Translation Committee’s The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures, Classics and Religious Studies Faculty Publications, Classics and Religious Studies Department, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, April-May 1974: 376. “[S]ince [the Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures] short-cuts the mechanical and distracting lexicon-thumbing while presenting an unretouched text, I think it is a legitimate and highly useful aid toward the mastery of koine (and classical) Greek. After examining a copy, I equipped several interested second-year Greek students with it as an auxiliary text. No assignments were made in it: the students, combining their wish to learn Greek with a natural interest in the original of the New Testament, dipped into it on their own. They read the Greek (I strongly recommended reading it aloud), picked up the English more or less subliminally, and ended up improving their Greek. After learning the proper pronunciations, a motivated student could probably learn koine Greek from this source alone…. In sum, when a Witness comes to the door, the classicist, Greek student, or Bible student alike would do well to bring him in and place an order.”</ref> Winter relates that the translation "is thoroughly up-to-date and consistently accurate.” <ref>Thomas N. Winter, Review of New World Bible Translation Committee’s The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures, Classics and Religious Studies Faculty Publications, Classics and Religious Studies Department, University of Nebraska – Lincoln, April-May 1974: 376</ref>+ − ===A Case Study of Translation===+ − One of the NWT's most controversial passages is John 1:1. The ''King James Version'' translation renders this verse: − <blockquote> − In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the '''Word was God'''.</blockquote> − <ref>http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=John%201%20;&version=9;</ref> − The ''New World Translation'' renders the same verse: − <blockquote> − In [the] beginning the Word was, and the Word was with God, and the '''Word was a god'''. − </blockquote> − <ref>http://www.watchtower.org/bible/index.htm</ref> − − The NWT's translation is considered by many as a change to agree with the [[Beliefs and practices of Jehovah's Witnesses|doctrines of Jehovah's Witnesses]]. Some reference books argue strongly that the Greek text must be translated, “The Word was God”, however not all agree. In his article, “Qualitative Anarthrous Predicate Nouns: Mark 15:39 and John 1:1”, [[Philip B. Harner]] said that such clauses as the one in John 1:1, <blockquote>“with an anarthrous predicate preceding the verb, are primarily qualitative in meaning. They indicate that the logos has the nature of theos.”</blockquote> − He suggests: − <blockquote>“Perhaps the clause could be translated, ‘the Word had the same nature as God.’” (Journal of Biblical Literature, 1973, pp. 85, 87)</blockquote> − Thus, in this text, the fact that the word ''theos'' in its second occurrence is without the definite article (''ho'') and is placed before the verb in the sentence in Greek is significant. Interestingly, translators that insist on rendering John 1:1, “The Word was God,” do not hesitate to use the indefinite article (a, an) in their rendering of other passages where a singular anarthrous predicate noun occurs before the verb. Thus at John 6:70, The ''Jerusalem Bible'' and ''King James'' both refer to Judas Iscariot as “a devil,” and at John 9:17 they describe Jesus as “a prophet.” − − Of the NWT’s rendering “…and the Word was a god” at John 1:1, Metzger states it “is not justifiable” and “entirely in accord with the Arian theology of the sect.”<ref name=Metzger /> − − Dr. Jason BeDuhn, states of the NWT that its “translation of John 1:1 is superior to” the other translations he considered. He continues, “It may well be that the NW translators came to the task of translating John 1:1 with as much bias as the other translators did. It just so happens that their bias corresponds in this case to a more accurate translation of the Greek. ... The NW translation of John 1:1 is superior to that of the other eight translations we are comparing. I do not think it is the best possible translation for a modern English reader; but at least it breaks with the KJV tradition followed by all the others, and it does so in the right direction by paying attention to how Greek grammar and syntax actually work.”<ref>BeDuhn, Jason D. ''Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament'', 2004: 125, 133</ref> − − Several other bible translations render John 1:1 in a similar manner: − *1808 “and the word was a god” -''The New Testament, in An Improved Version, Upon the Basis of Archbishop Newcome’s New Translation: With a Corrected Text, London.'' − *1864 “and a god was the Word” -''The Emphatic Diaglott (J21,interlinear reading), by Benjamin Wilson, New York and London.'' − *1935 “and the Word was divine” -''The Bible—An American Translation, by J. M. P. Smith and E. J. Goodspeed,Chicago.'' − *1950 “and the Word was a god” -''New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures,Brooklyn.'' − *1975 “and a god (or, of a divine kind) was the Word” − *1978 “and godlike sort was the Logos" − *1979 “and a god was the Logos” -''Das Evangelium nach Johannes,by Johannes Schneider,Berlin.'' − {{reflist|2}}+ − + − ==Further information== − ===Online Edition=== − − − ===Supportive=== − *Stafford, Greg: ''Jehovah's Witnesses Defended''. [ISBN 0-9659814-7-9] − *[[Rolf Furuli|Furuli, Rolf]]: ''The Role of Theology and Bias in Bible Translation: With a special look at the New World Translation of Jehovah's Witnesses'', 1999. [ISBN 0-9659814-9-5] − *Byatt, Anthony and Flemings, Hal (editors): ''‘Your Word is Truth’, Essays in Celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (1950, 1953)'', 2004. [ISBN 0-9506212-6-9] − *[http://jehovah.to/exe/translation/coptic.pdf The Coptic Evidence] − − ===Neutral=== − *[[Jason BeDuhn|BeDuhn, Jason]]: ''Truth in Translation - Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament'' [ISBN 0-7618-2556-8] − *[http://www.lectio.unibe.ch/05_2/troyer_names_of_god.htm The Names of God. Their Pronunciation and Their Translation. A Digital Tour of Some of the Main Witnesses.] − *[http://www.tetragrammaton.org/ Tetragrammaton in the New Testament] − − − ===Critical=== − * Robert Countess: ''Jehovah's Witnesses' New Testament: A Critical Analysis'', [ISBN 0-87552-210-6] − * [http://www.evangelicalbible.com/jw.htm NWT and the Deity of Christ - A table showing NWT changes to key Christological passages, written from an evangelical perspective] − * [http://www.catholicresponse.org/articles/Hiding_The_Divine_Name.pdf Article critical of the ''Kingdom Interlinear Translation''] − {{English Bible translation navbox}} − − [[Category:1961 books]] − [[Category:Bible versions and translations]] − [[Category:Jehovah's Witnesses literature]] − + − [[de:Neue-Welt-Übersetzung der Heiligen Schrift]] − [[el:Η Αγία Γραφή-Μετάφραση Νέου Κόσμου]] − [[es:Traducción del Nuevo Mundo de las Santas Escrituras]] − [[fr:Traduction du Monde Nouveau des Saintes Écritures]] − [[id:Kitab Suci Terjemahan Dunia Baru]] − [[ia:Traduction del Nove Mundo del Sancte Scripturas]] − [[it:Traduzione del Nuovo Mondo delle Sacre Scritture]] − [[hu:A Szentírás új világ fordítása]] − [[nl:Nieuwe-Wereldvertaling]] − [[ja:新世界訳聖書]] − [[no:Ny verden-oversettelsen av de hellige skrifter]] − [[pl:Pismo Święte w Przekładzie Nowego Świata]] − [[pt:Tradução do Novo Mundo das Escrituras Sagradas]] − [[ru:Священное Писание — Перевод нового мира]] − [[fi:Uuden maailman käännös]] − [[sv:Nya världens bibelöversättning]] − [[zh:圣经 (新世界译本)]]
New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (view source)
Revision as of 00:35, November 10, 2008
, 00:35, November 10, 2008Undo revision 553350 by Leslie (Talk)
The '''New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures''' is published by the Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, a legal corporation used by [[Jehovah's Witnesses]] to print Bibles and Bible related publications.
Released in a series of installments as translation work was completed, the first volume to be released was the ''New World Translation of the Christian Greek Scriptures'' on August 2, 1950. It was not until 1963 that the entire Bible, both the Hebrew-Aramaic ([[Old Testament]]) and the Christian Greek Scriptures ([[New Testament]]) were released in a single volume.
Previous to beginning the translation work of the ''New World Translation'', Jehovah's Witnesses quoted from either the ''[[King_James_Bible]]'' or the ''[[American Standard Version]]'' in their publications. Although the ''New World Translation'' has become the primary translation in Jehovah's Witness publications they continue to make use of other translations in their publications.
In the foreward to 1963 release, the anonymous translation committee stated that their method of translation was with the goal of being as literal as possible to the point of understandableness. The language is intended to be modern, when compared to the archaic English of the ''King James''.
The completed 1963 edition ran 3,646 pages and included thousands of footnotes, cross-references, an appendix that outlined the translators rationale behind specific decisions made in the translation process, and an index of Bible words. Today the ''New World Translation'' is offered in soft cover editions, including a pocket sized version, or a hard-cover reference version that contains over 125,000 marginal references.
According to ''The [[Watchtower]]'' of August 15, 2006, this translation is now available in whole or in part, in 57 languages including:
{| class="wikitable"
| Afrikaans
| Albanian
| Cebuano
| Chinese
| Croatian
| Czech
| Danish
| English
| Finnish
| French
|-
| Georgian
| German
| Greek
| Hungarian
| [[Igbo]]
| Iloko
| Indonesian
| Italian
| Japanese
| Korean
|-
| Lingala
| Macedonian
| Norwegian
| Polish
| Rommanian
| Russian
| Serbian
| Sesotho
| Shona
| Slovak
|-
| Spanish
| Swahili
| Swedish
| Tagalog
| Tsonga
| Tswana
| Xhosa
| Yoruba
| Zulu
|}
An on-line English version (absent marginal references, appendices, etc) is available at the [http://www.watchtower.org/e/bible/index.htm Jehovah's Witnesses Official Web Site].
=== Features ===
In addition to the aforementioned appendices and marginal references, ''The New World Translation'' features consistency in translation choices through-out the text. An example is the Hebrew word ''sheol'' which was translated in the ''King James Version'' 31 times as "hell," 31 times as "grave," and 3 times as "pit". The ''New world Translation'' uniformly leaves the word untranslated.
Changes in language from the 17th century English used by the ''King James Version'' and the modern language of the ''The New World Translation'' can be seen in the following examples:
*"suffered" becomes "allowed" (Genesis 31:7)
*"was bolled" becomes "had flower buds" (Exodus 9:31)
*"spoilers" becomes "pillagers" (Judges 2:14)
*"ear his ground" becomes "do his plowing" (1 Samuel 8:12)
*"shambles" becomes "meat market" (1 Corinthians 10:25)
*"letteth" becomes "acting as a restraint" (2 Thessalonians 2:7)
=== Controversy ===
Because of the choices available to translators, no two translations of the same text will necessarily read alike. The following items are considered to be the more controversial translation decisions made in ''The New World Translation''.
:'''The Divine Name in the Christian Greek Scriptures''' Given their firm belief in the use of the Divine Name [[Jehovah]], the translators sought to restore it whenever doing so was based on available manuscripts and/or fragments. As a result the Christian Greek Scriptures portion of the ''The New World Translation'' features Jehovah 237 times.
:In supporting their use of the Jehovah, the translators note in Appendix 1D of the Reference edition, that early Christian writers such as Matthew and Peter would have relied on either Hebrew copies of Scriptures then available or the Greek Septuagint. These sources would have naturally included the Tetragrammaton (הוהי ), although the custom of the day was to use the word Adonai.
:They then quote George Howard (University of Georgia) who wrote in ''Journal of Biblical Literature'' (Vol. 96, 1977, p. 63: “Recent discoveries in Egypt and the Judean Desert allow us to see first hand the use of God’s name in pre-Christian times. These discoveries are significant for N[ew] T[estament] studies in that they form a literary analogy with the earliest Christian documents and may explain how NT authors used the divine name. In the following pages we will set forth a theory that the divine name, הוהי (and possibly abbreviations of it), was originally written in the NT quotations of and allusions to the O[ld] T[estament] and that in the course of time it was replaced mainly with the surrogate [abbreviation for Ky′ri·os, “Lord”]. This removal of the Tetragram[maton], in our view, created a confusion in the minds of early Gentile Christians about the relationship between the ‘Lord God’ and the ‘Lord Christ’ which is reflected in the MS tradition of the NT text itself.”
:'''John 1:1 - "and the Word was a god"''' A proof-text used in support of the [[Trinity]] doctrine, ''The New World Translation'' translates the Greek text in a manner that does not state Jesus Christ (The Word) is God.
:In the original Greek, John 1:1 uses the word ''the-os´'' in two places. Once preceded by the definite article ''ho'' and once without the definite article. Where the definite article indicates a specific individual "the God", the lack of a definite article indicates a quality possessed by the one being described; in this case the Word. In Greek grammar, the lack of a definite article results in the predicate being considered "anarthrous" [http://www.forananswer.org/Glossary.htm] (without a definite article).
:Philip B. Harner wrote in the ''Journal of Biblical Literature'' in 1973 "with an anarthrous predicate preceding the verb ... they indicate that the ''logos'' has the nature of ''theos''."
::''Other translations rendering John 1:1 in a similar fashion''
::''The Emphatic Diaglott - English/Greek Interlinear''
::In a beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the God, and a god was the Word.
::''The Complete Bible, An American Translation'' Edgar J. Goodspeed (1939)
::In the beginning the Word existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was divine.
::''Das Evangelium nach Johannes'' Siegfried Schulz (translated from German)
::"and a god (or, of a divine kind) was the Word"
::''Das Evangelium nach Johannes'' Jürgen Becker (translated from German)
::"and a god was the Logos"
=== Critical Reviews ===
The ''New World Translation'' has been reviewed by numerous individuals and groups over the years with mixed results. Those that object most to the translation include those who hold deeply divergent theological viewpoints from Jehovah's Witnesses and tend to be most critical of the religion. These include Drs. John Ankerberg and John Weldon who wrote that the "translation must not be trusted to accurately convey God's Word because of it's unrelenting biases in translation". This is because of the translation's use of the divine name, [[Jehovah]] in both the Hebrew and Christian Greek scriptures (see Controversy section above).
On the other hand, Jason BeDuhn, associate professor of religious studies at Northern Arizona University (Flagstaff, AZ), examined the ''The New World Translation'' along with eight other translation. Although critical of some translation choices made, the professor noted ''The New World Translation'' as a "remarkably good" translation that is "better by far" and "consistently better" than some of the others considered. He concluded that the translation is "one of the most accurate English translations of the New Testament currently available" and the "most accurate of the translations compared". Where translators may feel pressure to paraphrase or expand on what the Bible says, BeDuhn commented that ''The New World Translation'' is different in "the greater accuracy of the NW as a literal, conservative translation of the original expressions of the New Testament writers." - ''Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament'' (2003)
:Other translations reviewed include: ''King James Version'', ''New International Version'', ''English Standard Version'', ''New Revised Standard Version'', ''New American Standard Bible'', ''Amplified Bible'', ''Today's English Version'', ''Living Bible''.
==References==
==References==
*Truth in Translation: Accuracy and Bias in English Translations of the New Testament (©2003, University Press of America)
*New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures (©1984,1963, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society)
*[http://www.watchtower.org/bible/index.htm New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures] - online edition available from Watchtower Society official web site. Also online in an increasing number of other languages: follow the language links from http://www.watchtower.org/ and see if there is a link to Online Bible from there, or if you know the Watchtower code of the language (usually the first letter) then place this before /bible, e.g. http://www.watchtower.org/f/bible for French
*[http://rosetta.reltech.org/Ebind/docs/TC/TBT/1964/03/TBT196403.html?num=150&num1=&x=0&y=0 Review by Bruce Metzger (1963) on the ''New World Translation of the Greek Scriptures''].
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[[Category:Bible Versions]]