|
Copyright © By Dr. Adel Elsaie, Book Title: "Please Revise the Bible, Again" |
4.3 English Translations
There are over 50 major
translations of the New Testament. Theories of translation are enthusiastically
and even hotly debated among both laymen and the scholars. The debate largely
focuses around whether a translation should be “word for word” equivalent to
the existing manuscript, or what is called dynamic or functionally equivalent
focusing on the ease of understanding of the intended reader. Every translation
imperfectly represents the existing manuscript, because languages and cultures
differ in ways that translation by itself cannot conquer. While translator bias
is a fact to be contended with, translations are being tainted by the
theological background of translators by interjecting their interpretation of
ancient Hebrew and Greek words and idioms. A translator's first and most
essential job is to bridge the language and time gaps. The translator attempts
to seek the best way of saying in English what was said first in ancient
Hebrew or Greek. But even this is not simple. No English word fully matches a
Greek or Hebrew word. For instance, the biblical words for "soul" are
the Hebrew “nephesh” and the Greek “psyche.”
Unfortunately, nephesh is also translated as
"life," "appetite," "neck" and
"person," among other words.