Great stuff Lachie and Sam. Short, sharp, punchy, no mincing words. As I move through my layman's study of the Bible, religion and early Christianity, I can only reasonably conclude that the "Biblical project", far from being univocal, involving a "plain reading of the text." etc, is in fact the most pluralistic cultural endeavour in history.
Just to preface, I am an egalitarian Pentecostal. Having said that, in response to section headings, the ESV isn’t the only, nor by any means the first, to put a section heading before Ephesians 5:22. NASB and NKJV are only a couple that also included it there, and the more recent update to the NRSV has moved the heading from before verse 21 to before verse 22. Even the NIV had it before verse 22 prior to the 2011 update. The reason it is being placed before verse 22 is simply because a subject ends with verse 21 and a new subject begins at verse 22.
thanks for the feedback. I always just let RU-vid automatically place ads. But I also don't usually upload 40 minute videos. I've gone in and removed some of the ad breaks. However, it will differ from user to user
So would he recommend having no sections within chapters? And having no headings? Furthermore the chapters and verses are later additions to the Bible’s that one could argue are debatable or arbitrary. So are the placement of commas. So would he advocate having just one endless block of text with no punctuation? Or should we add headings and titles that fit his personal message and desires?
Hey there, as Sam mentions several times (e.g., 28:37) in the video, most of the time these things are added with good intentions. But there are times when they are added to guide readers towards certain biases and while we can never escape this, it's important to be informed as to how those processes and decisions work. There's also a section at the end where Sam shares some tips on how to evaluate translations.
It would be helpful if bibles came with the biases of the translator. That’s what I like about the KJV even if it’s not the most accurate at times. We have a better understanding of their bias free of modern theological influence.
The "laptop view" is cheesy, and cheapens your overall presentation. fyi As a bit of nerd trivia, the HCSB and NET have the "God loved the world like this:" for John 3:16.
Wow. I really learned a lot from the interview. Professor Perry is extremely knowledgeable and down to earth. My mother bought me a GNB when I was child and that has been my go to Bible for its less literal "word for word" translation and more paraphrasing interpretation. Plus I find it extremely easy to read and understand though I find other people don't care for this type of translation. Thank you so much Lachlan for providing us with this video and increasing the scope of all our knowledge. A+++
My pleasure Mac! Yeah I think like Sam said, most translation decisions are made with good intentions. It just helps to be aware of the types of things that can be done to influence readers.
No translation is perfect but scholars prefer the NRSV because they had the top scholars in their fields work on the translation, they used a diverse committee from various faith backgrounds, men and women so it's less open to bias towards a particular theological persuasion. I think it's impossible to escape bias, but it's important to just be aware of how bias is introduced into a translation/study bible.
