tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post5994630473639865249..comments2023-11-03T11:37:04.473+00:00Comments on nothing new under the sun: In search of the perfect Biblebyron smithhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comBlogger20125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-73186973804944885372013-08-26T03:27:36.198+01:002013-08-26T03:27:36.198+01:00Why Driscoll is wrong (and not just about women). ...<a href="http://jonchadwickchambers.com/2013/08/24/in-which-i-disagree-with-mark-driscoll-and-it-has-little-to-do-with-women/" rel="nofollow">Why Driscoll is wrong (and not just about women)</a>. A critique of Driscoll's defence of the ESV.byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-36011979120939527862011-08-12T23:17:54.247+01:002011-08-12T23:17:54.247+01:00Mike Wells: Beware the translator who interprets.Mike Wells: <a href="http://dead-flies-and-perfume.blogspot.com/2011/08/beware-translator-who-interprets.html" rel="nofollow">Beware the translator who interprets</a>.byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-1639495639658112412011-04-30T21:32:17.915+01:002011-04-30T21:32:17.915+01:00Hi Mike (Paget),
Thanks for sharing your thoughts...Hi Mike (Paget),<br /><br />Thanks for sharing your thoughts on this. I'd like to hear more of your experience if you're willing to share.<br /><br />Do you think that the video in question, taken as a whole, says anything more than "here's a new English translation, we like it"? Do you think that someone hearing your comments on it would be surprised to hear that Barneys byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-69003642091470125892011-04-30T11:44:14.512+01:002011-04-30T11:44:14.512+01:00I'm guessing that the translation video you sa...I'm guessing that the translation video you saw may well have included me in the footage.<br /><br />Vomitous? Rebellious? Really, Anonymous (courageous of you to own this bold statement, btw)?<br /><br />I wonder how scarred by the 'bible wars' we have become if we are no longer able to speak to Christians from a range of denominations and say: 'here's a new English St Barnabas Broadway (Barneys)https://www.blogger.com/profile/00377845196063126448noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-85484291608408301172011-04-23T11:16:08.039+01:002011-04-23T11:16:08.039+01:00Mike - Better the devil (in the details) you know?...Mike - Better the devil (in the details) you know? Sometimes, I think a bit of confusion over what the text actually says can be a good thing. That is, the presence of different translations can mean we offer our interpretations of the text with a grain or two more of salt and humility, since we recognise that smart people (yes, I'm flattering translators here) differ over the best way of byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-2749710506198473772011-04-22T20:05:19.503+01:002011-04-22T20:05:19.503+01:00Of course, "naturalness" is a matter of ...Of course, "naturalness" is a matter of degree, so there are natural aspects to even literal translations.<br /><br />I do however think that whether you are aiming to translate into the language of "what people speak" or "what people can understand" is a key difference in guiding translation philosophy. Literal translations do the latter, some more functional Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14703064533223990944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-65551069845380369562011-04-22T08:43:08.340+01:002011-04-22T08:43:08.340+01:00Hi,
sorry, I thought I ticked the "follow ups...Hi,<br />sorry, I thought I ticked the "follow ups box", obviously I didn't.<br />I think it has just been easier having the NIV as the dominant translation. Even if it has flaws, problems, yadayada, they get pointed out once and you get over it.<br />Multiple translations in one area means multiple problems which means multiple addressing of said problems.<br /><br />Having said Mike Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11525682801952791861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-24666955192188550002011-04-20T23:59:02.983+01:002011-04-20T23:59:02.983+01:00Perhaps the translation people read influences the...Perhaps the translation people read influences their language use (over time), turning a register that once only belonged within the pages of a literal translation into a wider phenomenon...<br /><br />Though that's quite a damning call - that literal translations are such an idiosyncratic register as to fall outside the scope of registers widely used in everyday life (which is how I would byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-66507811860493917662011-04-20T17:12:49.021+01:002011-04-20T17:12:49.021+01:00Byron, I guess you're right in so far as "...Byron, I guess you're right in so far as "translationese" can be considered a natural form of a language, however I don't think it can because it is a fusion between two separate languages. Sure "translationese" can become naturalised, but that hasn't happened yet with many English translations apart from those in the KJV line.<br /><br />I don't think of Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14703064533223990944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-53348960125894197872011-04-19T13:17:38.345+01:002011-04-19T13:17:38.345+01:00Luke - I agree that I don't think a dearth of ...Luke - I agree that I don't think a dearth of decent translations is what stops people reading the scriptures.byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-74887862225345601382011-04-19T13:15:42.322+01:002011-04-19T13:15:42.322+01:00Donna - If I can push back on your use of "na...Donna - If I can push back on your use of "natural" here, I wonder whether there might not be better ways of describing the kind of English used in the NLT that don't make an appeal to a linguistic norm. Just as there is no "best" translation, I don't think there is a "natural" English, just a variety of different registers that are most appropriate to byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-34445499102434049022011-04-19T13:04:29.580+01:002011-04-19T13:04:29.580+01:00I have to say when I saw said promo for said lates...I have to say when I saw said promo for said latest and greatest translation the other day I found myself becoming surprisingly angry. It seems like just a few years ago that we were being sold on the wonders of the ESV and that has proven a pretty drastic failure as far as public reading is concerned. Now along comes the shiny new thing. It is so pointless. The big problem in our churches is notLukehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/12109449851754756274noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-39066300247580131802011-04-19T12:56:45.039+01:002011-04-19T12:56:45.039+01:00well writ Byronwell writ Byrongloryahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07265224398246936045noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-7345130643964231842011-04-17T11:32:09.799+01:002011-04-17T11:32:09.799+01:00Perhaps I should clarify, that I don't think t...Perhaps I should clarify, that I don't think the concepts in the NLT are easy, it's just that they have actually used natural English (unlike any literal translation) so the meaning is clearer.Donnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14703064533223990944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-21161472764539532872011-04-17T11:27:44.431+01:002011-04-17T11:27:44.431+01:00Mike W - I agree with your comment. The "batt...Mike W - I agree with your comment. The "battle" is often about context. Both who's theological point will come across more clearly in a translation of a particular verse. But also who's idea of what a bible should sound and read like will win. Should it sound foreign, or should it sound natural. <br /><br />These days, I advocate the NLT when asked, but many people object to itDonnahttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14703064533223990944noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-34311870294483635162011-04-16T12:23:59.687+01:002011-04-16T12:23:59.687+01:00MikeB - I may have had a conversation with the sam...MikeB - I may have had a conversation with the same person. At least, I've had a conversation where the same point was made and it has also got under my skin. It is not all that needs to be said (since if we follow that logic everywhere, then we would also feel guilty about trying to make any kind of improvements to a church that was already doing better than average in any way), but it is byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-54062305768670393822011-04-16T06:37:23.933+01:002011-04-16T06:37:23.933+01:00Bible translations are context dependent, so the f...Bible translations are context dependent, so the fight is really about whose context wins, or what kind of people 'own' church.<br />The discussions usually focus around which translation will help me win a particular battle against other christians who might take a verse a different way.<br />I was pleased to see one poster on the SydAng website defending the NIV11's translation in 1Mike Whttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11525682801952791861noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-27516029584104888192011-04-16T01:44:19.072+01:002011-04-16T01:44:19.072+01:00A few years back I was trying to engage a friend i...A few years back I was trying to engage a friend in a discussion about all these new Bible translations when he stopped me in my tracks by asking, 'Why are we happy about all this money being poured into fancy new English translations when the ones we've got are quite good, and when, for so many language groups around the world, Bible translations are poor, partial or non-existent?' Mike Bnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-57547829275432628162011-04-15T23:46:35.341+01:002011-04-15T23:46:35.341+01:00I wonder if we saw the same advert.I wonder if we saw the same advert.byron smithhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17938334606675769903noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-28189019.post-16846011419432176662011-04-15T23:31:11.540+01:002011-04-15T23:31:11.540+01:00I saw a promo for a particular translation yesterd...I saw a promo for a particular translation yesterday and felt both vomitous and then rebellious. Not gonna buy your book, so there!<br /><br />But seriously. The company that is selling this translation should be slapped - as Jesus did to the traders in the temple. They're using a very bad framework to sell a book that is decidedly against said framework. Not cool.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com