Today, the local used book store had a sale, buy any two books, get the third one (of equal or lesser value) free. So, I went in (even though I hadn't planned to) and I found something interesting, a copy of 'The New Testament in Modern English' a completely 'new' (as of 1956) translation of the NT. I had no idea whether the translation is any good, but I figured that it was only $4.75 it wasn't a big deal, I wasn't 'investing' all that much into it, so if worst comes to worst, and it turns out to be awful, at least I didn't pay all that much for it. So I bought it. (I needed two books to get that free one anyway.)

Anybody familiar with this translation? Is it any good?

It's quirky. Check out John 11:39.

Well, being a little bit 'quirky' is okay, there are certain verses that seem to have been translated in more or less exactly the same way for centuries, with very little variation in wording, so a 'freer' translation might be helpful.


BTW, how did you know to look at that precise verse? I have to say that I am impressed if you knew that citation just off the top of your head.

My memory is full of odd things, but I did have to look up the verse number. (I remember content, not citations, usually.)

And the fact that JBP translation (at least my copy anyway) doesn't actually have any chapter or verse designations probably makes remembering citations even harder..... although I have to say I like the lack of 'chapter and verse' numbers, I have been thinking for years that we should get rid of those, all they do is encourage people to quote verses out of context.

I have a copy of it. I don't read it if I'm just doing Bible reading (I use the RSV for that), but if I'm checking out multiple translations of a passage in order to try to get a "feel" for the nuances despite my lack of any biblical languages, I always check the Phillips. Of course, that's not an endorsement of the translation. I have a New World Translation that I always check, too. It's just helpful to read ten or twelve different translations of a passage, so I think for five bucks it was a good idea for you to pick up the Phillips volume. IMHO.

So, how many different translations do YOU own? I have 6 different translations of the whole Bible, and 12 different translations of just the NT. This is different from the number of Bibles I own, because there are some translations for which I own more than one copy.

(BTW, I would get rid of that 'New World Translation', why would you want THAT?)

I have 11 complete translations (except, of course, some of the Protestant Bibles don't have the Deuteros), and 3 additional translations of the New Testament.

(Complete Bibles: RSV, KJV, NAB, Douay-Rheims, NASB,NEB, New Berkeley Version, Jerusalem Bible, Living Bible, Amplified Bible, NIV. New Testament: JB Phillips, New World, and the 1881 Revised version of the KJV.)

I found the NWT--like most of my Bibles--at a secondhand book shop. I believe I spent $5 on it. Honestly, I get a kick out of having it, and since it's an old version (from the 50's, I think--too lazy to get it off the shelf to look, since it's at least two feet away from me) I could, theoretically, point out changes to JW's if I ever needed to.

Impressive.



Hmm..... not bad, though you are wrong about one thing: the Living Bible is not really a 'translation', it is actually just a paraphrase, unless you mean the 'Living Translation', which is indeed a translation.

Out of your list, only one I never heard of, namely the 'New Berkeley Version', what the heck is that?

My list (and keep in mind, I own more than one copy of some of these, the regular Protestant edition, as well as the 'Catholic Edition')

Whole Bible:

KJV
RSV
NRSV
NIV
Douay Rheims
New American

New Testament only:

Jerusalem Bible
New Jerusalem Bible
Good News Bible
Christian Community Bible (a very new translation only dates back to 2003, surprisingly good, in use primarily in the Philippines)
Confraternity Bible

and now JB Phillips translation

Although I hope to pick up a copy of the Ronald Knox translation soon, unfortunately only the NT is currently in print.







Well, actually, the New World Translation was first published in 1961, so it can't be quite as old as the 1950's.

Neither of you has a Vulgate? I'm speechless.

I have actually seriously considered getting one,, and only the high cost (there don't seem to be any editions in print for less than $100) prevented me.

I also have thought about getting a copy of the Greek New Testament, as well as copy of the Septuagint and the Hebrew Old Testament.

Why on Earth I would WANT to own any of those, I honestly have no idea, save that I have a near monomaniacal obsession with collecting Bibles (why else would I own 3 different copies of the KJV?)

Well, I do have a half-dozen volumes from the Navarre Bible, which include the Vulgate. So I have the Vulgate for Luke, John, Acts, Romans/Galatians, 1&2 Corinthians and Revelation.

Well, that's true, it's not a translation. But it's an English rendering, shall we say, of the NT, in what could be only loosely described as a "dynamic equivalence" model. I find the Living Bible repulsive, but I do check it when I'm thinking about a Bible passage.



I've never seen it anywhere other than on my shelf. It was another used bookstore find, that I picked up for a buck or two. Published by Zondervan, edited by Gerrit Verkuyl. New Testament copyright 1945, Old Testament copyright 1969. It's another dynamic equivalence-type translation. I've never really read enough of it to get a feel for whether I like it or not.



You should have been more vague. The translation is dated 1950, and the version I own is a reprint from 1951. Bear in mind, however, that this is just the New Testament. Perhaps the complete translation, including the OT, wasn't ready until 1961?

Okay, how about 'The New World Translation was first published somewhere between the publication of the King James Bible in 1611 and the turn of the millennium?

I guess I misunderstood you, I thought you said you had the whole NWT Bible, the WHOLE Bible was first published in 1961. Since it is common practice, in Bible translations, to publish the New Testament first, and then several years later publish the whole thing, I suppose it is possible that the New World Translation New Testament was published earlier, but I have no idea when that might have happened.

1950. Says so in my NWT New Testament.

Pfffftttt.... everyone knows that JW sources aren't reliable!