The NIV and the Name of God

In one of my conversations I had on Bible translation, publishing and contribution

TJ had written: > > This continues corrupt practices such as removing God's name from
 the Bible, simply because that's what their target audience wants. And of course popular ministers and theologians get paid for their endorsements and use of certain versions.

to which I wrote: > That is a strong accusation. This would be very bad.


On which TJ had a few comments to add:

Cover for a NIV Bible (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

When the New International Version (the most popular version in the USA) was released, one of Jehovah's Witnesses wrote the publishers asking why they left God's name out of the Bible. The letter was reprinted in the following Watchtower article.

"Why did the recently published 'New International Version' (NIV) of the Bible fail to use the name of God where it appears about 7,000 times in ancient Bible manuscripts? In response to a person who inquired about this, Edwin H. Palmer, Th.D., Executive Secretary for the NIV's committee wrote:

"'Here is why we did not: You are right that Jehovah is a distinctive name for God and ideally we should have used it. But we put 2 1/4 million dollars into this translation and a sure way of throwing that down the drain is to translate, for example, Psalm 23 as, "Yahweh is my shepherd." Immediately, we would have translated for nothing. Nobody would have used it. Oh, maybe you and a handful [of] others. But a Christian has to be also wise and practical. We are the victims of 350 years of the King James tradition. It is far better to get two million to read it—that is how many have bought it to date—and to follow the King James, than to have two thousand buy it and have the correct translation of Yahweh. . . . It was a hard decision, and many of our translators agree with you.'"

Dutch version:

De NIV en de Naam van God

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2013 update:

 

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2001 Translation an American English Bible

Next to the already existent English translations of the Aramaic

Aramaic/English Peshitta Interlinear Younan Translation, Dr. George Lamsa Bible, Murdock Translation of the Western Peshitto and the Etheridge Translation of the Western Peshitto there has been published  next to the Aramaic/Afrikaans Peshitta Interlinear Translation and Aramaic/Dutch Peshitta Translation a new Dutch translation parallel with the 2001 Translation – an American English Bible.

The 2001 Translation uses Jehovah because a.o. they found it in many Hebrew writings and because they questioned whether the use of God’s Name was considered as offensive prior to Jerusalem’s destruction by the Roman armies (70-C.E.).(יהוה Jehovah not in the form κύριος [Lord]) [Yahweh (yah-h’-Wĕh), Yahwah (yah-h’-Wah), or Yehwah (yĕh-h’-Wah)] It is a translation of the Bible, written in the commonly spoken vernacular of our time, which doesn’t follow the written rules of fifty or one hundred years ago. That isn’t a radical departure for the Bible, since the early disciples of Jesus wrote their words in the ‘common’ Aramaic (and Greek) of their day, and they spoke it with a Galilean accent (see Matthew 26:73). But their goal was to produce a Bible that is easy and pleasing to read, while conveying a very accurate meaning. the added words to make a sentence easy to read are put in brackets [ ] as in the New World Translation. So you can straight ahaid see what is been added to the text.
 

Another unique feature of this Bible is that in portions that were originally written in a poetic style (such as the books of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Isaiah, etc.), they have tried to maintain the original richness of the texts by translating them poetically wherever possible. This has required some rearrangement, as well as additions and deletions of extraneous words, but you will find that they hope to have faithfully maintained the meanings of the texts.

It is strange that for their English version they based it on the Septuagint of which they could not find an accurate and easy-to-read English text.  They say that no one by them was qualified to translate the Hebrew and Aramaic texts  (their expertise being ancient Greek), though for the Dutch translation Egbert Nierop uses the Aramaic. This gives naturally a big difference between the English and Dutch translation of the same website.
 

For the English version they say: Its content is the work of more than fifty online contributors, and the dedicated efforts a few translators and editors who have spent more than fifteen-thousand hours (to date) in creating this enormous work, and whose only interest is in helping others to understand what the Bible truly says.

The New Testament from the Aramaic in Dutch:> Peshitta in Dutch

Example of translation: Exodus 6:2-4

^{http://www.2001translation.com/Exodus.htm 2} And God said to Moses: ‘I am Jehovah… ³ I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I was their God. However, I didn’t show them My Name Jehovah, ⁴ when I established My Sacred Agreement with them [and promised] to give them the land of the CanaAnites… the land they were visiting and living in as strangers.

Bibletranslation in Lingala

Begin deze maand ( 3 Juli 2009) werd door David H. Splane, een bezoeker van het Heersende Orgaan van de JG de New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures in de Lingala taal vrijgegeven > Bible translation for Congo Kinshasa

The Most Reliable English Bible

This month, Christadelphian Waymark magazine has a special issue focussing on the topic of Bible Translations, and which is "The Most Reliable English Bible"

 

Introduction

The New Testament

Roman Catholic Involvement

The "Recieved" Text

The Gospel was Preached in All the World

Paraphrases and Translations

The Old Testament

What is the Basis for New Translations

References

Anchor Yale Bible

Until now, the sheer size of the Anchor Yale Bible (84 Vols.) has restricted its use to university libraries, private collections, and the select few who could afford it. Unfortunately, for many people, using the Anchor Yale Bible (84 Vols.) has meant late-night trips to the school library, purchasing expensive print volumes, or waiting weeks for interlibrary loans to come through.
 
The Anchor yale Bible has one of the most influential commentaries ever written. It draws from Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish scholars around the world. It contains translations and exegesis of the Hebrew Bible, the Greek New Testament, and the Apocrypha. It is written with the most exacting standards of scholarship, reflecting the highest technical accomplishment.
Because the Anchor Yale Bible (84 Vols.) is such an important commentary series, and because the print volumes were too inaccessible for many people, the time was right to make the Anchor Yale Bible (84 Vols.) available for Logos Bible Software.

They embarked on the largest Pre-Pub project in company history. The results have been amazing. Around the world, their users showed their support through emails, blog posts, phone calls, and Pre-Pub orders. Each order got the Anchor Yale Bible (84 Vols.) one step closer to production.

Anchor Yale Bible (84 Vols.)
http://www.logos.com/products/prepub/details/4469
Suggested Retail Price: $3,985.00
Logos Sale Price: $2,999.95
Pre-Pub Special: $1,689.95
Please visit the website for all the details at:
http://www.logos.com/products/prepub/details/4469

Logos Research Systems, Inc.
1313 Commercial St., Bellingham WA 98225-4307
(800) 875-6467 -- (360) 527-1700

Holman Bible Publishers brengt Chinese Bijbel uit

Holman Bible Publishers, de uitgeversarm van de zuiderse Conventie van de Baptisten, heeft 20.000 exemplaren gedrukt van een Moderne Chinese vertaling van het Nieuwe Testament, dat direct afkomstig is uit het oorspronkelijke Grieks. Er worden momenteel kopieën verkocht in de Verenigde Staten, Canada en Brazilië.
In de toekomst hoopt LifeWay Christian Resources op juridische erkenning van de Chinese regering om Bijbels in het land te publiceren.
Geleerden zijn bezig het Oud Testament in het Chinees te vertalen en hoepen er mee klaar te zijn in 2011.
Holman Bibles
Read more

Chinese New Testament Makes Its Debut

Use of /Gebruik van Jehovah or/of Yahweh in Bible Translations/Bijbel vertalingen

2 And God went on to speak to Moses and to say to him: “I am Jehovah. 3 And I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob as God Almighty, but as respects my name Jehovah I did not make myself known to them.
2 En God sprak verder tot Mozes en zei tot hem: "Ik ben Jehovah. 3 En aan Abraham, Isaäk en Jakob ben ik altijd verschenen als God de Almachtige, maar wat mijn naam Jehovah betreft, daarmee heb ik mij niet aan hen bekendgemaakt."

3And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of El-Shaddai, but by my name יהוה was I not known to them? (Ex 6:3)  ... the Almighty *God; but by my name Jehovah I was not made known to them.
Ex 6:3  (CJB) I appeared to Avraham, Yitz’chak and Ya’akov as El Shaddai, although I did not make myself known to them by my name, Yud–Heh–Vav–Heh. (ADONAI)

Bibles using / Bijbelvertalingen die gebruik maken van "Jehovah" :

American King James

American Standard Version (ASV)
Authorised version (Black & Red Letter edition)
Bible in Living English (Byington)
Bishops (Iehouah)
Darby Translation (E = Fr)
Elber (German)
Geneva Bible (Iehouah in Older version: Jehovah in new version)
Heritage Bible
J.P. Green's Literal Translation
JPS Jewish Publication Old Testament + Jewish Publication Society
Joseph Smith Translation
King James II Version (J.P. Green)
King James 20th Century version
Living Bible (used hundreds of times)
Literary Translation by Green
Modern King James Version
New Simplified Bible (NSB)
New World Translation (NWT)
Nieuwe Wereld Vertaling (Dutch)
Phonics
Revised Webster
2001 Translation
Voice in the Wilderness Edition of the Holy Scriptures
Young's Literal Translation (YLT)
Webster
...........................................................

Ex 6:3  Als de almachtige God ben Ik aan Abraham, Isaäk en Jakob verschenen; maar  mijn naam Jahweh heb ik hun niet bekend gemaakt.

Bibles using / Bijbelvertalingen die gebruik maken van 'Yahweh':

Bible in Basic English
Canisius (Dutch)
Emphasized Bible (Rotherham)
Holman Christain Standard Bible
Jerusalem Bible (JB)

New Jerusalem Bible (NJB)
Obbink (Dutch)
Rotherham
Updated Bible Version
Willibrord (78) (Dutch) (Not any more in the 1995 translation)
World English Bible (WEB)

Using YHWH:

JB2000 Jubilee Bible Russel Stendahl

Using Tetragrammaticon:

New Restored King James Version

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Dächsel translates: "2. En Ik ben, voor deze aan Abraham, Izak en Jakob verschenen, als El-Schaddaï, God de Almachtige (Gen.17:1;  35:11) <#Ge 17.1 35.11>; doch met Mijn naam HEERE, ben Ik hun niet bekend geweest." but says in his notes: Terecht merken onze Kanttekenaars op, dat reeds in Gen.15:7 <#Ge 15.7> tot Abraham was gesproken: "Ik ben Jehova, die u uit Ur der Chaldeeën heb uitgeleid," en is het begrip van de "Eeuwige" in de Jehova-naam een onmiskenbare gedachte, wat in Gen.21:33 <#Ge 21.33> wordt meegedeeld: "En hij plantte een bos te Ber-séba en riep aldaar de naam van Jehova, de eeuwige God, aan." Geen twijfel dus, of, voor zover de Naam kan geopenbaard zijn, afgescheiden van de ervaring, die de ziel van de ware openbaring van God heeft, is ook de naam Jehova, is ook Zijn eeuwigheid aan Abraham bekend geweest, en door hem aangeroepen. (KUYPER).

The New Living Translation also puts between brackets: [Hebrew Yahweh; traditionally rendered Jehovah]

"God," MLXX; SamSyVg: "Jehovah."

(#Isa 42:8): 8 Ik ben Jehovah. Dat is mijn naam; en aan niemand anders zal ik mijn eigen heerlijkheid geven, noch mijn lof aan gehouwen beelden.

(#Zec 14:9): 8 Ik ben Jehovah. Dat is mijn naam; en aan niemand anders zal ik mijn eigen heerlijkheid geven, noch mijn lof aan gehouwen beelden.

(#Isa 43:11): 11 "Ik — ik ben Jehovah, en buiten mij is er geen redder."

(#De 6:4-5): 4 Luister, o Israël: Jehovah, onze God, is één Jehovah. 5 En gij moet Jehovah, uw God, liefhebben met geheel uw hart en geheel uw ziel en geheel uw levenskracht.

Wat de Naam Jehovah betreft:

"Maar wat mijn naam Jehovah [%&%*, JHWH] betreft." Hebr.: oe·sjemi’ Jehwah’; Lat.: et no’men me’um A·do·na’i.

(#Ex 10:1-2): 10 Toen zei Jehovah tot Mozes: „Ga bij Farao binnen, want ik — ik heb zijn hart en het hart van zijn dienaren onvermurwbaar laten worden, ten einde deze tekenen van mij vlak voor hem te stellen, 2 en opdat gij ten aanhoren van uw zoon en uw kleinzoon kunt bekendmaken hoe streng ik tegen Egypte ben opgetreden, en mijn tekenen [kunt bekendmaken] die ik onder hen heb gevestigd; en GIJ zult stellig weten dat ik Jehovah ben.”

(#Ps 83:18): 18 Opdat men weet dat gij, wiens naam Jehovah is, Gij alleen de Allerhoogste zijt over heel de aarde.

(#Lu 11:2): 2 Toen zei hij tot hen: „Wanneer GIJ bidt, zegt dan: ‘Vader, uw naam worde geheiligd.

„Als God de Almachtige.” Hebr.: be´El’ Sjad·dai’; Lat.: in De’o o·mni·po·ten’te (alvermogend).

(#Ge 17:1): Toen Abram nu negenennegentig jaar oud was, verscheen Jehovah aan Abram en zei tot hem: "Ik ben God de Almachtige."

(#Ge 35:11):  En God zei verder tot hem: "Ik ben God de Almachtige."

(#2Co 6:18): "’En ik zal U tot een vader zijn en GIJ zult mij tot zonen en dochters zijn’, zegt Jehovah, de Almachtige."

Bekendgemaakt:

Of: "ook wat mijn naam Jehovah betreft, heb ik mij niet aan hen bekendgemaakt?"

(#Ge 12:8):  8 Later trok hij vandaar naar het bergland ten oosten van Bethel en sloeg zijn tent op tussen Bethel in het westen en Ai in het oosten. ...

(#Ge 27:27):  27 Hij kwam dus dichterbij en kuste hem, en hij kon de geur van zijn kleren ruiken.

(#Ge 28:16): 16 Toen ontwaakte Jakob uit zijn slaap en zei: "Waarlijk, Jehovah is op deze plaats en ik voor mij wist het niet."

Aan Abraham:(#Ge 18:1)  Later verscheen Jehovah aan hem te midden van de grote bomen van Mamre, terwijl hij omstreeks de hitte van de dag aan de ingang van de tent zat.

Aan Isaäk: (#Ge 26:2):   Toen verscheen Jehovah aan hem en zei: „Daal niet af naar Egypte.

Aan Jakob (#Ge 28:12-13) 12 Toen droomde hij, en zie! er stond een ladder op de aarde en de top ervan reikte tot aan de hemel; en zie! Gods engelen klommen daarlangs op en daalden daarlangs af. 13 En zie! Jehovah stond bovenaan, ... 

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2013 update: 

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• Jehovah in the BASF
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