Teen looking for the right Bible

John 3:16 For God so loued the worlde, that he gaue his only begotten sonne, that whosoeuer beleueth in hym, shoulde not perishe, but haue euerlastyng lyfe.
Bishops New Testament 1595

John 3:16 For God so loued the worlde, that hee hath giuen his onely begotten Sonne, that whosoeuer beleeueth in him, should not perish, but haue euerlasting life
Geneva 1599

 

John 3:16 (The Douay-Rheims Bible, AKA: Catholic Bible):

For God so loved the world, as to give his only begotten Son:
that whosoever believeth in him may not perish,
but may have life everlasting.

 

John 3:16 For God louede so the world, that he yaf his `oon bigetun sone, that ech man that bileueth in him perische not, but haue euerlastynge lijf.
Wycliffe

 

You can't tell the textus receptus is better and others are corrupted. All you can do is make an arbitrary assumption to that affect. After all, it could logically be the other way around just as easily . [/QB][/QUOTE]

Indeed I have translated the whole NT in Greek comparing the texts from Greek into Korean.
In general I have noticed Majority/TR differ from Westcott/Hort-Nestle Alland in thousand spots. Someone counted they differ in 8,000 spots in 7,800 verses of NT. Mostly Nestle Alland omitted the words. Critical texts are too much [snipped] and they are out of discussion. The only issue remaining now is the comparison between Majority Text and Textus Receptus.

I would leave you with the freedom of choice, but please remember that you should make a good choice when you buy a house !, especially the eternal house !

[ February 18, 2006, 03:55 AM: Message edited by: C4K ]

 

Good point Eliyahu!

When one buys a house, one want's one that is not full of holes, or shabbily built.

 

I would recommend the KJV, NASB, NIV, and NLT.
along with e-sword..

 

Or the texts for the KJV added words. You can't know which for sure. It was much more likely for copyists to add than to take away.

 

This is not a discussion of John 3v16.

Thread will be closed according to the standard five page limit no earlier than 0715 EST

 

OP

Check your private messages.

 

The OP was a question about what Bible version should he use. Since John 3:16 is in the Bible and this is a Bible Versions thread, showing the different versions of John 3:16 might show this young man which Bible version God wants him to choose.

 

Granted, but that is not the point. The last several posts have been a disussion of the meaning of "only begotten." A post above shows that at least one Catholic Bible also uses "only begotten." The choice of Bible surely should not be based on the translation of one word.

Those interested in that topic may start another thread on that topic.

Meanwhile, this thread has reached its five page limit and does not merit remaining open longer.

 

Those are two separate statements and are in no way synonymous. There are many saved people who follow the teachings of men. In fact, Paul warns against it.

 

I apologize for getting a little off topic. I will say if you want the most literal tranlation then most would say that would be the NASB. I like the NKJV, but use the NASB the most. I also use the KJV at times. I like all three.

 

I actually had a man yesterday, who was trying to convince me that the KJV was the actual word of God, claim that if there was a difference between the source texts and the KJV that the source texts were faulty. That blew my mind.

I grew up with the KJV, and am still a KJV preferred, but I realize that it is an imperfect work of man.

That being said, I think that a KJV, NKJV, etc. are best because they are what most people are familiar with and they are good translations. However, if you are evangelizing, you might want to use something that those who are unfamiliar can relate.

 

As a former KJVOist myself, I admit to having used that same type of circular reasonign once. Man, when I was a baby Christian on fire for the Lord, I did a lot of needless torching.

 

Son, the name of the translation is not the most important thing.

The most important thing is that you use that translation, and/or several, to pursue the things of God.

Make sure you can understand the one you pick up, even if that means having one or several other books beside it to help you understand.

Spend more time on your knees than you spend asking for the input of others. Let the Lord lead you to what you need.

Your choice of college will sway you, that will become a fact. Nothing wrong with your choice, but it seems to be the type of college that conforms you to their mold instead of helping you find your own shape in the Lord.

I'll be praying for you to come to the place of peace in knowing God's will... not just for what translation(s) to use, but where He wants you to end up, what He wants you to do.

In Christ,
Trotter

 

As a fighter against false doctrines for many years, [snipped], the best advice I can offer is to **PRAY** earnestly for the HOLY SPIRIT to guide you, and to read as many versions as you can.

While Chick has some excellent tracts to steer the lost toward JESUS, he mostly has badly-skewed tracts full of misinformation, especially when they pertain to Bible versions.

Over the years I have noteced that almost all KJVO literature follows four older works:

1.)Our Authorized Bible Vindicated, Dr. Benjamin Wilkinson, 1930. This book can be pointed at as the first KJVO work, and the book from which the next three obtained their misinformation. Dr. Wilkinson was a SEVENTH DAY ADVENTIST official, so we see that KJVO's very roots are tainted.

2.) God Wrote Only One Bible, J.J.Ray, 1955. This book copies very heavily from Wilkinson's, with Ray's having added a little material of his own. Who was J.J.Ray? Good luck in finding out who he REALLY is/was. That name's almost certainly a pseudonym. Now, why should a Christian, writing a book about God's word, wanna conceal his ID?

3.) Bible Babel, Dr. Peter S.Ruckman, 1964. This book wasn't well-known until some later KJVO authors made reference to it. This book is from the man who made a false prophecy (that he & some others would be assassinated by Janet Reno's hit man before 2000)and who, in his book,Mark Of The Beast, says the Antichrist will be a 10-ft. tall alien with huge black lips who will arrive in a mile-wide spaceship & impart the "mark" with his kiss. This is the same man who said Judas Iscariot wasn't human,(Never mind that JESUS said "Better for that man if he had never been BORN)and that Eve had "relations" with the serpent & thus was Cain conceived.(Never mind that Genesis 4:1 says," Now Adam knew Eve his wife, and she conceived and bore Cain, and said, “I have acquired a man from **the LORD**.”)(This "serpent seed" heresy is taught by the charlatan Arnold Murray on his "Shepherd's Chapel" broadcasts.)

All the above about Dr. Ruckman is easily verifiable in his own books, readily available on his own site online. Does he appear very reliable?

4.) Which Bible?, Dr. D.O.Fuller, 1970. Basically a repeat of the preceeding works. It sold better than its predecessors because Fuller had the use of the power of modern media over which to hawk his book.

All these books carry a common denominator that PROVES their authors did very little research...their statement that Psalm 12:7 is about God's words. At the cost of being repetitious, I shall re-post the facts that prove their assumption wrong.

ALL the above books from those various authors are readily available online.

Now, don't get me wrong...I am NOT against the KJV itself whatsoever...[snipped] The KJV is as valid a version as was ever made in any language.

But you wanted to know which version we felt was right for you, correct? That's very hard for anyone to truthfully determine over an Internet forum, but lemme do the best I can.

First, I recommend that you, & every other English-reading Bible student obtain a copy of the AV 1611, the original KJV. Hendrickson Publishing has an inexpensive(roughly $18) replica that contains every word found between the covers of a genuine AV. The only change is its physical size, and that its text is printed in modern font insteada Gothic. This book alone, with all the extra-textual comments by the translators, is an immense study help, and I even know a few people who carry their AVs to church! (Nothing whatsoever wrong with that if you clearly understand the 400-yr-old English in its original spelling)

I assume you already have a copy of the currently-used KJV, so my next recommendation is to obtain a copy of the NKJV, which is not merely an updated KJV, but is an entirely-new translation made from the ancient manuscripts used by the AV translators along with other manuscripts discovered over the 400 years between the AV and now.

Next, I would recommend obtaining a copy of the NASB, which is one of the more literal modern versions. Then I would obtain a copy of the NIV.

If you study those versions in that order before studying any other versions, God will give you a clear insight of which version(s) He wants YOU to use. In the meantime, just ignore the advocates of any one version, especially those who denounce all other versions. Remember, GOD IS NOT LIMITED to just one version, and neither should YOU be, unless so guided by Him.

[ February 18, 2006, 07:58 AM: Message edited by: C4K ]

 

Take note of Roby's post. Great info and he took the time to lay out some important points. God bless.

 

I will leave this thread open since we seem to have returned to the topic at hand, recommending Bible versions to this young man.

Any posts on the KJVO issue will be snipped as well as any attacks on any version.

This young man needs positive recommendations as he seeks the Lord's will, not bickering and fighting.

 

Have you given any consideration to one of the parallel type printings? I would recommend a parallel Bible that contains the KJV and the NIV or the one (pretty recent) that contains the NKJV and the NIV. That way you would have the two most commonly and used translations, from each family of manuscripts, in one book and side by side for your study and meditation. With your young eyes you could even choose one that has four translations in one book (kind of big though). Bruce