David Bentley Hart's New Testament on This Day in History

 

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This day in history: David Bentley Hart's _The New Testament - A Translation_, was released on this day in 2017. 

Bing gave me this description of his New Testament: "David Bentley Hart is a theologian who has translated the New Testament into English. His translation is 'pitilessly literal' and 'not shaped by later theological and doctrinal history.'"

That's not entirely true. He capitalizes the I AM in John 8 is if it has some mystical value and relationship to the words at Exodus 3:14. This is a notion that is "shaped by later theological and doctrinal history" and any relationship between John 8 and Exodus 3 falls apart after closer examination.*

However, Hart's translation is still better than most. I have always had a singular fascination with John 1:1.

David Bentley Hart's New Testament 2017 reads at John 1:1 "In the origin there was the Logos, and the Logos was present with GOD, and the Logos was god." (Notice the word "god" in small letters in the last clause.)

However, I discovered in his earlier work, "Atheist Delusions: The Christian Revolution and Its Fashionable Enemies" he actually writes:

"As a general rule, the 'articular' form ho Theos—literally, 'the God'—was a title reserved for God Most High or God the Father, while only the 'inarticular' form theos was used to designate this secondary divinity. This distinction, in fact, was preserved in the prologue to John, whose first verse could justly be translated as: 'In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was a god.'"

It's unfortunate that DBH felt the need to tone it down for his New Testament translation.

However, Hart's second edition to his New Testament has some surprising updates when it comes to the anarthrous theos (god). 

His John 10:33 now reads: "We stone not on account of a good work, but rather on account of blasphemy, and you who are a man make yourself out to be a god." 

The first edition had "make yourself out to be God." Few other modern Bibles are brave enough for this rendering (The New English Bible comes immediately to mind). 

He made a similar change at Philippians 2:6 where he has: “who, subsisting in a god’s form, did not deem existing in the manner of a god a thing to be grasped.” QEOU should be taken as indefinite here, such as in “form of a god.” This would highlight a parallel that is overlooked by most, the parallel between "the form of a god" and "the form of a slave." (Verse 7)

Let me know in the comments section of any other verses you may want to share from this New Testament translation.

*See  https://newworldtranslation.blogspot.com/2017/10/the-i-am-at-exodus-314-and-john-858.html

and https://newworldtranslation.blogspot.com/2018/07/egw-eimi-ego-eimi-i-am-and-john-858.html

This Kindle book, And the Word was a god: Conversations on the Most Disputed Text in the New Testament - John 1:1 is available on Amazon by clicking here

Visit a local listing for this book here

Goodspeed: The Greatest Bible Translator on This Day in History

 

This day in history: Edgar J. Goodspeed died on this day in 1962. Goodspeed was an American theologian and scholar of Greek and the New Testament, and Ernest DeWitt Burton Distinguished Service Professor of the University of Chicago until his retirement. He taught for many years at the University of Chicago, whose collection of New Testament manuscripts he enriched by his searches. The University's collection is now named in his honor.

He earned a B.A. from Denison University in Granville, Ohio 1890, and he then studied Semitics at Yale for one year under William Rainey Harper. A little later, Harper was appointed as the first president of the University of Chicago, and Goodspeed moved to Chicago and continued his graduate studies at this new institution, where Goodspeed's father was one of the founders and secretary of the Board of Trustees. He was a post-graduate fellow at the University of Chicago from 1892, and he received his Doctor of Biblical Studies degree in 1897.

Goodspeed received his Ph.D. in 1898 at The University of Chicago. He spent the following two years abroad, traveling and studying in Germany, England, the Netherlands, Egypt, Palestine, and Greece.

Later, in 1928, Goodspeed later he also received a doctorate in Divinity from the Denison University (Doctor honoris causa).

With such learning under his belt, The book "So Many Versions" stated in regards to Bible translation: "No man in America was better equipped by background by background and training for such a task."

His New Testament was published in 1923 and can be downloaded for free at archive.org.

Professor Jason Beduhn declared that Goodspeed was one of the three greats in Bible Translation history (the other two being James Moffatt and Brooke Foss Westcott).

Here are some samples of his translation:

Professor Jason Beduhn declared that Goodspeed was one of the three greats in Bible Translation history (the other two being James Moffatt and Brooke Foss Westcott).

John 1:1 "In the beginning the Word existed. The Word was with God, and the Word was divine."

Mat 5:3 "Blessed are those who feel their spiritual need, for the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to them!"

John 10:38 "But if I am doing them, then even if you will not believe me, believe the things I do, in order that you may realize and learn that the Father is in union with me, and I am in union with the Father." 

Heb 1:6-8 "But of the time when he is to bring his firstborn Son back to the world he says, "And let all God's angels bow before him." In speaking of the angels he says, "He who changes his angels into winds, And his attendants into blazing fire!" But of the Son he says, "God is your throne forever and ever! And a righteous scepter is the scepter of his kingdom!"

John 14:17 "It is the Spirit of Truth. The world cannot obtain that Spirit, because it does not see it or recognize it; you recognize it because it stays with you and is within you."

John 8:57, 58 "The Jews said to him, 'You are not fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?' Jesus said to them, 'I tell you, I existed before Abraham was born!'"

Acts 19:4 "John's baptism was a baptism in token of repentance."

Col 2:9 "For it is in him that all the fulness of God's nature lives embodied, and in union with him you too are filled with it."

Php 2:5,6 "Have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he possessed the nature of God, he did not grasp at equality with God."

Rev 5:9, 10 "Then they sang a new song: 'You deserve to take the roll and open its seals, for you have been slaughtered, and with your blood have bought for God men from every tribe, tongue, people, and nation, and have made them a kingdom of priests for our God, and they are to reign over the earth.'"

2Tim 3:16, 17 "All Scripture is divinely inspired, and useful in teaching, in reproof, in correcting faults, and in training in uprightness, so that the man of God will be adequate, and equipped for any good work."

1 Cor 13:4-13 "Love is patient and kind. Love is not envious or boastful. It does not put on airs. It is not rude. It does not insist on its rights. It does not become angry. It is not resentful. It is not happy over injustice, it is only happy with truth. It will bear anything, believe anything, hope for anything, endure anything. Love will never die out. If there is inspired preaching, it will pass away. If there is ecstatic speaking, it will cease. If there is knowledge, it will pass away. For our knowledge is imperfect and our preaching is imperfect. But when perfection comes, what is imperfect will pass away. When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put aside my childish ways. For now we are looking at a dim reflection in a mirror, but then we shall see face to face. Now my knowledge is imperfect, but then I shall know as fully as God knows me. So faith, hope, and love endure. These are the great three, and the greatest of them is love."

About 70 years ago, E.C. Colwell created an apparatus to determine the best New Testament, in his book "What Is The Best New Testament" [University of Chicage Press, 1951.] Colwell chose 64 Scriptures in the Gospel of John where there were slight differences between the weaker (later) Greek Text (Textus Receptus) and the better Greek Text based on older manuscripts. For instance, at John 5:2, the weaker texts have "Bethasda" while the texts based on older manuscripts have "Bethzatha." Colwell wanted to determine which Bible was the most faithful to the best Greek text. His conclusion was that Goodspeed's New Testament was the best New Testament, as it translated all 64 verses correctly. I then tested other Bible Versions that came out since then, and I discovered 2 other Bibles that did as well as Goodspeed's: The New World Translation, and the 21st Century New Testament (Vivial Capel). The New International Version only scored 51 out of 64, and the English Standard Version only got 52 out of 64 correct. Rotherham's Emphasized Bible and Byington's Bible in Living English were quite accurate as well. 

Goodspeed was so respected in his time that he was invited to help translate the Revised Standard Version.

Smith & Goodspeed's An American Translation is no longer in print, but a search on Ebay will usually help you find a copy. 

This Kindle book is now available on Amazon by clicking here...and it is only 99 cents

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Contents (created on a Windows computer):

The Emphatic Diaglott: Containing the Original Greek Text of Greisbach Bible - 1870 (3 different scans)

The Hexaglot Bible comprising the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in the Greek, Syriac, Latin, English, German and French by Edward Riches de Levante 1906 Volume 1

The Hexaglot Bible comprising the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in the Greek, Syriac, Latin, English, German and French by Edward Riches de Levante 1906 Volume 2

The Hexaglot Bible comprising the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in the Greek, Syriac, Latin, English, German and French by Edward Riches de Levante 1906 Volume 3

The Hexaglot Bible comprising the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in the Greek, Syriac, Latin, English, German and French by Edward Riches de Levante 1906 Volume 4

The Hexaglot Bible comprising the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in the Greek, Syriac, Latin, English, German and French by Edward Riches de Levante 1906 Volume 5

The Hexaglot Bible comprising the Holy Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments in the Greek, Syriac, Latin, English, German and French by Edward Riches de Levante 1906 Volume 6

The English Hexapla exhibiting the 6 important English translations of the New Testament Scriptures, Wiclif, Tyndale, Cranmer, Genevan, Anglo-Rhemish, Authorised

The Hexaplar Psalter - being the book of Psalms in six English versions 1911 (Coverdale (1535) Great Bible (1539) Geneva (1560) Bishops (1568) Authorised (1611) Revised (1885) in parallel columns)

The Triglot Bible, Volume 1 1890 (Hebrew, Greek and Latin)

The Triglot Bible, Volume 2 1890 (Hebrew, Greek and Latin)

The Interlinear Literal Translation of the Greek New Testament (1894)

A Literal Translation of the Vatican manuscripts eight last books of the New Testament, on definite rules of translation and an English version of the same, followed by the authorized English version collated with the above-named English version by Herman Heinfetter 1861

A Literal Translation of the Vatican manuscripts Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Romans on definite rules of translation, and an English version of the same, followed by the Authorized English version collated with the above-named English version by Herman Heinfetter 1861

The Interlinear Septuagint with Strong Numbers

The Englishman's Greek New Testament; giving the Greek text of Stephens 1550, with the various readings of the editions of Elzevir 1624, Griesbach, Lachmann, Tischendorf, Tregelles, Alford, and Wordsworth: together with an interlinear literal translation 1896

The study of the Gospel of St. John together with an interlinear literal translation of the Greek text of Stephens 1550 by JP Mclean 1895

The Book of Genesis in English-Hebrew (transliterated) accompanied by an interlinear translation with notes by William Greenfield 1828

The Parallel New Testament Greek and English with the AV 1611, the Revised Version and the Greek edited by FHA Scrivener 1882

The Parallel New Testament KJV and the Revised Version 1882

The Twofold New Testament - being a New Translation, accompanying a newly formed text in parallel columns 1864 by Thomas Green

The New Testament: Being the English Only of the Greek and English Testament by Abner Kneeland 1823

("The Word was a God" John 1:1)
The Parallel Psalter - being the prayer-book version of the Psalms and a new version, arranged on opposite pages by SR Driver 1898

The Apocrypha Greek and English, in parallel columns 1871

The book of Job with the KJV,  American Bible Union Version and the Hebrew Text in Parallel Columns by Thomas Conant 1857

The Gospel of Matthew (chapters 1-3) with the KJV,  American Bible Union Version and the Greek Text in Parallel Columns by Orin Jubb 1858

The Gospel of John in Greek and English by E. Friederici 1830

The Epistle to the Hebrews in Greek and English by Samuel Turner 1852

The Epistle to the Ephesians in Greek and English by Samuel Turner 1856

Epistle to the Romans in Greek and English by Samuel Turner 1859

The Book of Psalms, in Hebrew and English 1880

Hebrew Reading Lessons consisting of the first 4 chapters of the book of Genesis, and the 8th chapter of the Proverbs with a grammatical praxis, and interlineary translation by Samuel Tregelles 1860

An Introductory key to the Greek language consisting of an elementary Greek grammar with an interlineary translation of the Gospel of St. Luke 1824

The Gospels: Gothic, Anglo-Saxon, Wycliffe and Tyndale Versions Arranged in Parallel Columns 1907

The Parallel Gospels in four collateral columns, every concurrent, conflicting, and additional passage of each evangelist by Edward Salmon 1876

The Gospel, by John (Authorized [KJV], Greek and American Bible Union text in parallel columns) 1859

A Gospel Monogram consisting of the entire texts, Revised Version of the Four Gospels in a parallel harmony by William J Herschel 1911

The Gospel according to St. John, Authorized King James in one column, the Catholic Douay bible in the other, 1800

Introduction to the study of the Gospel of St John together with an interlinear literal translation of the Greek text of Stephens, 1550, with the Authorized version by JP Maclean 1895

The Septuagint version of the Old Testament by Sir Lancelot Brenton 1879 (Greek and English in parallel columns)

An Analysis of the Book of Ecclesiastes to which is added the book of Ecclesiastes, in Hebrew and English, in parallel columns by John Lloyd 1874

The Gothic and Anglo-Saxon Gospels in parallel columns 1874

The Epistle of St. James (Greek text and Latin translation on opposite pages; the vulgate text of Codex Amiatinus and the Old Latin text of the Corbey ms. in parallel columns) by Joseph B Mayor 1892

The Interlinear Bible - the Authorised Version (KJV) and the Revised Version together with the marginal notes of both versions and central references 1907


Plus you get:


The Complutensian Polyglot Bible

The Complutensian Polyglot Bible is the name given to the first printed polyglot of the entire Bible, planned and financed by Cardinal Cisneros (1436-1517). It includes the first printed editions of the Greek New Testament, the complete Septuagint, and the Targum Onkelos.

This is a 500MB pdf (Acrobat) file that you can read and/or print off your computer. About 1500 pages

plus you get - The English version of the Polyglot Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments - With Copious & Original Selections of References to Parallel and Illustrative Passages 1872

PLUS YOU GET:

New Light on the New Testament: From Records of the Graeco-Roman Period - by Adolf Deissmann 1908

The Text and Canon of the New Testament
by Alexander Souter 1913
A harmony of the four Gospels in Greek, according to the text of Tischendorf by Frederic Gardiner 1873

The New Testament: Translated from Griesbach's Text
by Samuel Sharpe, Jo. Jac. Griesbach - 1862 - 412 pages

Novum Testamentum Graece
by Johann Jakob Griesbach - 1810
 
The Four Gospels: Translated from the Greek Text of Tischendorf, with the ...
by Nathaniel Smith Folsom, Constantin von Tischendorf - 1871 - 480 pages

Leiscester Ambrose Sawyer Old and New Testament 1861 - 390 pages

New Testament Literal Translation from Syriac Peshitta by James Murdock
 
Early Bibles of America: Being a Descriptive Account of Bibles Published
by John Wright 1894

Critical notes on the authorised English version of the New Testament
by Samuel Sharpe - 1856

A Monotessaron; Or, The Gospel of Jesus Christ
by John S Thompson, Jo. Jac. Griesbach - 1828

The Holy Gospels: Translated from the Original Greek: the Spurious Passages by George William Brameld 1863

The critical Greek and English New Testament: consisting of the Greek text and Parallel English Text
1859 - 624 pages

Canon and Text of the New Testament -
by Caspar René Gregory - 1907 - 530 pages

The New Testament: Newly Tr. (from the Greek Text of Tregelles & Critically ...Rotherham
1893 - 490 pages

A History of the Textual Criticism of the New Testament
by Marvin Richardson Vincent - 1899 - 185 pages

The English Revisers' Greek Text: Shown to be Unauthorized by George Whitefield Samson 1882 - 132 pages

Certain Sources of Corruption in Latin Manuscripts
by Frederick William Shipley - 1904

The poetry of the Codex Vercellensis
by John Mitchell Kemble - 1843

Codex Coxianus of the Homilies of Chrysostom on Ephesians and His Commentary on Galatians by Wesley Lynn Hemphill - 1916

How the Codex was Found: A Narrative of Two Visits to Sinai, from Mrs. Lewis by Agnes Smith Lewis 1893

A Collation of the Athos Codex of the Shepherd of Hermas
by Spyridon Paulou Lampros - Pastor Hermae - 1888

A Full Collation of the Codex Sinaiticus with the Received Text of the New Testament by Frederick Henry Ambrose Scrivener - 1864

The Book of Judges in Greek, According to the Text of Codex Alexandrinus
by Alan England Brooke, Norman McLean - 1897

Contributions to the Criticism of the Greek New Testament: Being the Introduction to Codex Augiensis
by Frederick Henry Ambrose Scrivener 1859

Is the Bible Divine?: A Six Nights' Discussion Between Mr. Charles Bradlaugh and Robert Roberts
by Charles Bradlaugh, Robert Roberts (editor of THE CHRISTADELPHIAN)

The Apostacy Unveiled: Being a Debate Between John Thomas (Christadelphian) and a Presbyterian Minister
by John Thomas, John S. Watt - 1872

An Encyclopaedia of Religions by Maurice Arthur Canney 1921

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