Bible Translations & Versions for Unitarians

 

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I am very interested in Bible Versions, and I collect them to the point that I have hundreds of them in one form or another. But, in doing so I notice that most Bible translators translate from a Trinitarian angle, especially Protestant Bibles. Over time I have consistently used certain Bibles that have not followed tradition or money when it comes to translating certain verses that may deal with Christology or a deity of Christ. 

As has been noticed in the past by Rudolf Bultmann: "In describing Christ as _God_ the New Testament still exercises great restraint." 

Ezra Abbot noted: "When we consider further the fact...that Christ is nowhere called God in any unambiguous passage by any writer of the New Testament and that it is nowhere recorded that he ever claimed this title, we cannot reasonably regard this abstinence from the use of the term as accidental."

 Also, "There is scarcely one text alleged by the Trinitarians which is not otherwise expounded by their own writers".—John Locke (Common Place Book)

The Bible downplays the deity of Jesus, and Bible Versions and Translations should reflect this.

Here are the list of Bible versions that are either explicitly Unitarian, and many that I notice that try to be balanced and fair on this issue:

The New World Translation...naturally. This is the Boss, a 70 year old classic, and arguably the greatest Bible translation ever made.

The Kingdom of God Version by Raymond C. Faircloth

The New Testament In an Improved Version Upon the Basis of Archbishop Newcome's new Translation, With a Corrected Text, and Notes Critical and Explanatory. Much talked about but little-read. Lot of great and interesting notes.

The 21st Century New Testament by Vivian Capel. This is a dual literal-free translations, so you get two books for the price of one. 

The Revised English Version...not to be confused with the Revised English Bible (see below). I like their website better as it has a lot of helpful notes.

The Emphatic Diaglott. This is a classic that has been around since the Civil War. This is an interlinear and a translation, so again, two books in one.

The Kingdom Interlinear Translation of the Greek Scriptures - this is the best interlinear you will find. Amazon has this listed for $300...opt for the used version instead.

The One God, the Father, One Man Messiah Translation: New Testament with Commentary by famed Unitarian scholar Anthony Buzzard

The New European Version (this one uses Yahweh) as a Divine Name.

There are also online Bibles with Unitarian leanings. We've already mentioned the Revised English Version, but there is also:

The Revised Version Improved and Corrected

The Updated American Standard Version

The 2001translation 

The Idiomatic Translation of the New Testament by William Graham MacDonald

Other Bibles that I have found very useful over the years are:

The James Moffatt Bible...a classic that should still be read. See my article on this Bible here. 

An American Translation by Smith & Goodspeed. Considered by Colwell to be the most accurate Bible. Try Ebay for a better price. Besides the NWT, this has to be my favorite Bible Version.

The David Bentley Hart New Testament - this may be the best new Bible in decades. See my articles on this work here and here.

The New Jerusalem Bible - a favorite of mine for decades, and this is one of the few modern Bibles to properly translate the Divine Name. This is an update of the Jerusalem Bible which came out in 1966. This Bible has many non-trinitarian renderings of certain texts. 

The New English Bible 1961. Probably the first major translation to break from the Tyndale/KJV tradition. I've had the Oxford Study Edition which was great, but I've always had a soft spot for this edition due to the illustrations. Just like its successor the Revised English Bible, both were free to be more interpretive with the text. Just check out Isaiah 9:6 in both. 

The Revised Standard Version and the New Revised Standard Version are quite helpful as they have non-trinitarian renderings in either the main text or the footnotes. These two "liberal" Bibles enraged the conservative Protestants so much that they produced the trinitarian English Standard Version as a response. 

Steven T. Byington's Bible in Living English is really quite good. I have an article on this work here.

Other Bibles that I have used and should be mentioned are:

The Unvarnished New Testament by Andy Gaus:  "Other translations were made by committees; they interpreted the text through theological doctrines and dogmas that arose centuries after the books were written. This new translation strips away these thick layers of convention to portray an ageless beauty that no earlier translation has captured."

The New American Bible - Catholics simply make better Bibles because they don't rely on the Bible for their beliefs, while Protestants insert their beliefs into their Bibles because they need the Bible to reflect their theology. The NAB always impresses me the more I use it.

The Original New Testament by Hugh J. Schonfield - Schonfield is Jewish, so this gives him a good Jewish outlook for what 1st century Jews might write and believe. 

The Eonian Life Bible New Testament - While I wish they would have chosen a better English equivalent for "Eonian," this is quite a remarkable and fresh translation of the New Testament. Hell has justifiably been removed, the "Cross" is translated as "stake" (which is lexically correct...and brave). The punctuation is improved at Luke 23:43. Apparently this work is 20 years in the making and it stands far above most other translations. This version along with David Bentley Hart's hopefully suggests a positive new trend in Bible translation.

The Pre-Nicene New Testament by Robert M. Price - Price is a fan of David BeDuhn and you need to check out his translation of John 1:1. 

The Wilton Translation of the New Testament - I have an article on this here.

Let me know in the comments below if I've missed a Bible that I need to include.

heinzschmitznc@gmail.com