Concordant Version

Concordant Version
Full name	Concordant Literal Version
Other names	Concordant Version: The Sacred Scriptures
Abbreviation	CLOT, CLNT
Language	English
Complete Bible published	1926
Translation type	Formal_Equivalence
Version revision	1931, 1966
Publisher	Concordant Publishing Concern (CPC)
Copyright	Copyright © CPC
John 3:16 For thus God loves the world, so that He gives His only-begotten Son, that everyone who is believing in Him should not be perishing, but may be having life eonian.

The Concordant Literal Version is an English translation of the Bible, compiled by Adolph Ernst Knoch, founder of the Concordant Publishing Concern. The principle works of the Concern are the Concordant Literal New Testament with Keyword Concordance ("CLNT") and the Concordant Version of the Old Testament ("CVOT"). With the use of the concordant method of translation the Concern endeavored to recognize the importance of the vocabulary of Scripture, keeping distinct the words used in the original languages. Whilst acknowledging that absolute consistency cannot be achieved in the making of an English version, the introduction to the Sixth edition of the Concordant Literal New Testament states that the CLNT, by being "harmonious" with the Original, keeps to a minimum the confusion resulting from translating different Greek words with the same English word. The same principle of translation was among those used in the compilation of the CVOT. Therefore, with the exception of occasional idiomatic usages, each English word in the CLNT does exclusive duty for a single Original word. Thus, according to the Concern, a substantial formal correspondency is maintained between the original and receptor language.

The Concern describes what distinguishes its work from that of others in an article entitled About the Concordant Publishing Concern, published on its website:

“Our research efforts are centered upon the many issues involved in discovering the meaning of the original Scripture declarations themselves. Then we seek to determine how we may best translate these same Scriptures, endeavoring to do so objectively, accurately, and consistently. Our translation principles, both of vocabulary and grammatical analysis, govern all that we do. We first seek to determine essence of word meaning; wherever possible, according to internal scriptural evidence. For each Original word, then, we assign a STANDARD English word. To facilitate a readable English translation, additional synonyms or other concordant variants are also used, as needed. In nearly all cases, any such standards, synonyms, and variants are used exclusively for a single word in the Original, thereby eliminating almost all “crosswiring” between languages... It is such very principles of translation themselves, together with our many years of refining our efforts according to these principles, which distinguish our work, and its results, from that of others.”

In the CLNT the Concern utilizes special typographic devices in an effort to exhibit actual facts from the original language, rather than an interpretation of them. These devices may be categorized as follows: (1) lightface and boldface type, (2) symbols for the verb, and (3) distinctive signs and abbreviations. Similar devices are used in the CVOT, in which boldface type, symbols and superior letters indicate the words actually found in the Original, lightface type indicates words added for clarity, and textual emendations are noted.

The CVOT is published in eight volumes, each with an introduction explaining the features employed by the Version, as well as the method of translation used to produce it.

The editions of the Concordant Version of the New Testament

The first tentative installments of this translation of the New Testament appeared in 1914 under the title Concordant Version. These were withdrawn the following year because they failed to reach the quality desired. In 1915 A.E. Knoch chose a new title, Standard Version. However, the publishers of the American Standard Edition of the Revised Version (ASV) voiced objection, and Mr. Knoch reestablished the title as Concordant Version. From 1919 until 1926 the CV was issued in parts beginning with Revelation. The second edition was a pocket edition printed in 1927. The third revised edition (1931) was similar to the 1926 edition with Greek text and notes, but included the Lexicon and Concordance and The Greek Elements. It retained the title- Concordant Version: The Sacred Scriptures. The fourth edition appeared in 1944 and followed the publication of a Concordant Version in Germany in 1939. (The current German edition has the title Konkordantes Neues Testament.) The corresponding English version was then called the "Revised, International Edition." The revision printed in 1966 was designated "The Memorial Edition" in honor of the compiler, Adolph Ernst Knoch, who was put to repose on March 28, 1965. At this time the translation was given a new title- Concordant Literal New Testament.

The Concordant Greek Text

Several years of research resulted in compiling a Greek text which gives all of the readings of the three most ancient codices, Alexandrinus, Vaticanus, and Sinaiticus, generally referred to as A, B, and the Hebrew letter Aleph (which the Concern designates as s), and all the readings from other sources which it feels are important. As it would be impossible to collate all the hundreds of later manuscripts, the Concern decided to base its comparisons on Weymouth’s RESULTANT GREEK TESTAMENT. Richard Francis Weymouth based his text on the greatest editors of the nineteenth century: Lachmann, Tregelles, Tischendorf, Lightfoot, Weiss, Alford, Ellicott, Stockmeyer & Riggenbach, the Revisers, and Westcott & Hort. Weymouth’s apparatus was also consulted which gives the results of Stunica, Erasmus, Stephens, Elziver and Scrivener.

The work was done as follows: Photographic facsimiles of each of the ancient manuscripts were carefully compared with a copy of the text of THE RESULTANT GREEK TESTAMENT, and every variation was noted in it. Then another copy of Weymouth’s text was cut up and pasted, line for line on large sheets which were bound into a book. Much space was left between each line, so that all the variations could be entered in place, above the words. If another reading was preferred instead of Weymouth’s, the notation above the line was changed accordingly. The principles on which this text was constructed are explained in the Introduction to the CONCORDANT GREEK TEXT. This volume of the Concordant Library contains every word and letter of A, B, s, Codex Vaticanus 2066 (046) for the Apocalypse, and some recently discovered fragments of Papyri. Differences between manuscripts are shown in the superlinear. A uniform, literal word-for-word sublinear translation is given below the Greek text, which is printed in the ancient uncial letters as we find them in the most ancient manuscripts.

Others involved in the compilation of the Concordant Literal Version

In 1965, Ernest Oliver Knoch wrote, rehearsing the life and career of his father, Adolph Ernst Knoch:

“In those early days, there were many, both locally and in distant places, who helped my father with the various phases of the preparation work on the Concordant Version, for the details were so many that they could never be handled by any one man alone. Some of those who helped locally were Melville Dozier (Superintendent of Schools in Los Angeles), J. H. Breckenridge, (Attorney for the Irvine Ranch) who helped with any legal problems, C. P. Wilcox of Long Beach, Horace M. Conrad of South Pasadena, who did the proofreading, Mrs. Gibson and Mrs. Walker, who prepared the slips for the card index system, Dr. Emma Lucas (first woman physician in New York), Earl Taber, Vi E. Olin, Edna Parr, Dr. and Mrs. W. S. Bagley. Pastor George L. Rogers of Almont, Michigan, served as the expert on the Greek verb, and he later moved to Los Angeles, where he also did some work with type, and spoke at the local meeting. Brother David Mann also spoke at the meeting, and corresponded. Later, Frank Neil Pohorlak (now Dr. Pohorlak) came and worked at headquarters for some time. Helpers at a distance whose names I can remember are, Alexander Thomson of Scotland, whose indefatigable service was invaluable in the early days, Edward H. Clayton of England, who still serves as our advisor in translation matters, Ben Bredimus and Mr. and Mrs. Joseph Kirk of Seattle. Adlai Loudy, a Christian minister, became much interested, and wrote a book and a number of booklets, some of which we still publish. F. H. Robison and Walter H. Bundy were others who contributed articles and helped in other ways. Undoubtedly there were others, whose names I have forgotten.”

External links

• Online (New Testament only)
• The Concordant Method, an article by A.E. Knoch
• The Concordant Version, an article by Gerry Watts