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New International Version

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New International Version
File:NIV cover.jpg
Cover for a NIV Bible
Full nameNew International Version
AbbreviationNIV
OT published1978
NT published1973
Complete Bible
published		1978
Textual basisNT: Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament. OT: Biblia Hebraica Masoretic Hebrew Text, Dead Sea Scrolls, Samaritan Pentateuch, Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion, Latin Vulgate, Syriac Peshitta, Aramaic Targums, for Psalms Juxta Hebraica of Jerome.
Translation typeFormal & Dynamic Equivalence
Reading level7.80[1]
PublisherZondervan
CopyrightCopyright 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society
Genesis 1:1–3
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters. And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.
John 3:16
For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

The New International Version is an English translation of the Christian Bible. Published by Zondervan, it became one of the most popular modern translations made in the twentieth century.[2]

History

When Evangelical Protestants received the Revised Standard Version, certain texts regarding the virginity of Mary and other Old Testament passages whose Christian interpretation referred to Jesus did not follow traditional Evangelical translation.[3][4] The New International Version project was started after a meeting in 1965 in Palos Heights, Illinois between the Christian Reformed Church, National Association of Evangelicals, and a group of international scholars.[5] The New York Bible Society (now the Colorado Springs-based International Bible Society) was selected to do the translation. The New Testament was released in 1973 and the full Bible in 1978. It underwent minor revision in 1984.

Features

The NIV is an explicitly Protestant translation. The deuterocanonical books are not included in the translation. It preserved traditional Evangelical theology on many contested points for which the Revised Standard Version has been criticized. Apart from these theological issues, the manuscript base of the NIV is similar to the RSV, using older Greek New Testament texts rather than the later Textus Receptus.

Translation philosophy

The core translation group consisted of fifteen Biblical scholars. The translation took ten years and involved a team of up to 100 people from the USA, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand, and South Africa. The range of those participating included over twenty different denominations such as Baptists, Evangelicals, Methodists, Lutherans, Anglicans, and more.[6] The intent of the translators was to produce an accurate and readable translation that would fall between formal and functional equivalence[7][8]. An emphasis was placed on thought-for-thought, but it was meant to be no freer than necessary to carry the sense of the original.

The text used for the Old Testament was the Biblia Hebraica Masoretic Hebrew Text. Other ancient texts consulted were the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Samaritan Pentateuch, the Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion, the Latin Vulgate, the Syriac Peshitta, the Aramaic Targums, and for the Psalms the Juxta Hebraica of Jerome. The text used in translating the New Testament was the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament.[9] Recent archaeological and linguistic discoveries helped in understanding traditionally difficult passages to translate. Familiar spellings of traditional translations were generally retained.[10]

Circulation

According to Zondervan, publisher of the NIV, the translation has become the most popular modern English translation of the Bible, having sold more than 215 million copies worldwide. It is especially popular among American Evangelicals. It continues to be one of the top ten selling Bibles.[2][11]

There are numerous study Bibles available with extensive notes on the text and background information to make the Biblical stories more comprehensible. Among these are the NIV Spirit of the Reformation Study Bible, the Zondervan published NIV Study Bible, the Wesleyan revision, Reflecting God Study Bible, as well as the Life Application Study Bible.

Criticism

It is sometimes claimed that the NIV works in apologetics to smooth out apparent biblical contradictions in more precise translations, such as between Acts 9:7 and 22:9.[12] Examples given of precise translations in the aforementioned criticism are the King James Version and the NRSV[12]. Defenders of the NIV argue that the New American Standard Bible and the English Standard Version use almost the exact same wording as the NIV in regards to Acts 9:7 and 22:9.[13][14]

Bruce M. Metzger criticizes[15] several NIV decisions, such as the addition of just into Jeremiah 7:22, which appears to change the meaning.[16]

Some critics, especially those in the King-James-Only movement, criticize the NIV for using eclectic texts instead of the later Textus Receptus.[17]

Christians who prefer formal equivalency in translation criticize the NIV because it is somewhat looser than they prefer. For example, in Romans 8, the NIV translates the Greek word σάρξ, literally "flesh", figuratively (using a phrase such as "sinful nature") when the meaning is clearly figurative. Though advocates of the NIV would claim that such a translation makes the passage easier to understand, critics would answer that it is an unnecessary interpretation of the text.[citation needed]

References

  1. ^ "New International Version (Stats & History)". Retrieved 2008-04-16.
  2. ^ a b "CBA Best Sellers 2007" (PDF). Christian Business Association. Retrieved 2007-11-25. New International Version #1 in dollar and unit sales
  3. ^ "A Critique of the Revised Standard Version". "There are two fatal weaknesses in the Revised Standard Version of the Old Testament which inevitably make it unacceptable to evangelical Christians. The first is its attitude toward the reliability of the Hebrew or Massoretic Text of the Old Testament; the second is its method of translating that Text.", Merrill F. Unger, Th.D., Ph.D.
  4. ^ "In Discordance with the Scriptures: American Protestant Battles over Translating the Bible". "The battleground concerning the RSV centered on the translation of Isaiah 7:14, where the RSV dared to render the Hebrew word “young woman” instead of “virgin.”", Peter J. Thuesen, Oxford University Press, 1999, p238.
  5. ^ "biblegateway.com New International Version Information".
  6. ^ "Background of the New International Version (NIV) Bible".
  7. ^ "New International Version (NIV) Information from Zondervan". pg. 4,5
  8. ^ "Bible Translation Chart" (PDF).
  9. ^ "History of the English Bible by Ben Irwin" (PDF).
  10. ^ "Background of the New International Version (NIV) Bible". "Although archaeological and linguistic discoveries in this century aid in understanding difficult passages", "As for other proper nouns, the familiar spellings of the King James Version are generally retained" Paragraphs 14 & 17
  11. ^ "Best-Selling Bibles". Feb 2006, New International Version #1 best-seller
  12. ^ a b Barker, Dan (1994). "Did Paul's Men Hear a Voice?". The Skeptical Review. Retrieved 2007-11-25.
  13. ^ Slick, Matthew J. "Did the men with Paul hear the voice or not?". Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  14. ^ "Acts 9:7; Acts 22:9 (English Standard Version)". BibleGateway.com. Retrieved 2008-04-11.
  15. ^ Metzger, Bruce: The Bible in Translation (Baker Academic, 2001)
  16. ^ Jeremiah 7:22 (NIV) at BibleGateway.com
  17. ^ "Is Your Modern Translation Corrupt?] Answering the Allegations of KJV Only Advocates".
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