Expert: Scott Talbot - 7/27/2006

Question
hello there God bless you...I was wondering if maby you could help me... my question concerns the correct translation in the book of obadiah verses 12,23 and 14...the king james bible translates these verses all starting with ..."You should not have" where as the niv translates these verses starting with "You should not" obviously the word have becomes of paramount inportance becace one is saying that they should not as if it is an instruction..where as the other is saying you should not HAVE as if the edomites prophetically will do what they should not... can you please tell me whichj is the correct translation.. God bless you in jesus name ...

Answer
Hi, John. It's nice to hear from you.

To get to the heart of your question would require an understanding of the original Hebrew text. I studied Hebrew in seminary, but I have to admit that it has been a while and I am very rusty.

I could be wrong, but, if memory serves me correctly, I don't believe that there was a present perfect tense in the ancient Hebrew language, so it would have been impossible to say "You should not have" rather than simply "You should not."

Therefore, to convey this thought, it would have to be done in context. While the NIV translates, "You should not," based (presumably) on the most literal reading of the text, the context seems to imply the idea of "You should not have."

What's the difference? The latter suggests that these acts were already committed, and that they were done so wrongly--rather than simply warning against doing these things in the future.

If you read verses 3, 10-11, and also note that Edom is being condemned and judged by God, it's obvious that offenses were already committed. Add to this the fact that verses 12-14 list some very specific offenses--probably not the kind of thing one would just pull out of the air as a prohibition.

So the bottom line is this. Whether it's translated, "You should not," as in the NIV (very literal translation), or "You should not have," as in the KJV (understood from the context), the context clearly conveys the idea that these were acts that had already been committed, for which Edom was being condemned, and which were prohibited in the future.

Scott