Expert: John Fields - 10/31/2011

Question
Thanks for your time. My question is which bible translation is the closet to the Greek that the new testament was written in? Which translation is the most accurate?  And What is your thoughts on commentaries and study bibles vs just reading the bible for yourself?

Answer
When I was a student at Harding University circa 1986 or so my Greek teacher, Jack McKinney, a brilliant man whose linguistic skills were unquestioned said that in his view the New American Standard  was the closest AT THAT TIME  to the original Greek.

That said, the New American Standard had since undergone some slight revisions and, of course, it is not nearly as popular as some of the newer versions such as the NIV and ESV .

I personally think that the NIV is a better flowing version as to the smoothness of the English but still prefer the NAS personally. We are better to use a number of different versions because there are nuances in some that may not be there in others and it lends itself to an overall better grasp of the meaning as a whole.

My LEAST favorite is the King James which was based upon older and less proven manuscripts not to mention the difficulty of trying to work around so much archaic English. That said I still DO occasionally use it and it has helped occasionally.

As to commentaries, and study Bibles we are fine as long as we understand the scriptures are inspired, the law is objective, the truth is set and it is binding between God and each of His children. However, OUR understanding of the inspired truth within God’s Word of the scriptures is NOT  inspired.

I am VERY confident that I know the scriptures well. I am equally confident that I don’t know them WELL ENOUGH , and will never be satisfied with my level of knowledge. I have SO MUCH  more to learn from the bottomless well which is the Water of Life.

Do I want to bind my current understanding on others as though it is infallible? NO WAY! Commentaries are wonderful as long as we don't accept them as inspired. Unfortunately, different men bring their biases and "mind-baggage" with them when they shouldn't; that is why we must exercise caution and read more than one commentary as we test their reliability.

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