Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peter AT qaya.org>]

On 18/11/2005 08:48, Rolf Furuli wrote:

> ...
>
> According to the foreword of the NWT New Testament from 1950 three factors 
> were behind the choice of Jehovah in cases where NT manuscripts from the 
> second century C.E. and forward have KURIOS, 1) quotes from the OT, 2) New 
> Testaments in Hebrew using Jehovah, and 3) the context. In *all* cases where 
> Jehovah is found in the NWT New Testament one or more of these factors are 
> behind the choice. Theology *must* be an important factor in Bible 
> translation. We cannot translate a text we do not understand, and a part, 
> often a great part of this understanding is theology. One can disagree with 
> the theology of the NWT translators, but to claim that they are inconsistent 
> to their own translation principles in their choices of Jehovah in the NT is 
> false witness.
>
>  
I agree that "Theology *must* be an important factor in Bible 
translation". But, Rolf, you also wrote of translators of idiomatic 
versions:

> Such translators  interpret the text to a much greater extent than those who 
> make the literal translation, and much more theology is introduced in such a 
> translation

In the light of "Theology *must* be an important factor in Bible 
translation", is this a criticism? But I know of no idiomatic 
translations which have introduced theology to the extent of using it to 
determine whether KURIOS should be translated as a divine title. So I 
wonder the translation which introduces "much more theology" is in fact NWT.

--
Peter Kirk
peter AT qaya.org (personal)
peterkirk AT qaya.org (work)
http://www.qaya.org/