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  • From: "Robert Newman" <rob AT designceramics.co.uk>
  • To: <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [b-hebrew] NIV v' NWT translation policy
  • Date: Fri, 18 Nov 2005 16:51:47 -0000

Peter wrote:
Well, Rob, I am not sure which part of Essex you are from, but in my
part, Chelmsford, if you ask an ordinary person what "soul" means their
understanding wouldn't be anything like the biblical concept or concepts
of nephesh. If they didn't think of a type of music, they would probably
think of the part of the human which survives death - which is
definitely NOT a sense of Hebrew nephesh. And probably a "general Bible
reader" here would have little better idea of the meaning of "soul",
depending of course on what version they read.

Hi Peter,
Chelmsford is just down the road, I even have a Chelmsford postcode CM13. I
partly agree with you as to what 'Soul' signals in English. My point was that
if an English Thessaurus is anything to go by "soul" is a broad word, I do
not claim it exactly fits nephesh such as would be the requirement of an
idiomatic translation, only that it covers much of nephesh. To give examples;
SOS 'save our souls' - "souls" signifies 'lives'
"poor little soul" you may recognise this as refering to an unfortunate child
- soul here signals 'person'.
If we take the NIV as an example, it principly uses "soul" where reference
is to emotion and the inner person. Yet there are a couple of interesting
verses
Pr 1:11 "let's waylay some harmless soul" where it signals -'person'
Ps 26:1 "Do not take away my soul along with sinners", where it signals -
'life'
In Pr 25:25 it may signal - 'body'

Peter you write
they would probably
think of the part of the human which survives death - which is
definitely NOT a sense of Hebrew nephesh

Response: I agree (though not everyone would), yet someone reading NIV, could
retain such a viewpoint. "Soul" is a theologically important term, I believe
and most would agree that theology should be based on scripture. The approach
of NWT enables the reader to learn the range of meaning of nephesh and the
concept as a whole. That is labeled "soul". Using this technique when
possible literal translations can enable readers to learn concepts familiar
to the ancients. Rather than defining meaning solely on the basis of the
Engish word 'soul', that word serves as a label for an ancient concept one
has to learn through context and explaination. Maybe the translators could
have transliterated it, that would have worked in a similar way, though I
think it would be harder on the reader, for the most part "soul" communicates
effortlessly.
Robert Newaman





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