About the RCW Versions of the Biblical Texts.
I have great respect for individual Bible translators, especially those translating from Greek to a language other than their own native tongue. The LXX and the KJV are perhaps the two most influential and amazing feats of translation ever accomplished by humanity. No Bible translation is permanent, but it is not the Bible that changes. All languages and cultures constantly morph in several directions, with inconsistent velocities. No matter how perfect a Bible translation is, eventually it must be updated. The Dead Sea Scrolls were restricted long after their discovery, so their impact on modern Bible translation has been spread out over the last 76 years. Now there are many software programs and even AI is being applied to attempt to reconstruct the original Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. But it is debatable whether any of this will make much of a difference for a long time. Today, there are many linguistic Bible translation tools available at little or no cost online. It should not be surprising that anyone, like myself, who has had a couple of years of Koine Greek, would want to learn more about the art of Bible translation.
These are not original translations. The last time I did a full translation of a New Testament Book from the Greek was before the internet. I did it the hard way. And I remember doing it, all the parsing, syntax, sentence structure diagrams, definitions, and all done without referring to any other translations. My goal is different this time. I am not trying to master Koine Greek. I am trying to understand what previous translators were thinking. What I am calling “Personal Translations” are the results of a process designed to help me pursue answers to my own questions. Over 100 English versions of the Bible are now available online. When I am looking at a verse, I am looking at the Greek, the Interlinears, and many of these other translations. I am looking for inconsistencies, deviations, bias and errors. Most of the time the differences between the translations do not matter. Sometimes it is obvious that a systematic theological bias is present in one or more translations. I have my own biases, and am very self-conscious about them. So this work is to help me find answers to my questions, and to critique my own biases. I have no desire to fix anything or to win an argument, or to publish in the future. Understanding is what I am looking for. Since 2024, I have learned how to use xAI (Grok) to investigate the textual variants, known translation issues, and various translation styles. I know often use AI to critique my translations for all aspects of parsing, phrasing, syntax, definitions and clarity. I am particularly focused on removing any unnecessary ambiguities, if possible.
Please do not consider this work to be on par with the major established translations. I am partially dependent on them, but I am not writing for the same purposes that usually restrict translators. Since publication is not my goal, I have only myself to answer to. That means that if the Greek sounds awkward or controversial, I may resist softening it or explaining it in modern terms. I would rather get my mind into the thought patterns of God’s servants in Biblical times. If I find something that will obviously be controversial, I will do my best to provide notes to explain how it appears to me, and provide for myself the information I will need when I review my work in years to come.
The first of the ‘personal translations’ that has been posted to this website is the Book of Hebrews. It has been edited 7 times in the last 6 months. For now, it is the best that I can do, but I will make more changes as the need arises. Translating the Book of Romans has clarified my understanding of what Jesus’ death has accomplished. Translating Revelation has lead me to critique some of the most enduring eschatological assumptions and the new prophetic narrative I am discovering is fascinating.
My original work was in line by line form, but one of the first people who read it asked for it in a less academic format, so I have also made it available in paragraph form, without commentary. The effort was very fruitful. Not only did I learn a lot, but felt a sense of discovery, especially concerning Jesus’ New Priesthood, Melchizedek, the authorship question, and the early church’s division over Jesus’ nature. I have followed that format with Romans and Revelation also.
Thank you for taking the time to read my work. I am humbled by this experience. Long ago I was given a commentary on the book of Matthew, printed in 1733. It is so far over my head that I still can’t read it. In those days, writers assumed that their readers were far more intelligent than themselves, and so they ‘wrote up’. Always giving their best effort. Today we are used to books being ‘dumbed down’. I prefer the old-fashioned approach. RCW