It is helpful to know something about the languages that the Scriptures were originally written in. This is intended as a brief discussion of how the Scriptures came into the form we know it today.

The Hebrew Scripture (The Old Testament) was originally written in Hebrew. In the third and second century BCE, as Greek became the common language in the whole of the Roman Empire, The Hebrew Scriptures were translated to Greek. The Greek translation is known as the Septuagint. The name is derived from Latin and the word for seventy. The reason is because seventy Jewish scholars did the work of translation at the request of Ptolemy II.

Which Hebrew writings would be included was determined by the Jewish Rabbis and scholars. Both the original Hebrew and the Greek version of the Hebrew Scriptures are quoted by the writers of the New Testament.

It is important to remember that the Scriptures known and quoted by Jesus were the Hebrew and Greek versions of the Hebrew Scriptures. On occasion Jesus also quoted in the more colloquial Aramaic, which was the common language of that era. No New Testament authorship occurred till several years after Jesus’ resurrection.

The New Testament texts were originally written in Greek, the common language of the Roman Empire.

As the writing of the earliest followers of Jesus were collected, the second collection of books we call the New Testament was assembled. The process of deciding which writings to include was not finally decided until the third and fourth century. Which writings were to be included was determined by a series of councils held by the bishops of both the Eastern Orthodox and Western Roman Churches.

With the fall of the Roman Empire, and as the Gospel spread throughout the known world, the need to translate the Scriptures into other languages became more acute. For simplicity, I will only discuss the translation of the Scripture into the English language.

As you would expect, there were numerous translations of portions of the Scriptures that existed as missionaries took the Gospel to different peoples. However, the first complete English translations is credited to John Wycliffe, during the fourteenth century.

The first translator to use the invention of the printing press, was William Tyndale during the fifteenth century. Other early printed versions were the Geneva Bible (1560), notable for being the first Bible divided into chapters and verses. The Geneva Bible was also the first to disregard the Divine Right of Kings. The Geneva Bible was followed by the Bishop’s Bible (1568). When the early settlers came to America, the translation which they were most familiar with was the Bishop’s Bible.

Probably the best know translation of this era, however, is the Authorized King James Version. As the name suggests, this translation was made at the request of King James I, and was completed in 1611. It became the authorized version of the Church of England.

While early English Bibles were generally based on a small number of Greek texts, or on Latin translations, modern English translations of the Bible are based on a wider variety of manuscripts in the original languages (Greek and Hebrew). The translators put much scholarly effort into cross-checking the various sources. Relatively recent discoveries such as the Dead Sea scrolls provide additional reference information.

More recently the need for translations in modern English was apparent, and numerous good translations are available. To understand the different approaches to translation, and which translations use what approach, click here.

My goal here, is to offer some suggestions to help you make a decision where to begin. I begin with the two most popular first.

New International Version NIV
This translation is considered to be a highly accurate and smooth-reading version of the Bible in modern English. Because of its popularity, this is the translation you will most often hear read in public meetings.

New King James Version NKJV
This is a modern language update of the original King James Version. It retains much of the respect and style of the original King James Version.

GOD’S WORD Translation GW
This is the translation I personally prefer for leisure reading of the Scripture. I also prefer it for public reading because of its use of contemporary language. I highly recommend this version for a beginner reading the Scripture for the first time. It only uses language that is in contemporary use, and avoids words and phrases that may only be familiar to those who have been exposed to some degree of religious training. It is considerably less popular, and therefore often more expensive, but is still my first recommendation.

New American Standard Bible NAS
This translation is written in a formal style, but is more readable than the King James Version. It is highly respected as the most literal English translation of the Bible. I include this in the list, because it is my preferred study Bible. I also use it to compare to other translations when I have reason to question.