"40 Questions About Bible Translation" (Mark L. Strauss)

TITLE: 40 Questions About Bible Translation
AUTHOR: Mark L. Strauss
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2023, (352 pages).
 

The Bible is the bestselling book in the world. It is one of the most read, studied, referred to, quoted, and translated works in history. The originals were all written in ancient Aramaic/Hebrew and koine Greek. Since the rest of the world doesn't generally know these biblical languages, translations are needed. This book looks at many aspects of Bible Translation, focusing mainly on English translations. The questions start from the basic like, "Why do we need Bible Translation?" strengths and weaknesses of literal, formal equivalence, functional equivalence, and philosophies used in translation.  It then moves toward a more technical area to help readers appreciate the challenges of Bible translation. Toward the end, we get a survey of modern English translations and the many different revisions. The 40 questions are divided into six parts:

1. Necessity, Goals, and Methods of Bible Translation
2. Preparing to Translate
3. Challenges for Translators
4. History of English Bible Translations
5. Contemporary English Versions
6. International Bible Translation

"Dictionary of the New Testament Use of the Old Testament" (G.K. Beale, D.A. Carson, Benjamin L. Gladd, and Andrew David Naselli)

TITLE: Dictionary of the New Testament Use of the Old Testament
AUTHOR: G.K. Beale, D.A. Carson, Benjamin L. Gladd, and Andrew David Naselli
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023, (992 pages)

The Old Testament and the New Testament are related in more than verbatim references by Jesus or any NT writers. Philip Yancey calls the Old Testament the Bible that Jesus read. The Scriptures pointed out in the New Testament are all (if not most) from the Old Testament.  Jesus too quotes regularly from the Old Testament during his ministry on earth. It is quite surprising that only in recent years do we hear more about scholarship that examines the New Testament use of the Old Testament. Better late than never. According to the editors, this field of study is "blossoming." Following the highly successful commentary as well as the handbook, author GK Beale has teamed up with prominent Old and New Testament scholars, theologians, and researchers to compile a dictionary of terms used in this field.  The editors anticipate greater interest in this area of study and research. Written to complement the commentary edition (CNTUOT), this specialized dictionary consists of entries that focus on five categories:

1. Surveys of Biblical Books (55 entries)
2. Biblical-Theological Topical Essays (54 essays)
3. Jewish Exegetical-Traditions Essays (25 entries)
4. Inner-Biblical Exegesis (26 essays)
5. Systematic Theology (5 essays)

"Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God" (Gordon D. Fee)

TITLE: Paul, the Spirit, and the People of God
AUTHOR: Gordon D. Fee
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2023, (240 pages).
 

The Holy Spirit is God's Empowering Presence. Paul teaches and lives it. He urges the people of God to do the same. How do we not only learn more about the Holy Spirit? Is it possible to experience the presence of the Holy Spirit, maybe like what the Early Church had experienced? Perhaps, before we move into the actual application, we need to learn more about the continuity and discontinuity gap between the Old and New Covenant. Recognizing the struggles to link these two important truths, well-respected professor, Dr. Gordon Fee has written his Magnus opus on the Holy Spirit from the perspective of Pauline theology. From Paul's window into the Holy Spirit, he draws out the connection between what Paul says and what we experience in our present life in Christ, before extending it to the relevance of the Holy Spirit's work in the lives of the Church. For that to happen, we need to draw a series of connections between the past and the present. This includes relationships between:

• Understanding and experiencing the Theology of the Holy Spirit;
• The old covenant and the new;
• The Individual and the Community;
• Present and Future
• Soteriology and Eschatology;
• Conversion to Covenant;
• and more...

"First Nations Version" (Editor Terry M. Widman)

TITLE: First Nations Version: An Indigenous Translation of the New Testament
AUTHOR: First Nations Version Translation Council (Editor: Terry M. Widman)
PUBLISHER: Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2021, (512 pages).

A missionary to a faraway native tribe had tried to share the gospel to the natives for many years but to no avail. Each time he brought up the story of God and Jesus, the locals would dismiss him and maintained that they already had a god, and they don't need another new one. This went on for a long time and the missionary was naturally frustrated. Then came an insight. What happens if he does away with the semantics and focuses on the shared concepts: that there is Higher Power, a Divine Being of Love and Goodness, and that there are more similarities than differences? So,  he started sharing the gospel using common terms that the locals would understand. By contextualizing his message, his audience became more receptive to the gospel message. One of the major ways of contextualizing a message is via translation. The Bible is the Word of God for people in this world. The original languages used are Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. In the history of the Church, the Bible has been translated into many different languages so that people could read it in their own language. The name "First Nations" is widely used in Canada to refer to the indigenous people of the land. It is also recognized in the United States. Thus the "First Nations Version" is essentially a translation in English using familiar culture, linguistics, and relevant meaning to those who are First Nations people. The translation council comprises many representatives from over 25 First Nations tribes. It aims to be both faithful to the original texts and clear to the present audiences. It uses English because it is a more common language among the many different tribal groups. That is also because many new generations of the First Nations are not as fluent in their native languages compared to their predecessors. With the support and expertise from people with translation work experience, this collaborative effort is impressive. Some of the important terms used include:

"John's Letters: An Exegetical Guide for Preaching and Teaching" (Herbert W. Bateman IV and Aaron C. Peer)

TITLE: John's Letters: An exegetical guide for preaching and teaching (Big Greek Idea)
AUTHOR: Herbert W. Bateman IV and Aaron C. Peer
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Academic, 2018, (448 pages).

Every English Bible translation is in itself an interpretation. Unless one is trained to read the Scriptures in their original language and context, it would be difficult to fully comprehend the Bible merely by using English. The next best thing would be to get closer to the original by learning or gaining more insights from a Greek perspective. This book is one such channel of insight. The "Big Greek Idea Series" is a collection of guides specifically for pastors, professors, and seminary students trying to bridge the gap between the ancient Greek and the modern English culture. This volume focuses on the letters of John; namely the Johannine letters (aka 1, 2, 3 John). The authors suggest this book be used in three ways.: 1) as a grammatical commentary; 2) as an interlinear; and 3) as inspiration for exegetical nuggets.

There are many features in this book. It combines exegesis with thought-for-thought analysis. There is careful unpacking of "transitional and structural markers" to help us keep track of any big ideas within it. There are detailed grammatical explanations that could be too technical for some of us. Getting a grammatical refresher before reading this book would be ideal to ensure seamless reading. Those who are in a rush would benefit from the underlined clauses and words accompanied by explanations. The authors help us pay attention to the syntax. By detailing the grammatical, syntactical, and semantic functions, readers get to do both exegesis as well as hermeneutics and to link them together. The Introduction provides a summary of some of the grammatical terms to be used. It is essential to read this before plunging into the rest of the book. This is the grammatical heavy-lifting that would bring dividends when approaching the rest of the book.

"2 Corinthians" (George H. Guthrie)

TITLE: 2 Corinthians (Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament)
AUTHOR: George H. Guthrie
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2015, (736 pages).

Exegetical commentaries are one of the best kinds of Bible commentaries ever published. While commentaries in general will have lots of contextual descriptions and insightful observations of the text, being exegetical means learning to journey through the Scriptures with the commentator as a wise and learned guide. Designed and written with the pastor and preacher in mind, such commentaries help to nuance the different meanings of the words used by the ancient writers. As the meaning of the individual words are being teased out, such commentaries help readers to remember the sense of the big picture. Without compromising on traditional viewpoints, this new commentary series supplies additional insights from the latest research and scholarship available. George H. Guthrie, Professor of Bible at Union University in Jackson Tennessee mentions three reasons for writing this commentary. The first is a personal one in which he studies Second Corinthians for his own "growth, understanding, and edification." In doing so, he invites readers to learn with him. True to his calling as a teacher, attempting to teach must be matched by learning. Attempting to nuance the knowledge must be matched by grappling with the text. Attempting to exegete well must be matched by personal work as well as wide scholarly references. The second reason is a conviction that the way to learn the text is continually, adopting a "comma" disposition instead of a "full-stop." The Bible is a living Word and that means the Bible had not only spoken to many in the past, it speaks to us in the present, and will also speak to others in the future. The past four decades had seen a flurry of research and scholarship on the second letter to the Corinthians. Despite the rich number of resources, it is believed that the Biblical text will never be fully exhausted. Our contexts change. Our interpretation paradigms change. Our cultural situations change. Even our understanding of various commentaries and works done can change. Third, Guthrie believes that 2 Corinthians is critical for the Church today because the issues discussed have so much relevance for the Church. Those of us concerned about Church ministry will benefit greatly through the study of 2 Corinthians. This commentary aids the process. The book is pastoral in nature, relevant to ministry, and deeply personal in our walk with God. With discouragement and sometimes despair dragging down workers in churches, this Pauline epistle has lots of encouragement and renders immense hope for all. Guthrie observes:

"At times and places in the twenty-first century, we the church are wanderers, false teachers, faithful or faithless sufferers, fellow-workers with Paul, disillusioned ministers or congregations, opponents of the true gospel, polished and competitive and powerful public speakers, or powerless leaders who long for status and popularity and social significance like a dehydrated, dying person longs for water. Especially in the American church, we too easily drift into ruts of power, posturing, position, and presentation as the pragmatic backbone of ministerial effectiveness, and 2 Corinthians offers a sobering, loud, cautionary voice against such an approach to ministry."

"Beginning with the Word" (Roger Lundin)

TITLE: Beginning with the Word: Modern Literature and the Question of Belief (Cultural Exegesis)
AUTHOR: Roger Lundin
PUBLISHER: Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2014, (272 pages).

What shapes our thinking? What kind of philosophy drives us on a daily basis? Why are there so many accusations of people who think one way and behaves another? What does it mean to think Christian hope in the light of living in a contemporary world? With all kinds of theories flying around, how do Christians engage literature, language, belief, culture, and of course imagination? Perhaps, there is a lot of opportunity to educate and engage people toward believing what they practise and to practise what they believe. It is the "guiding conviction" of the author in this book that it is God who "seeks, embraces, and gives himself over to the conversational voice" of culture. This essentially means that we begin with the Word in any forms of engagement with the world or culture at large. Making it more explicit, Roger Lundin, Professor of English at Wheaton College adopts the French philosopher, Paul Ricoeur's posture of choosing "hermeneutics of testimony" over "philosophy of absolute knowledge." For to do so would encourage one to put into practice, to act upon, and to experience what one knows or believes. Words, stories, literature are literary tools and devices to help us reconnect the world we live in and the divine future we can anticipate.