The Word of God in English: Criteria for Excellence in Bible Translation

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Summary: You May Never Read A Dynamic Equivalent Again
Review: Dr. Leland Ryken is to be hailed for his work on English translations of the Bible. He does a masterful job of presenting strong arguments for an essentially literal transaltion (ESV, NASB, KJV, NKJV, RSV) versus a dynamic equivalent transation (NIV, NLT, the Message, TNIV, NRSV, CEV, TEV).

For years I have read and studied from the NIV but always have my doubts and suspisions about the NIV. Having taken New Testament Greek I was aware of some of the problems I had personally found in the NIV. When the New Living Translation (NLT) came out in 1996, I bought it and instantly rejected it. It was simply too free in its translation, too "dumbed" down for me, and simply ignored much of the Greek text. After reading Dr. Ryken's book, I have found my ammunition for defense of the essentially literal translations.

I now enjoy teaching and preaching from the RSV, NKJV, and the NASB. I would encourage you to pray that the evangelical church hears Dr. Ryken's words of wisdom and returns to a solid literal translation in the heritage of the King James Version.

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Summary: essentially literal translation
Review: The author of this book methodically goes through the fallacies behind the theory of dynamic equivalence. The author does make the point that his intention is not to just speak negatively about particular versions but you cannot help but come to the same conclusion as the author as he lays out his reasons and cites various examples. Be prepared to put on your literary thinking cap so to speak.

It was quite shocking to realize the liberty that some translators take with the Word of God to the point that the text is no longer a translation but the translotor's commentary. This book will also challenge you to really read the notes from the translation team at the beginning of your Bible. Some translations will blatantly tell you that they don't translate some words or names of God directly from the Greek or Hebrew text. The author then goes on to demonstrate what interpretation problems can develop as a result of using the dynamic equivalent theory of translation. Ryken is the literary stylist for the Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Throughout the book you will almost immediately realize that this author is a strong proponent of the new English Standard Version but please do not let that keep you from purchasing this book and really listening to the author's very compelling argument.

When I read or study the Bible I want to know that I am reading what God says in His Word and not what the translator thinks He really meant or what they think He meant to say today or in today's language. Be prepared to be challenged about the dynamic equivalent translation of the Bible that you carry to church.

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Summary: Is your Bible the Word of God?
Review: The Word of God in English is a book that everyone who has any interest in the Bible should read. The arguments Ryken expounds are not themselves new; they have been circulating in academic circles for many years now. It is rather the way in which these arguments are packaged in a single, and well written volume that makes this a must have book. Ryken devastates an entire modern tradition of Bible translations that follow the principle of 'dynamic equivalence' which insists that the primary purpose of translation is to render the thoughts as opposed to the words of Scripture in ways that modern people can understand. The thrust of Ryken's argument is that such a method cannot produce an accurate version of the Bible and ends up distorting the message of the Scripture in a way that renders it something other than God's word. The best point is made on page 91: "What good is readability if a translation does not accurately render what the Bible actually says." Ryken prefers literal translations: the KJV, the RSV, the NASB and of course, the ESV for which he served a literary editor. This is a VERY important work, not merely sales pitch for the ESV, which is treated fairly within the context of other translations. And what Bible must one avoid with every fibre of one's being? Read the book to find out.

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Summary: Great Literary Investigation of Translations
Review: This book is marvelously written to investigate how most modern day translations fail to match the criteria for the literary standards of the Bible. The Bible has many different literary forms, and when translators "spell it out" they are promoting antii-intellectualism among the pews (of which there is much).

It is very important that laymen learn the proper rules of hermeneutics, and learn how to interpret the Word of God, however, their interpretations should still be subject to the church. What is sad is that modern Bible readers do not get the full appeal of the original text. All the literary forms that the Bible uses are all obscured into prose. This is not good English usage.

Ryken does not defend the NASB as much as he does the ESV, because he prefers "essentially-literal" over more of a "woodenness" of which the NASB has (I love the NASB, by the way). Bible translation issues, as well as linguistics, are a few of my interests, and I defend essentially-literal to a more literal theory of translation.

There ARE good things to some modern translations, but many readers DO fundamentally need more than one translation to compare the different translations. Ryken doesn't really address the feminist issues of translations very much. He may discuss it a little, but his main concern is the literary nature of the Bible. The ESV included him as a literary advisor for their translation, and they made a very good choice. He offers a good critique of Eugene Nida's, the one who popularized dynamic equivalency.

The only real qualm I have with the book is tha it did tend to get redundant in places. When critiquing the modern translations, he tended to say the same thing about the different figures of speach that he said about other figures of speach. But, this did not devalue this fine work.

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Summary: A 'Must' Read...NIV, your days are numbered
Review: This is a book I find not only extremely informative, but fascinating and well-written. I have longed been troubled by dynamic-equivalence translations...but could not precisely articulate WHY I was bothered by them (except for words added or taken away). But learning how dynamic equivalent translations "destablilize" the Biblical text, "obscure the world of" the original text, perform "reductionism" and limit the exegetical possiblilities of a text--are issues of vital importance.

True, Ryken is an apologist for the English Standard Version, but notwithstanding--this is a book that I believe is a 'must' read for anyone who wants to understand the philosophies and principles that go into editorial decision when it comes to translating the Bible.
This is a book I have read and reread...and it continues to impress upon me issues that are worthy of study and reflection. I have come to the conclusion that for serious study of the Bible, formal equivalence is the way to go. Save dynamic equivalence for its "commentary" value. I hope this book gets widely distributed in Bible book stores. The wider Christian community needs to be exposed to this book. Excellent job, Ryken!