Working for the Word - a Bible translation podcast

Dr. Aaron Shryock currently serves at UnfoldingWord and has also served as the Director of the Tyndale Center for Bible Translation at the Master’s Seminary. Prior to that he spent several years in Africa involved in linguistic research, lexicography, and translation. In this episode he joins us to talk about the life and impact of William Whitaker, one of the lesser-known reformers who had a lot to say about Bible translation.  You can read/download Whitaker's book A Disputation on Holy Scripture, Against the Papists, Especially Bellarmine and Stapleton here. Check out Aaron Shryock's blog, where you can read more about Whitaker and Bible translation in general. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

What if we lost all of our copies and manuscripts of the New Testament? Would we still be able to reconstruct all of it with the quotations in the writings of the church fathers? Dr. Andrew Blaski joins us today to explain the origins of this popular myth and how we can think more carefully about the church fathers and their handling of Scripture. Get ready for a fascinating discussion of a lot of things you may have never considered this deeply.  Definitely get your own copy of the book with Blaski's chapter here. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

Isaiah 26:13 says, "O Yahweh our God, other lords besides you have ruled over us, but your name alone we bring to remembrance." What are some other key verses in Scripture where a title substitute for God’s name turns out to be awkward or inadequate? In this last episode on the divine name we’re going to soak up a lot of Bible as we survey passages where a translation just makes more sense when a name for God is translated rather than a title.  My paper on the Name is now free to download here. New Aleph with Beth intro video here. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

As we near the end of this series on the divine name, we need to address some more important questions and objections. Won’t we offend Jews if we try to pronounce God’s name in some way other than a title or circumlocution? Won’t rendering God’s name as a name in translations spoil the literary effect? And what is the position of the Catholic church on the use of the divine name?  Links mentioned: Jewish Virtual Library Evangeline of Sky Valley Sing Hebrew my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

As we continue our series, in this episode we’ll address more objections, including the teaching of Nehemiah Gordon who has an increasingly influential voice on this topic. We’ll talk about whether he is a trustworthy scholar, whether pronouncing God’s name makes us run the risk of "taking his name in vain," and more.  Video link #1 evaluating Gordon's claims in exhaustive detail concerning John 17. Video link #2 evaluating Gordon's claims about the Masoretic pointing on YHWH. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

What is the Arlington Statement on Bible Translation, why is it important, and what does it have to do with the divine name, especially in the NT? And did the NT writers try to make a distinction between Yahweh and Jesus? In this episode linguist, Bible translator, and former Mormon Seth Vitrano-Wilson joins us to talk about those things, offer some perspective on Bible translation in Muslim contexts, and more.  You can read Seth's paper here. Seth did another interview recently that covers more about the Arlington Statement here. Here is SIL's response to the Arlington Statement, which is impossible to find if you don't know exactly where to look: SIL and its partners in the Wycliffe Global Alliance believe that the Bible is the inspired Word of God. As such, Bible translations must always faithfully reflect the meaning of the Scriptures in a way that communicates clearly without distortion. SIL is committed to translation practices that result in accurate, clear, and natural translations. As a member of the Forum of Bible Agencies International (FOBAI), SIL is committed to the translation standards of FOBAI and the standards based on the guidelines of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) and has processes in place to ensure that its work adheres to these. SIL’s concern about the Arlington statement centers around its prescriptive approach. It is more restrictive than the FOBAI and World Evangelical Alliance standards, which maintained a commitment to faithful translations while including carefully crafted language about the movement’s rich diversity. We believe that our current standards and policies enable us to achieve accuracy while appropriately engaging with the different contexts in which we serve. Therefore SIL is not supportive of the Arlington Statement. Dick Kroneman, SIL International Translation Coordinator my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

What does the name of God mean? Can we analyze it as some kind of verb and figure out something about God’s nature and character? And should we translate "I am who I am" or "I will be who I will be," and does it matter? As promised, we’re going to sit down today with an expert who has spent a lot of time thinking and writing about these things and more. So get ready to hear some ideas you’ve probably never heard before! Click here to download and read Dr. Surls' dissertation on this topic for free. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

What is a sacred name Bible, and is it something you should use? In this sixth installment on the divine name, we’re going to discuss the sacred name movement and its problems, and see how it has muddied the waters for people like me seeking clarity on the issue. It’s time to take another deep dive into the world of Bible translation, and this time into one that isn’t as well-known. This is something I forgot to include in the episode audio: The preface to The Word of Yahweh explains: "The prime objective in producing this new edition of the scriptures was a desire to accurately represent the most sacred names of our Father and His Son. It has been the tradition of most translators to substitute more common, familiar terms such as lord and god, in place of the very names inspired from Yahweh Himself. We believe this is a grave injustice. Not only does this substitution steal from the richness and fullness of the original languages, but probably directly breaks the third commandment we read in Exodus 20:7. The personal name of the Heavenly Father, Yahweh, was inspired into the Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the Old Testament nearly 7000 times. This includes 134 instances where the Masoretic scribes admittedly changed Yahweh to the more common Hebrew adonai. In all instances where Lord, or God was substituted for the Sacred Name in the English text we have properly inserted Yahweh…. Because there is no accurate translation of elohim we have transliterated that title into the English. As for adonai, sovereign or master serves as an adequate translation in most cases.[1]" It should be noted their accusation of breaking the third commandment applies to the NT writers, and nowhere in the preface do they address that issue. They do, however, claim that “In recent years many scholars have proposed that there are Semitic originals underlying the Greek text of much of the New Testament.” They do not substantiate that claim or admit that it is purely speculation and therefore does not ameliorate their grave accusation. They also do not substantiate their use of “Yahweh” as the correct pronunciation of the divine name, nor do they explain why there is no accurate translation of elohim—a claim which is nonsense if no good reason is given. Finally, when reading the entire preface, it seems to be the case that, because they do not believe in the Trinity, they speak of Jesus as distinct from Yahweh. Thus, in their mind, Yahweh is Jesus’ father, and Jesus is not God, although he is the savior of the world. [1]http://assemblyofyahweh.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/Bible-Read-More.pdf. Accessed October 5, 2020. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

What did Martin Luther, the KJV, ASV, NJB, and others do with the Divine Name in their translations? What did the translators of the NT into Modern Hebrew do?  When did the pronunciation Yahweh come into vogue? All this and more fascinating and surprising stuff in today's installment. Links promised: Vasileiadis's article Aspects of rendering the sacred Tetragrammaton in Greek The Divine Name in the Hebrew New Testament my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook

Was the NT unique in its use of kurios, and what did people do with the divine name after the NT? As we will see, pronunciation continued to be avoided by some, while others sought to recover its original pronunciation or use it in various ways. In this episode we look at what big names like Irenaeus, Jerome, and Origen said about the divine name, as well as its magical use throughout the first centuries after Christ. my books | free Scripture prayer apps | music | Hebrew | academic articles | facebook