Translations

I have not blogged in a while, but it seems that many of my blogs should start of with those very words. Although I do enjoy blogging, I do not quite enjoy it as much as others to sit down and type out much of my thoughts all the time. So, I thought starting off with a questino would do nicely.

What is your favorite translation of the Bible? I personally like it untranslated, but unfortunately I can’t go more than one syllable without aid.

For casual reading I myself enojy using the English Standard Version (ESV) . I have also heard it called the SCV-Standard Calvinist Version, and even the ACV- Angry Calvinist Version. I think all three of those could be summed up into my personal favorite, the CTO, or Closer to The Original version.

For more in depth study of the Word I like to use the New American Srandard. As for a concordance I have come to greatly appreciate the Key Word study bible. I used to be a Strong’s man, but that changed and here is why in brief:

Foreknowledge in the New Testament always refers to God knowing persons, and not actions or events, even though he does know all actions and events. I am not going to explain this out fully because one: I want to put a plug in for Arthur W. Pink’s book The Attributes of God, and two: he can explain alot better than I.

Now, as I parused “The New Strong’s Expanded Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible” I happened to come upon foreknowledge. Proginosko, and prognosis in the Greek. In the definition, the Strong’s goes on to say that “God’s ‘foreknowledge’ involves his electing gace, but this does not preclude human will. He ‘foreknows’ the exercises of faith which brings salvation.”

Wow. How easy is it for all to agree with predestination, when God simply foresee’s ones “exercise of fatih.” Too many people today will write off the true meaning of predestination with this very definition. Now preachers today can get away with talking about “election,” “chosen,” and “predestination” without offending not because they preach this “predestination by foreknowledge” but that they simply are ambiguous enough to allow minds to keep this wrong conclusion. I have heard the words “he does teach predestination,” and yet the tachings still allows way for sinful minds to still have their American “freedom of choice.” Using scripture to support your theology is one thing, but stating an incorrect translation to support your theology is another. So that is why I am no longer fond of the Strong’s Concordance, even though I still use it from time to time.

Hope I can blog soon and not keep all of my eager fans waiting.

Cc.