The Importance of the Ten Commandments
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BpB8IkISnSc] A short excerpt from a lecture I gave a while back. (A little off topic, but still….)
On Genesis 1:1
While most translations agree that the translation of Genesis 1:1 should read, “In the beginning…” the (Jewish) JPS translation offers instead, “When God began to create…” And the NLT and some others offer a footnote with that possibility. What’s going on? The answer dates back 1,000 years to Rashi. He notes that the usual word…
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Rashi – The Great Jewish Translator and Commentator
The year 1040 saw the birth of a man destined to become the greatest Jewish commentator and a major influence on translations. Born Solomon, son of Isaac, in Troyes, France, he is better known by the acronym his Hebrew name forms: Rashi. Rashi’s travels and the timing of the Crusades catapulted him to the forefront…
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How Translation Used to Work
Nowadays, translators usually try to figure out what a word originally meant before they translate it. But translation hasn’t always worked that way. For example, a passage in the (mid-first-millennium) Talmud explains the Hebrew word sechvi. The story, in the part of the Talmud known as Rosh Hashanah 26a, explains that Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish…
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Bible Translation: Where Melody and Mirrors Merge
Still following up on my question about accuracy and choosing Bible translations, and by way of answering my question about whether it’s okay if people choose what the Bible is, it occurs to me that music might be a useful comparison. Many, many parts of the Bible have been set to music, and the options…
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Choosing What the Bible Is
I recently asked how people choose a Bible translation. (And I have more here.) One interesting (though entirely predictable) result was that some people prefer more than one translation: the NLT for “readability,” for example, but the NET for “accuracy,” or the NASB for use in formal settings. Even people who only have one preferred…
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How Important is Accuracy?
“I like my Bible translation because it…” How would you complete that sentence? I hear this sort of thing all the time — in comments on this blog, in discussions on similar blogs, via e-mail, in books, and from people who attend my lectures — and there are lots of reasons people like a particular…
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Ancient Wisdom, Modern Lives
Recent posts from my Ancient Wisdom, Modern Lives:
Democracy, Oligarchy, and Free Speech An oligarchy replaces a democracy and a public figure is put on trial for his words. History or current events? Or both?
Money and Happiness: A Tumultuous Love Affair Does money make us happy? Yes, except no, because, well, it's complicated...
Why do People Suffer? Five Ancient Answers Timeless and time-tested answers to frame suffering in a better light
Interest Rates Old and New: How High is Too High? A short history of ancient interest rates, in light of a 10% cap on credit-card interest rates proposed in the US Senate by Bernie Sanders and Josh Hawley
