C. S. Lewis, "Odd the way the less the Bible is read, the more it is translated."

Genesis 1:2
"And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." KJV
"a mighty wind swept over the waters." New American Bible
"a divine wind sweeping over the waters." New Jerusalem Bible
"and God's active force was moving to and fro over the surface of the waters." NWT
"and the power of God was moving over the water." Good News Bible-TEV
for more click here.

Genesis 6:2
"sons of the gods" New English Bible, S/Goodspeed
"supernatural beings" TEV1, CEV
"heavenly beings" TEV2, New Jewish P.S.,
"the sons of God" NRSV, NKJV, NWT
"beings from the spirit world" Living Bible
"angels" LXX Codex Alexandrinus, Moffatt
"sons of heaven" NAB

Matthew 5:22
" and whoever may say, Rebel! shall be in danger of the gehenna of the fire." Young's NWT
" but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire." KJV
" anyone who says to his brother 'You cursed fool!' will have to answer for it in the fiery pit." Smith&Goodspeed
for more click here.

Zechariah 12:10
"and they shall look unto me whom they have pierced" ASV, KJV
"they will look at the one who they stabbed to death." TEV, NWT, JB
compare John 19:37

First Samuel 13:1
"Saul was forty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty two years" (NAS)
"Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel" (KJV, NKJV)
"Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty-two years" (NIV)

1 Samuel 28:13
"I see a god coming up out of the earth" ASV, NWT, RSV
"I see a ghost rising from the earth" New Jerusalem
" I saw gods ascending out of the earth" KJV, Douay
"preternatural being" NAB
"a spirit" CEV
"a god-like form" MLB
"divine being" Smith&Goodspeed, NRSV, NJPS
"a ghostly form" REB, NEB

1 Samuel 2:25
"If one man sin against another, God shall judge him" ASV
"If one man sin against another, the judge shall judge him" KJV

Exodus 21:6
"then his master must take him before the judges" NIV
"then his master shall bring him unto God" ASV
"the judges who acted in God's name" NASB ftn
"his master shall bring him to the gods" Douay

2 Corinthians 3:14
"But their minds were blinded: for until this day remaineth the same vail untaken away in the reading of the OLD TESTAMENT; which [vail] is done away in Christ." KJV, NKJV
"but their minds were hardened: for until this very day at the reading of the OLD COVENANT the same veil remaineth, it not being revealed [to them] that it is done away in Christ." ASV, NWT

Colossians 2:9
"For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily." KJV
"For in Him all the fullness of the deity dwells in bodily form." NASB
"For the full content of divine nature lives in Christ, in his humanity." TEV
"For it is in him that the immensity of the Divine Wisdom corporately dwells." Schonfield
"Because in him resides al the fulfillment of the divine." Lattimore

John 6:7
 "About a year's wages" (God's Word to the Nations)
"eight months' wages" (NIV)
"six months' wages" (New RSV)
"we would have to work a month" (New Century Version)
"ten dollars" Phillips
"forty dollars" Williams
"fifty dollars" Berkely Version
"two hundred denarii" REB
"two hundred silver coins" TEV
"a small fortune" NLT
This is incredible! You would think translators would be more careful. Perhaps "dynamic equivalence" isn't such a great idea after all. The REB was careful in keeping it literal, despite being a free translation.

Matthew 10:29
"pet canary" The Message
"small bird" The New Life Testament
"sparrow" NKJV

1 Timothy 3:16
"And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory." King James Version,Darby, Young's
"And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness; He who was manifested in the flesh, Justified in the spirit, Seen of angels, Preached among the nations, Believed on in the world, Received up in glory." American Standard Version, RSV, NIV

Revelation 22:12
"Listen!" says Jesus. "I am coming soon!" Today's English Version
"Yes, I am coming soon." New English Bible

Colossians 1:15
"Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature" KJV
"who is image of the invisible God, firstborn of all creation"Darby
"his is the primacy over all creation" Revised English Bible
"superior to all created things" TEV

Revelation 3:14
" These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God" KJV
"These things saith the Amen, the witness--the faithful and true--the chief of the creation of God" Young's
"the origin of God's creation" Smith&Goodspeed
"the primeval source of God's creation" Living Bible

Hebrews 1:6
"And when he again bringeth in the firstborn into the world he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him."American Standard Version, RSV, KJV, NAB, NWT(1970)
"And let them bow before him--all messengers of God;"Young's
"Let all the angels of God pay him homage."New English Bible, Schonfield
"Let all God's angels do obeisance to him." New World Translation(1984)

Matthew 24:36
"  But of that day and hour knoweth no [man], no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."
KJV, Young, Darby
"But of that day and hour knoweth no one, not even the angels of heaven, neither the Son, but the Father only." ASV, NIV, NASB etc          compare Mark 13:32

Psalms 45:6
"Thy throne, O God, [is] age-during, and for ever, A sceptre of uprightness [Is] the sceptre of Thy kingdom." Young's
"Your divine throne endures forever" Revised Standard Version
"God is your throne to time indefinite, even forever" NWT

Matthew 5:3
"Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs in the kingdom of heaven." KJV
"Happy are those conscious of their spiritual need..." NWT
"God blesses those who realize their need of him..." New Living
"You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule." Message

Jude 4
"For there are certain men crept in privily, [even] they who were of old written of beforehand unto this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying our only Master and Lord, Jesus Christ." American Standard Version, KJV,NIV
"the grace of our God perverting to lasciviousness, and our only Master, God, and Lord--Jesus Christ--denying" Young's Literal Translation, WEB, Green's

Isaiah 11:11
"Cush" KJV
"Ethipia" RSV
"Sudan" TEV
"Nubia" NRSV

Leviticus 26:3
"images" KJV
"sun-images" RV
"incense altars" GOS

1 Corinthians 15:51
"Behold, I tell you a mystery: We all shall not sleep, but we shall all be changed" ASV
"We shall not all die but we shall be changed." New Berkeley Version

Matthew 24:3
"Tell us, when shall these things be? and what [shall be] the sign of thy coming, and of the end of the world?" American Standard Version, KJV
`Tell us, when shall these be? and what [is] the sign of thy presence, and of the full end of the age?' Young's Literal Translation,Rotherham,NWT

Revelation 1:11
`I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last;' and, `What thou dost see, write in a scroll, and send to the seven assemblies that [are] in Asia; to Ephesus, and to Smyrna, and to Pergamos, and to Thyatira, and to Sardis, and to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.' Young's, KJV

 "What thou seest, write in a book and send [it] to the seven churches: unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamum, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea." American Standard Version, see also RSV, NAB etc.

Acts 8:20
"But Peter said unto him, Thy silver perish with thee, because thou hast thought to obtain the gift of God with money." American Standard Version
"But Peter answered him, 'May you and your money go to hell.'

Acts 12:4
"And when he had apprehended him, he put [him] in prison, and delivered [him] to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people." King James Version
"And when he had taken him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quarternions of soldiers to guard him; intending after the Passover to bring him forth to the people." American Standard Version

John 1:1:
In a beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the God, and a god was the Word. (Interlineary Word for Word English Translation-Emphatic Diaglott)
In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
(Recovery Version)
Harwood, 1768, "and was himself a divine person"
Newcome, 1808, "and the word was a god"
Thompson, 1829, "the Logos was a god
Goodspeed, 1939, "the Word was divine
Torrey, 1947, "the Word was god
New English, 1961, "what God was,the Word was"
Moffatt, 1972, "the Logos was divine
Translator's NT, 1973, "The Word was with God and shared his nature
Barclay, 1976, "the nature of the Word was the same as the nature of God"
Schneider, 1978, "and godlike sort was the Logos
Schonfield, 1985, "the Word was divine
Revised English, 1989, "what God was, the Word was
Scholar's Version, 1993, "The Divine word and wisdom was there with God, and it was what God was
Madsen, 1994, "the Word was <EM>a divine Being"
Becker, 1979, "ein Gott war das Logos" [a God/god was the Logos/logos]
Stage, 1907, "Das Wort war selbst gttlichen Wesens" [The Word/word was itself a divine Being/being].
Bhmer, 1910, "Es war fest mit Gott verbunden, ja selbst gttlichen Wesens" [It was strongly linked to God, yes itself divine Being/being]
Thimme, 1919, "Gott von Art war das Wort" [God of Kind/kind was the Word/word]
Baumgarten et al, 1920, "Gott (von Art) war der Logos" [God (of Kind/kind) was the Logos/logos]
Holzmann, 1926, "ein Gott war der Gedanke" [a God/god was the Thought/thought]
Rittenlmeyer, 1938, "selbst ein Gott war das Wort" [itself a God/god was the Word/word]
Lyder Brun (Norw. professor of NT theology), 1945, "Ordet var av guddomsart" [the Word was of divine kind]
Pffflin, 1949, "war von gttlicher Wucht [was of divine Kind/kind]
Albrecht, 1957, "gttlichen Wesen hatte das Wort" [godlike Being/being had the Word/word]
Smit, 1960, "verdensordet var et guddommelig vesen" [the word of the world was a divine being]
Menge, 1961, "Gott (= gttlichen Wesens) war das Wort"[God(=godlike Being/being) was the Word/word)
Haenchen, 1980, "Gott (von Art) war der Logos" [God (of Kind/kind) was the Logos/logos]
Die Bibel in heutigem Deutsch, 1982, "r war bei Gott und in allem Gott gleich"[He was with God and in all like God]
Haenchen (tr. By R. Funk), 1984, "divine (of the category divinity)was the Logos"
Schultz, 1987, "ein Gott (oder: Gott von Art) war das Wort" [a God/god (or: God/god of Kind/kind) was the Word/word]
"At the beginning of Creation, there dwelt with God a mighty spirit, the Marshal, who produced all things in their order." John 1:1 Free 21st Century NT
"In a beginning was the [Marshal] [Word] and the [Marshal] [Word] was with the God and the [Marshal] [Word] was a god." John 1:1 Literal 21st Century NT

John 1:18
King James Version: "the only-begotten Son
New American Standard Bible: "the only-begotten God"
An Inclusive Version: "God the only-Child"
New American Bible: "God the only Son"
Revised Standard Version: "the only Son"
Lattimore: "the only-born God"
New English Bible: "God's only Son"
The Original New Testament/Schonfield: "God's only-begotten"
New International Version: "God the one and only"

Ecclesiastes 3:11
"world" KJV
"eternity" NASB
"past and future" REB
"passage of time" NJB
"the timeless" NAB
"mystery" Moffatt
"ignorance" GOS

John 8:58
The New American Bible: "I solemnly declare it: before Abraham came to be, I AM."
The Living New Testament: "The absolute truth
is that I was in existence before Abraham was
ever born."
The 20th Century New Testament: "before Abraham
existed I was."
Noyes, G.R. N.T. (1878)
“Jesus said to them, ‘truly, truly do I say to you, from before Abraham
was, I have been.”’
Hanson, J.W. New Covenant (1884)
“Jesus said to them, ‘truly, truly, I say to you, I am before Abraham was
born.’”
Kraeling, E.G. Four Gospels (1962)
“With another amen-saying, Jesus declares to them that before
Abraham was, He (Jesus) is (hint of His preexistence) .”
Parker, P.G. Clarified N.T.“Jesus answered, before Abraham existed, I existed.”
Cotton Patch Version (1970)
“To this Jesus replied, ‘I existed before Abraham was born.”’
Ledyard, G.H. New Life Testament (1969)
“Jesus said to them, ‘for sure I tell you, before Abraham was born, I
was and sum and always will be.’,,
Dr. E.C. Dymond N.T. (1972)
“’Yes, indeed!; said Jesus: ‘He saw me in prospect. The fact is, that
long before Abraham was conceived in his mother’s womb, that
individual who I now am had been conceived in God’s mind: He had
completed the plan and specifications, so to speak, and therefore He
was able to give Abraham a mental preview of me’”.
Good News for the World (1969)
“Jesus answer, ‘I tell you the truth. I already was before Abraham was
born.’”
The New Testament, An American Translation
Goodspeed: "I tell you I existed before Abraham
was born."
The Complete Bible, An American Translation
Goodspeed: "I tell you I existed before Abraham
was born."
New Believers Bible, New Living Translation:
"I existed before Abraham was even born."
The New Testament, C. B. Williams: "I solemnly
say to you, I existed before Abraham was born."
The Book, New Testament: The absolute truth is
that I was in existence before Abraham was ever born."
The Living Bible: "I was in existence before Abraham
was ever born."
Lattimore: "Truly, truly I tell
you, I am from before Abraham was born."
The New Testament, From the Peshitta Text,
Lamsa: "Before Abraham was born, I was."
An American Translation, In The Language of
Today, Beck: "I was before Abraham."
New Testament Contemporary English Version:
"I tell you.that even before Abraham was, I was,
and I am."
The Unvarnished New Testament: "Before
Abraham was born, I have already been."
The New Testament, Klist & Lilly: "I am here-and
I was before Abraham."
The New Testament in the Language of the People,
Williams: "I existed before Abraham was born."
The New Testament, Noyes: "From before Abraham
was, I have been."
A Translation of the Four Gospels, Lewis: "Before
Abraham was, I have been."
Wakefield, G. N.T. (1795)
“Jesus said unto them: Verily verily I say unto you, before Abraham
was born, I am He.”
The Syriac New Testament, Murdock: "Before
Abraham existed I was."
The Curetonian Version of the Four Gospels,
Burkitt& The Old Georgian Version of the Gospel of John,
Blake & Briere "Before Abraham came to be, I was."
The New Testament Or Rather the New Covenant,
Sharpe: "I was before Abraham was born."
The 20th Century New Testament 1904: "Before
Abraham existed I was already what I am."
The New Testament, Stage: "Before Abraham
came to be, I was."
International Bible Translators 1981
“Jesus said to them, ‘I am telling the truth: I was alive before Abraham
was born!’”
The Coptic Version the New Testament in the
Southern Dialect, Horner: "Before Abraham became,
I, I am being."
The Documents of the New Testament, Wade:
"Before Abraham came into being, I have existed."
Noli, M.F.S. N.T. (1961)
“Jesus answered them: ‘Well, well, I tell you, I existed before Abraham
was born.”’
The Concise Gospel and The acts, Christianson:
"I existed even before Abraham was born."
A Translators Handbook to the Gospel of John, Nida:
"Before Abraham existed, I existed, or.I have existed."
The Simple English Bible: "I was alive before
Abraham was born."
The Original New Testament, Schonfield: "I tell you
for a positive fact, I existed before Abraham was born."
The Complete Gospels Annotated Scholars Version,
Miller: "I existed before there was an Abraham."
Swann, G. N.T. (1947)
‘!Jesus said to them, ‘verily, verily I say unto you, I existed before
Abraham was born”

Psalms 8:5
"Thou hast made him a little lower than the angels, and hast crowned him with glory and splendour." Darby, KJV
"a little lower than the gods." Bible in Basic English
"a little less than a god" New English Bible, New Jerusalem Bible, New American Bible
"a little lower than the heavenly beings" New International Version
"a little lower than God" New American Standard Bible
"you have made him inferior to yourself" Good News Bible(TEV)
"a little less than godlike ones" New World Translation
compare Hebrews 2:7,9

Isaiah 9:6
"For there has been a child born to us, there has been a son given to us; and the princely rule will come to be upon his shoulder. And his name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace." New World Translation, KJV, NIV
"Wonder-Counsellor, Divine Champion, Father Ever, Captain of Peace." Byington
"Wonderful Counsellor, The Mighty One, The Everlasting God, The Prince of Peace." Lamsa
"A wonder of a counsellor, a divine hero, a father for all time, a peaceful prince." Moffatt
"Wonderful counsellor is God almighty, Father Forever, Prince of Peace." Smith&Goodspeed
"in purpose wonderful, in battle God-like...." New English Bible
"Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty Hero, Eternal Father...."Revised English Bible

Titus 2:13
"awaiting the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ" Darby
"Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" King James Version
"of the great God and of our Savior Jesus Christ." New American Bible
"while we wait for the happy hope and glorious manifestation of the great God and of [the] Savior of us, Christ Jesus." New World Translation

2Peter 1:1
"in the righteousness of our God and Saviour Jesus Christ" Young's
"through the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" King James
"in the righteousness of our God and [the] Saviour Jesus Christ" American Standard Version, NWT
"beneficence of our God and of our Saviour Jesus Christ" Schonfield

more to come..................
For some of the above information I am indebted to the Bible Museum and Biblical Research Foundation

December 25 2000
Back to Main Bible Page
Heinz Schmitz