Concluding Thoughts
Points for translations:
| | ESV | NIV84 | NIV | HCSB | NASB | NET |
| Part 1 TOTALS | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 | 10 | 8 |
| Part 2 TOTALS | 11 | 6 | 13 | 17 | -3 | 9 |
| TOTALS | 24 | 18 | 24 | 27 | 7 | 17 |
The HCSB has the most points, with 27, and the ESV and NIV (fairly ironically) are tied with 24 points. The NIV84 (18) and NET (17) were close together in 4th and 5th place. Finally, the NASB did miserable in part 2, with a -3 score, lowering its total to 7: last place.
Looking at the negative points should help distinguish between the ESV & NIV and the NIV84 and NET.
Negative points:
| | ESV | NIV84 | NIV | HCSB | NASB | NET |
| Part 1 TOTALS | 0 | 5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 5 |
| Part 2 TOTALS | 3 | 7 | 4 | 2 | 11 | 7 |
| TOTALS | 3 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 11 | 12 |
The ESV had the least amount of negative scores with 3. The HCSB was close behind with 4. The NIV had twice as many as the HCSB with 8.
Placing these translations along a spectrum of “essentially word-for-word” to “essentially thought-for-thought,” we get this:
The NASB is the most literal/formal/word-for-word translation and it got the lowest score.
The NET, NIV, and NIV84 were right in the middle, allowing for more interpretation to be involved in the translation process (therefore allowing for more opportunities for negative scores). The ESV and HCSB are between the mediating and word-for-word translations.
The NIV’s negative 8 score would make it hard for me to use it in teaching, since I appear to disagree with their translations too often. Therefore, the HCSB and ESV are the top two translations I’d recommend from this list.
2 comments:
I really wish you would have included NKJV. I suspect it would have ranked pretty close to ESV.
(It would also be interesting to hear your perspective on LEB, WEB, and ISV.)
Peter, while the NKJV might be close in translation philosophy to the ESV, the textual basis would have cost it several points. As far as the LEB, WEB, and ISV, I was trying to analyze translations that are commonly used (with the NET being an exception). These final three are hardly known to most. I have read extensively in the ISV.
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