Numa Verse

Biblical studiesWhat does the text say?

Bible translation and versions

What is Bible translation and versions?

Bible translation is the carrying of the biblical text from Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek into another language, under stated principles, from a stated base text, by named people or bodies. Its study covers the ancient and modern versions, the theories that guide translators and who approves a translation. It asks how the text is carried, not what the original said.

  • 106Sources
  • 17Traditions
  • 16Dated entries
  • 14Minutes

Study v1.1, 23 October 2026

Bible translation and versions

At a glance

Why it matters for reading Scripture

Most people read a translation. Knowing how versions are made, from the Septuagint to modern English, explains why two Bibles read differently.

What the study found

Main modern versions translate from Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek editions, not a chain of translations; a full Bible exists in 795 of 7,393 languages (UBS, 1 January 2026).

Where traditions divide

Translators divide between formal and functional equivalence and on hard cases such as Isaiah 7:14 and gendered language; traditions divide on who authorises a version.

How the traditions compare

  • Formal equivalence and essentially literal translation

    Keeps close to the form of the source.

    The English Standard Version calls itself "essentially literal", seeking as far as possible to reproduce the precise wording of the original, and the NASB adheres to the principles of formal equivalence. Leland Ryken states the literary and theological case for this side; D. A. Carson answered that all translators must interpret sometimes.

    Sources1–4

  • Dynamic or functional equivalence

    Eugene Nida and Charles Taber defined translating as reproducing in the receptor language the closest natural equivalent of the source message, so that the receptors respond essentially as the original receptors did, through three stages: analysis, transfer and restructuring.

    The Good News Bible was made by this method. Robert L. Thomas argued that its analysis stage covers the same ground as exegesis.

    Sources5–7

  • Optimal equivalence and mediating positions

    The Christian Standard Bible joins formal and functional equivalence and places itself in "a mediating position on the continuum of Bible translations".

    The NRSV took the maxim "As literal as possible, as free as necessary", and the NIV's Committee on Bible Translation describes a balance of transparency to the original documents and comprehensibility for a broad audience. Such labels are publishers' self-descriptions, not terms of a single theory.

    Sources8–10

  • Skopos and function plus loyalty

    Moves the measure of a translation from the source text to the purpose it is meant to serve.

    Skopos theory developed mainly from Hans Vermeer, with Katharina Reiss. Christiane Nord limits the rule by loyalty, the translator's responsibility to all her or his partners, and applied it to the New Testament with Klaus Berger.

    Sources11–12

  • Relevance theory

    Entered Bible translation through Ernst-August Gutt's work of 1991, drawing on the relevance theory of Sperber and Wilson, which replaced the code model of communication with an inferential model.

    Gutt's direct translation aims to preserve the linguistic properties of the original, while indirect translation conveys only the assumptions judged relevant. Stephen Pattemore warns that turning implicatures into explicit statements creates new and unintended ones.

    Sources13–14

  • Literary approaches

    Martin Buber and Franz Rosenzweig sought to reproduce the cadence of the Hebrew, dividing the text into breath-units and attending to the roots of words.

    Ernst R. Wendland's literary functional equivalence attends to the artistic and literary dimension of Scripture, and Robert Alter argues that the Bible lives in English only by re-creating its literary virtuosity.

    Sources15–17

  • Roman Catholic Church

    Under canon 825 books of Scripture may be published only with the approval of the Apostolic See or the conference of bishops, and any approved translation may be used for private prayer and study, with a stricter authority for the liturgy.

    Liturgiam authenticam (2001) requires liturgical texts to be translated integrally and in the most exact manner, and Magnum Principium (2017) gives the episcopal conferences the task of preparing vernacular liturgical books after confirmation by the Apostolic See.

    Sources18–21

  • Interconfessional cooperation

    The Guidelines for Interconfessional Cooperation in Translating the Bible (1987), signed for the Secretariat for Promoting Christian Unity and the United Bible Societies, revise the Guiding Principles of 1968.

    New Testament teams base their work on the United Bible Societies' critical Greek text, editions with a Catholic imprimatur include the deuterocanonical texts, and it is held wrong to assume that only one legitimate type of translation is needed.

    Sources22

  • Eastern Orthodox churches

    The Constitution of Greece requires the prior sanction of the Church of Greece and the Ecumenical Patriarchate for an official translation of Scripture into any other form of language.

    In Russia the Synodal Bible, complete in 1876, was made from the Masoretic Hebrew with the Greek and Slavonic taken into account. On 10 April 2012 the Romanian Patriarchate stated that a revised edition of Dumitru Cornilescu's Bible did not have the blessing of the Holy Synod.

    Sources23–27

  • Oriental Orthodox churches and the Church of the East

    Their own pages describe an ancient version held in honor and a lectionary in use, rather than a procedure for approving modern Bibles.

    The Armenian Apostolic Church commemorates Sahak and Mesrop, who opened a school for translators after the alphabet of 404 or 405, in the Feast of the Holy Translators. The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church states that its version was made from the Septuagint, and a parish of the Assyrian Church of the East calls the Peshitta its official Bible.

    Sources28–30

  • Protestant Bible societies, committees and denominations

    Governance has run largely through voluntary societies: the British and Foreign Bible Society was founded in 1804 to distribute Scripture "without note or comment".

    Most modern English versions are governed by a standing committee attached to a publisher or foundation; for the NIV, 70 percent of the committee must agree on each change. Denominations act by resolution, as when the Southern Baptist Convention in 2002 said it could not commend the TNIV.

    Sources31–33

  • Church of England

    Governs versions through measures and liturgical rules rather than by commissioning a Bible of its own.

    The Prayer Book (Versions of the Bible) Measure 1965 permits versions authorized by the Convocations with the House of Laity, powers now exercised by the General Synod, while for Common Worship any version not prohibited by lawful authority may be used.

    Sources34–35

  • Judaism

    The rabbinic sources take more than one view.

    The Talmud tells of 72 elders producing identical Greek translations for King Ptolemy, while Tractate Soferim calls that day as ominous for Israel as the day of the golden calf, since the Torah could not be accurately translated. Modern Jewish translation in English is governed by publishers, such as the Jewish Publication Society, ArtScroll and Koren, rather than by rabbinic courts.

    Sources36–40

  • Latter-day Saints

    The First Presidency stated in August 1992 that in doctrinal matters latter-day revelation supports the King James Version in preference to other English translations.

    The Church presents selected portions of the Joseph Smith Translation, which it describes as more revelation than literal translation, and in 2009 issued a Spanish Bible based on the 1909 Reina-Valera text.

    Sources41–43

  • Jehovah's Witnesses

    The New World Bible Translation Committee, formed in the 1940s, has chosen to remain anonymous, and the complete one-volume Bible appeared in 1961.

    Its stated principles include restoring God's name to its rightful place in the Scriptures, translating literally where the target language allows, and conveying the correct sense where a literal rendering would distort or obscure the meaning.

    Sources44–45

  • Seventh-day Adventists

    The General Conference Ministerial Association's Elder's Digest reviewed Jack J. Blanco's The Clear Word in January 1995 as a paraphrase and commentary, not sufficiently reliable to teach doctrine and suitable for devotional use only.

    An Adventist outreach site states that the church does not officially have a preferred translation.

    Sources46–47

  • King James Onlyism

    Covers a range: a preference for the King James Version for its English or its tradition, a preference for the Received Text across languages, and a strong position that the KJV alone is the Word of God in English.

    The Trinitarian Bible Society uses the Received Text without calling the Authorized Version inspired, the Dean Burgon Society defends the KJV as a true, faithful and accurate translation, and Peter Ruckman held that the English can correct the Greek.

    Sources48–51

How the field developed

  1. Second Temple
    Mid 3rd century BCE

    The Pentateuch is probably first translated into Greek as a unit by a company of scholars in Alexandria. The founding account, the Letter of Aristeas, is judged by Britannica full of inaccuracies and the work of an Alexandrian Jew writing long after the events.52

  2. Early church
    230 to 240

    Origen's Hexapla, made at Caesarea, sets the Hebrew, the Hebrew in Greek letters, Aquila, Symmachus, the Septuagint and Theodotion in parallel columns, the first surviving attempt to lay a literal, a free and a middle rendering side by side.53

  3. Late antiquity
    382 to c. 405

    Pope Damasus commissions Jerome, who first revises the Old Latin Gospels and completes his Old Testament from the Hebrew about 405. In Letter 57 (395) he renders sense for sense and not word for word, except in Scripture, where even the order of the words is a mystery.545556

  4. Late antiquity
    404 or 405

    After the Armenian alphabet is created, Sahak and Mesrop open a school for translators at Vagharshapat (Etchmiadzin) and begin translating the Bible into Armenian; until then it was available only in Greek and Syriac.28

  5. Medieval
    1382

    The whole Wycliffite Bible is completed, most of the Old Testament credited to Nicholas Hereford. The Constitutions of Oxford, dated 14 January 1408, forbid unauthorized translation of Scripture into English.5758

  6. Reformation
    1522 and 1534

    Luther's September Testament appears, followed in 1534 by the first complete edition of the Old and New Testaments. He translated from the Hebrew and Greek, using Erasmus's Greek edition rather than the Vulgate.596061

  7. Reformation
    1526

    Tyndale's New Testament, translated from the Greek, is printed at Worms, the first New Testament printed in English; on reaching England it is immediately banned.6263

  8. Reformation
    1546

    On 8 April the Council of Trent decrees that "the said old and vulgate edition" be held as authentic in public lectures, disputations, sermons and expositions. Pius XII later reads this authenticity as juridical rather than critical.6465

  9. Reformation
    1611

    The King James Version is published. Its preface, The Translators to the Reader, describes the aim as making a good translation better, and holds that "Translation it is that openeth the window, to let in the light".6667

  10. Reformation
    1637

    The Statenvertaling, whose title page ties it to the States-General and the Synod of Dordrecht of 1618 and 1619, is published at Leiden. The Netherlands Bible Society calls it the first Dutch Bible translated directly from the original texts.6869

  11. Modern
    1804

    The British and Foreign Bible Society is founded to distribute Scripture "without note or comment", a rule originally aimed at denominational partisanship.31

  12. Modern
    1881 and 1885

    The Revised Version, a British and American revision of the 1611 text, publishes its New Testament in 1881 and its Old Testament in 1885.70

  13. Modern
    1933

    The first Afrikaans Bible is taken into use across South Africa on Sunday 27 August.71

  14. Modern
    1952

    The complete Revised Standard Version is published on 30 September. Its rendering "young woman" at Isaiah 7:14 becomes the lightning rod of the controversy that follows, and newspapers dated 2 and 3 December report that a Baptist minister in North Carolina burned a copy.727374

  15. Modern
    1964 and 1969

    Eugene Nida, who developed dynamic or functional equivalence, publishes Toward a Science of Translating, followed in 1969 by The Theory and Practice of Translation with Charles R. Taber.755

  16. Modern
    2026

    On the United Bible Societies' count as of 1 January, a full Bible exists in 795 of 7,393 languages, and 3,272 languages have no Scripture.76

How to study Bible translation and versions

The questions it asks

  • Who made a translation, from what base text, under whose authority, by what stated method, and how was it received?
  • Should a translation keep close to the form of the source, or aim at an equivalent effect on its readers?
  • Who commissions a translation, who approves it, and does approval differ for private reading and for worship?
  • What rules govern notes, canon and the divine name?
  • Does a version descend through a chain of intermediate translations, and, as a separate question, is each passage accurately rendered?
  • How are poetry, idiom and wordplay carried, and where the text cannot carry them, what does the margin do?22

Its method

Start

  1. Identify the base text, the edition of the Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek from which the translation is made; the ESV, for example, names Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia and the United Bible Societies' and Nestle-Aland Greek editions1.

  2. Read the version's own preface, committee pages and publisher for its stated principles, treating labels such as "essentially literal" or "optimal equivalence" as self-descriptions rather than terms of a single theory18.

  3. Establish who made and approved it: the committee and its charter, or the church body whose approval it carries3218.

  4. Ask whether it was made from the original languages, from another translation, as the Douay-Rheims was from the Vulgate, or by revising an English predecessor, as the ESV took the 1971 RSV as its starting point771.

  5. In making a translation, follow the checking sequence the agencies describe: successive drafts, a community check for clarity and naturalness, a back translation and a consultant check against the Hebrew and Greek7879.

  6. Compare renderings passage by passage, since a stated source base does not by itself establish that every passage is accurately rendered.

  7. Refer questions of original wording to textual criticism and of word meaning to the biblical languages, and record how translators rendered a word and the reasons they gave.

What to read

Its primary witnesses

  • The Septuagint and the later Greek versions of Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion, three distinct styles of translation5280.
  • The Aramaic Targums, which Britannica describes as moving from close rendering toward paraphrase for the sake of intelligibility81.
  • The Syriac versions: the Diatessaron, the Old Syriac Gospels, the Peshitta, the Philoxenian and Harclean New Testaments and the Syro-Hexapla82.
  • The Latin Bible: the Old Latin, Jerome's Vulgate and the Nova Vulgata of 1979835484.
  • The versions of the Coptic, Ethiopian, Armenian, Georgian, Gothic, Slavonic and Arabic-speaking churches85.
  • Translators' own statements of method: Jerome's Letter 57, Luther's An Open Letter on Translating (1530) and The Translators to the Reader of 1611568667.
  • The prefaces, committee pages and publishers' statements of the modern versions198.
  • Church documents on translation, among them Dei Verbum (1965), Liturgiam authenticam (2001) and Magnum Principium (2017)872021.
  • The dated counts of the United Bible Societies and the Wycliffe Global Alliance7688.

Standard reference works

  • Eugene A. Nida's Toward a Science of Translating (1964) and Nida and Charles R. Taber's The Theory and Practice of Translation (1969)755.
  • Jan de Waard and Eugene A. Nida's From One Language to Another: Functional Equivalence in Bible Translating (Thomas Nelson, 1986)89.
  • Katharina Reiss and Hans Vermeer's Grundlegung einer allgemeinen Translationstheorie (1984)90.
  • Johannes P. Louw and Eugene A. Nida's Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domains (United Bible Societies, 1988)91.
  • Lamin Sanneh's Translating the Message: The Missionary Impact on Culture (Orbis Books, 1989)92.
  • Leland Ryken's The Word of God in English (Crossway, 2002) and Robert Alter's The Art of Bible Translation (Princeton University Press, 2019)317.
  • Gordon D. Fee and Mark L. Strauss's How to Choose a Translation for All Its Worth (Zondervan, 2007)93.
  • Ernst R. Wendland's LiFE-Style Translating (second edition, SIL International, 2011)16.
  • Sebastian P. Brock's The Bible in the Syriac Tradition (third edition, Gorgias Press, 2021)82.
  • The Bible Translator, published by SAGE with copyright held by the United Bible Societies, which says it has been published continuously since 195094.

Scholarship referenced in this study

The works below shaped the field and are cited in this study, from the earliest to the most recent. Hover over a book, or select it, to see its author and the sources behind it.

  • 395Letter 57JeromeLetter 57 (395)Jerome (about 347 to 419 or 420)Sources5695
  • 1530An Open Letter on TranslatingMartin LutherAn Open Letter on Translating (1530)Martin LutherSources86
  • 1813On the Different Methods of TranslationFriedrich SchleiermacherOn the Different Methods of Translation (1813)Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768 to 1834)Sources96
  • 1953 to 1962Verdeutschung der SchriftMartin BuberVerdeutschung der Schrift (1953 to 1962)Martin Buber (1965), with Franz RosenzweigSources1597
  • 1964Toward a Science of TranslatingEugene A. NidaToward a Science of Translating (1964)Eugene A. Nida (11 November 1914 to 25 August 2011)Sources75
  • 1969The Theory and Practice of TranslationEugene A. NidaThe Theory and Practice of Translation (1969)Eugene A. Nida (11 November 1914 to 25 August 2011), with Charles R. TaberSources575
  • 1984Grundlegung einer allgemeinen TranslationstheorieKatharina ReissGrundlegung einer allgemeinen Translationstheorie (1984)Katharina Reiss (17 April 1923 to 16 April 2018), with Hans VermeerSources90
  • 1989Translating the Message: The Missionary Impact on CultureLamin SannehTranslating the Message: The Missionary Impact on Culture (1989)Lamin Sanneh (1942 to 6 January 2019)Sources92
  • 2002The Word of God in EnglishLeland RykenThe Word of God in English (2002)Leland RykenSources3
  • 2007A New English Translation of the SeptuagintAlbert PietersmaA New English Translation of the Septuagint (2007)Albert Pietersma, with Benjamin G. WrightSources98
  • 2007How to Choose a Translation for All Its WorthGordon D. FeeHow to Choose a Translation for All Its Worth (2007)Gordon D. Fee (25 October 2022), with Mark L. StraussSources93
  • 2019The Art of Bible TranslationRobert AlterThe Art of Bible Translation (2019)Robert AlterSources17

Listed because this study draws on their published work; no association with or endorsement of Numa Verse is implied. Suggest a correction.

Key terms

The words that carry the most weight in this field, each defined from the sources of this study. Turn a card over to read its definition.

Used for the ancient translations, such as the Septuagint, the Peshitta and the Vulgate, and for a named modern translation as its publisher titles it.

The edition of the Hebrew, Aramaic or Greek from which a translation is made.

Translation that keeps close to the form of the source; T. J. Houston groups the NASB, NRSV and ESV under it11.

Translation that aims at an equivalent effect on its readers, defined by Nida and Taber as a quality in which the receptors respond essentially as the original receptors did5.

The CSB's term for joining formal equivalence, the importance of the form of the original, with functional equivalence, the importance of conveying the original message and intent8.

The intended function or purpose of a translation, which on skopos theory determines its methods and strategies rather than the source text9911.

An intermediate text in a widely known language used to help translators into a minority language, such as Bible Society Australia's English Front Translation78.

A rendering of a draft back into a language of wider communication, as literally as possible, so that a consultant can test it against the Hebrew and Greek7879.

Any of several translations of the Hebrew Bible or portions of it into Aramaic, made to meet the needs of unlearned Jews81.

Translation made jointly by Catholic, Protestant and, in some cases, Orthodox scholars under agreed rules22.

Where it sits

Builds on

Bible translation and versions

Questions people ask

The main modern versions do not descend through a chain of translations: their prefaces state that they translate from published Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek editions, and some also revise an English predecessor in the open1100. Some versions do rest on another translation, as the Douay-Rheims rests on the Vulgate and The Living Bible paraphrases the American Standard Version of 190177101. A mediated source establishes distance from the original, not corruption, and accuracy remains a question for each passage.

The positions grouped under that claim form a range, from a preference for the KJV or its Received Text to the claim that it alone is the Word of God in English48. The 1611 translators did not claim exclusive or inspired status: their preface holds that "variety of Translations is profitable for the finding out of the sense of the Scriptures", and the first edition printed alternative renderings in the margin6748. Most editions printed today descend from Benjamin Blayney's revision of 176948.

Individual renderings have carried a translator's theology, and the clearest cases are those where translators said so, as Luther did in defending allein at Romans 3:28102. The differences most often cited as removed doctrine, such as the "missing verses" and the Comma Johanneum, are differences of base text decided before translation103. Committee versions publish their texts and principles, and criticism of them comes from across the spectrum, from the Southern Baptist Convention on the 2011 NIV to Bart Ehrman on the NRSV104105.

On the United Bible Societies' count as of 1 January 2026, a full Bible exists in 795 of 7,393 languages, a New Testament in a further 1,815 and portions only in 1,511, while 3,272 have no Scripture76. The Wycliffe Global Alliance, on a snapshot of 1 August 2025, records translation in progress in 4,457 languages and 544 still waiting for work to begin88106.

Contribute to Bible translation and versions

Register to contribute

  1. 1Preface to the English Standard Version (Crossway, esv.org)https://www.esv.org/preface/ (opens in a new tab)
  2. 2New American Standard Bible (NASB) (Bible Gateway)https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-American-Standard-Bible-NASB/ (opens in a new tab)
  3. 3The Word of God in English (Crossway)https://www.crossway.org/books/the-word-of-god-in-english-tpb/ (opens in a new tab)
  4. 4Book review of The Limits of Functional Equivalence, by Tim White (blog, 4 August 2020)https://www.drtimwhite.net/blog/2020/8/4/book-review-of-the-limits-of-functional-equivalence-in-bible-translation-and-other-limits-tood-a-carson-in-2003 (opens in a new tab)
  5. 5What Did God Say? A Critical Analysis of Dynamic Equivalence Theory, by Katelyn R. Fisher (Cedarville University)https://cedarville.tind.io/record/23653/files/A_Critical_Analysis_of_Dynamic_Equivalence_Theory.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  6. 6Eugene Nida obituary (Christianity Today, 2011)https://christianitytoday.com/ct/2011/augustweb-only/eugenenida-obit.html (opens in a new tab)
  7. 7Dynamic Equivalence: A Method of Translation or a System of Hermeneutics?, by Robert L. Thomas (The Master's Seminary Journal)https://tms.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/tmsj1g.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  8. 8Translation Philosophy (CSB, csbible.com)https://csbible.com/about-the-csb/translation-philosophy/ (opens in a new tab)
  9. 9Preface to the New Revised Standard Version (Bible Research)https://www.bible-researcher.com/nrsvpreface.html (opens in a new tab)
  10. 10CBT response to CBMW review (Bible Research, PDF)https://mail.bible-researcher.com/cbt-response-to-cbmw-review.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  11. 11Towards redeeming 'loyalty' in functionalist Bible translation using the Hebrew ḥesed concept, by T.J. Houston (HTS 79/2, 2023)https://hts.org.za/index.php/hts/article/view/7983/24131 (opens in a new tab)
  12. 12Function plus Loyalty: Ethics in Professional Translation, by Christiane Nord (Génesis 6, 2007, pp. 7-17; UFS PDF)https://www.ufs.ac.za/docs/librariesprovider20/linguistics-and-language-practice-documents/all-documents/nord-2007functionloyalty-937-eng.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  13. 13Bible Translation and Relevance Theory: The Translation of Titus, by Kevin Gary Smith (DLitt, University of Stellenbosch, 2000; SATS)https://www.sats.edu.za/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/BibleTranslationandRelevanceTheory.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  14. 14Pattemore (Korean Bible Society PDF)https://www.bskorea.or.kr/data/pdf/ (opens in a new tab)
  15. 15Franz Rosenzweig, by Benjamin Pollock (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/rosenzweig/ (opens in a new tab)
  16. 16LiFE-Style Translating (Blackwell's)https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/Life-Style-Translating-A-Workbook-for-Bible-Translators-Second-Edition-by-Wendland-ErnstR/9781556712432 (opens in a new tab)
  17. 17The Art of Bible Translation (Princeton University Press)https://press.princeton.edu/node/56313 (opens in a new tab)
  18. 18Code of Canon Law, Book III, cann. 822-833 (vatican.va)https://www.vatican.va/archive/cod-iuris-canonici/eng/documents/cic_lib3-cann822-833_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  19. 19Approved Translations of the Bible (USCCB)https://www.usccb.org/offices/new-american-bible/approved-translations-bible (opens in a new tab)
  20. 20Liturgiam authenticam (vatican.va)https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/congregations/ccdds/documents/rc_con_ccdds_doc_20010507_liturgiam-authenticam_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  21. 21Apostolic Letter Magnum Principium (vatican.va)https://www.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/motu_proprio/documents/papa-francesco-motu-proprio_20170903_magnumprincipium.html (opens in a new tab)
  22. 22Guidelines for Interconfessional Cooperation (Dicastery for Promoting Christian Unity)https://www.christianunity.va/content/unitacristiani/it/dicastero/collaborazione-per-la-diffusione-della-bibbia/en.html (opens in a new tab)
  23. 23The Constitution of Greece (Hellenic Parliament)https://www.hellenicparliament.gr/UserFiles/f3c70a23-7696-49db-9148-f24dce6a27c8/001-156%20aggliko.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  24. 24The Constitution of Greece (General Secretariat for Religious Affairs, Hellenic Ministry of Education)https://religiousaffairs.minedu.gov.gr/en/general-secretariat-for-religious-affairs/regulatory-framework/the-constitution-of-greece (opens in a new tab)
  25. 25Переводы Библии на русский язык, Библиологический словарь, прот. Александр Мень (Азбука веры)https://www.azbyka.ru/otechnik/Spravochniki/bibliologicheskij-slovar-tom-2/483 (opens in a new tab)
  26. 26Biblia difuzată împreună cu ziarul Adevărul nu este ortodoxă (Basilica.ro, Romanian Patriarchate)https://arhiva.basilica.ro/biblia-difuzata-impreuna-cu-ziarul-adevarul-nu-este-ortodoxa-si-ca-atare-nu-are-binecuvantarea-sfantuluisinod/ (opens in a new tab)
  27. 27Patriarhia: Biblia difuzată împreună cu Adevărul nu este ortodoxă (România TV, 10 April 2012)https://www.romaniatv.net/?p=24135 (opens in a new tab)
  28. 28Feast of the Holy Translators St. Sahak and St. Mesrop (Armenian Apostolic Church, Diocese in Georgia)https://armenianchurch.ge/en/kalendar-prazdnikov/description-2/july/feast-of-the-holy-translators-st-sahak-and-st-mesrop (opens in a new tab)
  29. 29The Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, canonical books (ethiopianorthodox.org)http://www.ethiopianorthodox.org/english/canonical/books.html (opens in a new tab)
  30. 30Peshitta New Testament Bible (MarYosipParish.org)https://maryosipparish.org/documents/assyrian/peshitta/about.html (opens in a new tab)
  31. 31Are Annotated Bibles Desirable?, C. E. B. Cranfield, The Churchman (about 1968) (biblicalstudies.org.uk)https://gospelstudies.org.uk/biblicalstudies/pdf/churchman/082-04_290.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  32. 32About the NIV (thenivbible.com)https://www.thenivbible.com/about-the-niv/ (opens in a new tab)
  33. 33Southern Baptist Convention Rejects the TNIV (bible-researcher.com, Michael Marlowe)https://bible-researcher.com/tniv4.html (opens in a new tab)
  34. 34Prayer Book (Versions of the Bible) Measure 1965 (legislation.gov.uk)https://legislation.gov.uk/ukcm/1965/4/contents/data.html (opens in a new tab)
  35. 35Common Worship lectionary, printable page (Church of England)https://www.churchofengland.org/node/9713/printable/print (opens in a new tab)
  36. 36Megillah 9a (Sefaria, William Davidson translation)https://www.sefaria.org/api/v3/texts/Megillah.9a?version=english (opens in a new tab)
  37. 37Tractate Soferim 1:7 (Sefaria)https://www.sefaria.org/api/v3/texts/Tractate_Soferim.1.7?version=english (opens in a new tab)
  38. 38The JPS Story (JPS)https://jps.org/the-jps-story/ (opens in a new tab)
  39. 39Stone Edition Tanach category (ArtScroll Mesorah)https://www.artscroll.com/Categories/BTS.html (opens in a new tab)
  40. 40Tanakh collection (Koren Publishers Jerusalem)https://korenpub.com/collections/tanakh (opens in a new tab)
  41. 41First Presidency Statement on the King James Version of the Bible (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/ensign/1992/08/news-of-the-church/first-presidency-statement-on-the-king-james-version-ofthe-bible?lang=eng (opens in a new tab)
  42. 42Selections from the Joseph Smith Translation of the Bible, Introduction (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/study/scriptures/jst/introduction?lang=eng (opens in a new tab)
  43. 43Church Edition of Spanish Bible Now Published (Newsroom, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints)https://newsroom.churchofjesuschrist.org/article/church-edition-of-spanish-bible-now-published (opens in a new tab)
  44. 44New World Bible Translation Committee (Watchtower Online Library)https://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1001077414 (opens in a new tab)
  45. 45Principles of Bible Translation, New World Translation (2013 Revision) Appendix A1 (jw.org)https://www.jw.org/en/library/bible/nwt/appendix-a/bible-translation/ (opens in a new tab)
  46. 46The Clear Word: a paraphrase to nurture faith and growth (Elder's Digest, General Conference Ministerial Association)https://www.eldersdigest.org/en/1995/1/the-clear-word-a-paraphrase-to-nurture-faith-and-growth (opens in a new tab)
  47. 47Do Adventists have their own Bible? (AskAnAdventistFriend)https://www.askanadventistfriend.com/adventist-culture/do-adventists-have-their-own-bible/ (opens in a new tab)
  48. 48The Preface to the King James Version and the King James-Only Position (William W. Combs, Detroit Baptist Seminary Journal 1, 1996)https://dbts.edu/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/The-Preface-to-the-KJV-and-the-KVO-Only-Position-Combs.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  49. 49The Received Text (Trinitarian Bible Society)https://www.tbsbibles.org/page/ReceivedText (opens in a new tab)
  50. 50About the Dean Burgon Society (SermonAudio)https://www.sermonaudio.com/solo/deanburgonsociety/about/ (opens in a new tab)
  51. 51The Danger of Ruckmanism (Calvin George, Literatura Bautista)https://en.literaturabautista.com/danger-ruckmanism (opens in a new tab)
  52. 52Biblical literature: Early versions (Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/Early-versions (opens in a new tab)
  53. 53Biblical literature: Origen's Hexapla (Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature/Origens-Hexapla (opens in a new tab)
  54. 54Vulgate (Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/Vulgate (opens in a new tab)
  55. 55Jerome, Preface to the Four Gospels, NPNF2-06 (Christian Classics Ethereal Library)https://www.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf206.vii.ii.viii.html (opens in a new tab)
  56. 56Letter 57 (New Advent, Church Fathers)https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3001057.htm (opens in a new tab)
  57. 57English Versions (International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, internationalstandardbible.com)https://www.internationalstandardbible.com/E/english-versions.html (opens in a new tab)
  58. 58The Constitutions of Thomas Arundel (bible-researcher.com, Michael Marlowe)https://bible-researcher.com/arundel.html (opens in a new tab)
  59. 59Die Geschichte der Lutherbibel (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft)https://www.die-bibel.de/die-geschichte-der-lutherbibel (opens in a new tab)
  60. 60The Luther Bible (Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft)https://www.die-bibel.de/en/the-luther-bible (opens in a new tab)
  61. 61Bibeloversettelser (Store norske leksikon)https://snl.no/bibeloversettelser (opens in a new tab)
  62. 62William Tyndale 1494/95 to 1534 (Gruber Collection, Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago)https://gruber.lstc.edu/english_bibles/tyndale.php (opens in a new tab)
  63. 63William Tyndale (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/biography/William-Tyndale (opens in a new tab)
  64. 64Council of Trent, Fourth Session (Papal Encyclicals Online)https://www.papalencyclicals.net/councils/trent/fourth-session.htm (opens in a new tab)
  65. 65Divino afflante Spiritu (vatican.va)https://www.vatican.va/content/pius-xii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_p-xii_enc_30091943_divino-afflante-spiritu.html (opens in a new tab)
  66. 66King James Version (Encyclopaedia Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/King-James-Version (opens in a new tab)
  67. 67The Translators to the Reader (bible-researcher.com)https://www.bible-researcher.com/kjvpref.html (opens in a new tab)
  68. 68Statenvertaling (statenvertaling.net)https://www.statenvertaling.net/ (opens in a new tab)
  69. 69Statenvertaling 1637 (Bijbels Digitaal, Nederlands Bijbelgenootschap)https://www.bijbelsdigitaal.nl/statenvertaling-1637/ (opens in a new tab)
  70. 70American Standard Version (ASV) (Bible Gateway)https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/American-Standard-Version-ASV-Bible/ (opens in a new tab)
  71. 71Preek Bybelsondag 2023 (Bybelgenootskap van Suid-Afrika)https://web.biblesociety.co.za/images/stories/resources/Bible_Sunday_23/Preek_Bybelsondag_2023.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  72. 72Revised Standard Version (RSV) (Bible Gateway)https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Revised-Standard-Version-RSV-Bible/ (opens in a new tab)
  73. 73Religion News Service report on "Bible Under Fire: The Story of the RSV Translations" (RNS, about 1999)https://religionnews.com/?p=38272 (opens in a new tab)
  74. 74Daily Tar Heel, 3 December 1952, p. 2 (DigitalNC)https://newspapers.digitalnc.org/lccn/sn92073228/1952-12-03/ed-1/seq-2/ (opens in a new tab)
  75. 75Nida obituary submitted to Language (D. Terence Langendoen, University of Arizona)https://dingo.sbs.arizona.edu/~langendoen/NidaObituarySubmittedToLANGUAGE.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  76. 76EN Translation Statistics Report 2025 (United Bible Societies, hosted by die-bibel.ch)https://www.die-bibel.ch/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/EN-Translation-Statistics-Report-2025.pdf (opens in a new tab)
  77. 77Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition (DRA) (Bible Gateway)https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/Douay-Rheims-1899-American-Edition-DRA-Bible/ (opens in a new tab)
  78. 78Bible Translation Explained (Bible Society Australia, 18 March 2021)https://www.biblesociety.org.au/?p=39832 (opens in a new tab)
  79. 79How Can We Know New Bible Translations Are Accurate? (Seed Company)https://seedcompany.com/stories/how-can-we-know-new-bible-translations-are-accurate/ (opens in a new tab)
  80. 80Aquila (Jewish Encyclopedia)https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/1674-aquila (opens in a new tab)
  81. 81Targum (Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/Targum (opens in a new tab)
  82. 82The Bible in the Syriac Tradition, Third Edition (Gorgias Press)https://www.gorgiaspress.com/the-bible-in-the-syriac-tradition-third-edition (opens in a new tab)
  83. 83The Earliest Latin Translations of the Bible, Oxford Handbook of the Latin Bible (University of Birmingham research portal)https://research.birmingham.ac.uk/en/publications/the-earliest-latin-translations-of-the-bible (opens in a new tab)
  84. 84Scripturarum thesaurus (vatican.va)https://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/la/apost_constitutions/documents/hf_jp-ii_apc_19790425_scripturarum-thesaurus.html (opens in a new tab)
  85. 85Biblical literature, Definition, Types, Significance, Survey, & Development (Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/topic/biblical-literature (opens in a new tab)
  86. 86An Open Letter on Translating (Project Wittenberg)https://www.projectwittenberg.org/pub/resources/text/wittenberg/luther/luther-translate.txt (opens in a new tab)
  87. 87Dogmatic Constitution on Divine Revelation, Dei Verbum (vatican.va)https://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_const_19651118_dei-verbum_en.html (opens in a new tab)
  88. 882025 Global Scripture Access (Wycliffe Global Alliance)https://wycliffe.net/global-scripture-access (opens in a new tab)
  89. 89ISBD record 16309 (Africa International University Library catalogue)https://library.aiu.ac.ke/cgi-bin/koha/opac-ISBDdetail.pl?biblionumber=16309 (opens in a new tab)
  90. 90The End of an Era? Does Skopos Theory Spell the End of the "Free vs. Literal" Paradigm?, by Jonathan Downie (Pneuma Review, 2026)https://pneumareview.com/the-end-of-an-era-does-skopos-theory-spell-the-end-of-the-free-vs-literal-paradigm-by-jonathan-downie/ (opens in a new tab)
  91. 91Greek-English lexicon of the New Testament: based on semantic domains (Evangelical Theological Faculty Library catalogue)https://library.etf.edu/bib/7860 (opens in a new tab)
  92. 92In Memoriam: Lamin Sanneh, 1942-2019 (Journal of Blacks in Higher Education)https://jbhe.com/2019/01/in-memoriam-lamin-sanneh-1942-2019 (opens in a new tab)
  93. 93How to Choose a Translation for All Its Worth (Zondervan Academic)https://zondervanacademic.com/products/how-to-choose-a-translation-for-all-its-worth (opens in a new tab)
  94. 94The Bible Translator (SAGE Journals)https://journals.sagepub.com/home/tbt (opens in a new tab)
  95. 95Saint Jerome (Britannica)https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Jerome (opens in a new tab)
  96. 96Friedrich Daniel Ernst Schleiermacher, by Michael Forster (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/schleiermacher/ (opens in a new tab)
  97. 97Martin Buber, by Zachary Braiterman (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)https://plato.stanford.edu/entries/buber/ (opens in a new tab)
  98. 98NETS home page (University of Pennsylvania CCAT)https://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/nets/ (opens in a new tab)
  99. 99Die 1983 Afrikaanse Bybelvertaling in die lig van huidige tendense en behoeftes, by A.H. Snyman (Acta Theologica 2003:1)https://journals.ufs.ac.za/index.php/at/article/download/1616/1592/3118 (opens in a new tab)
  100. 100NRSVue (Bible Gateway)https://www.biblegateway.com/versions/New-Revised-Standard-Version-Updated-Edition-NRSVue-Bible/ (opens in a new tab)
  101. 101The Living Bible (1971) (Bible Researcher)https://bible-researcher.com/lbp.html (opens in a new tab)
  102. 102On Translating: An Open Letter (bible-researcher.com, Michael D. Marlowe)https://www.bible-researcher.com/luther01.html (opens in a new tab)
  103. 103Why are the newer translations of the Bible missing verses? (GotQuestions.org)https://www.gotquestions.org/missing-verses.html (opens in a new tab)
  104. 104Southern Baptists Reject Updated NIV Bible (The Christian Post)https://assets.christianpost.com/news/southern-baptists-pass-resolution-rejecting-2011-niv-at-annual-convention.html (opens in a new tab)
  105. 105How to Botch a Bible Translation (because of inclusive language) (Ehrman, Goodreads author blog mirror, 3 January 2024)https://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/24386283-how-to-botch-a-bible-translation-because-of-inclusive-language (opens in a new tab)
  106. 106Scripture and Language Statistics (Wycliffe Global Alliance)https://www.wycliffe.net/resources/statistics/ (opens in a new tab)

Page record

Reviewed and approved by Duane Herholdt, BA (Theology), Chief Executive Officer, Numa Verse

Study version: v1.1, 23 October 2026 (theology map v1.27)

Last reviewed: 7 November 2026

How these pages are made

  • 7 November 2026: First draft from the approved assessment v1.1.