[B-Greek] NWT: Is it an accurate translation of the Greek?

Iver Larsen iver at larsen.dk
Fri Feb 24 04:03:14 EST 2006


> In The New World Translation, John 1:1 is rendered as follows:

>  Joh 1:1  In  [the]  beginning the Word was,  and the Word was with God,  and the Word was a god.
...
>  I would like to hear the opinions of the forum as to the accuracy of this rendering.
> Thanks
> Gene Gardner

Well, neither "the Word was God" or "the Word was a god" are accurate translations into modern English for the average 
reader.
However, "accuracy" is a huge and complex topic, and it involves much more than Greek and English grammar. It is 
primarily a question of successful communication. Does a particular rendering communicate as faithfully as possible the 
intended meaning of the original text in its context to a new audience in a new context with different suppositions and 
using a different language?

To get a reasonable rendering of the intended qualitative and descriptive rather than the identificational sense of 
QEOS, I would suggest:
"the Word was with God and was like (or equal to) God", but I am not expecting consensus. The NET rendering (the Word 
was fully God) is also possible, and they have an excellent, brief comment on exegetical and translation options. Of 
course, a key question is what the intended audience understand by the words "God" and "god" in English.

Iver Larsen
SIL Translation Consultant 




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