A Translation Plantation, Part One

The title of this entry, in case you were wondering, is adapted from Disney's "101 Dalmatians." Dalmatian Plantation" was the name of the song that Roger wrote in celebration of the new canine additions to his family.  There were so many (101, to be exact; try to look surprised) that Roger and family felt it necessary to move out of their cramped city dwelling and into a large country domicile complete with lots of land for their dalmatians to run and play.

There, I said it.  And now, it's out of the way.

We may need something similar to accommodate the vast number of English translations of the Bible available to us today.

There may not quite be 101 (or are there?), but regardless of the number, it's difficult to argue against the fact that we are guilty of Bible gluttony.  We have the luxury of choosing a translation based upon philosophy of translation (Formal equivalence?  Check.  Dynamic equivalence?  Check.  "Optimal" equivalence?  Immodest, perhaps, but Check.)  We can also choose whether we want a study Bible, a student Bible, or a student Study Bible.  We can choose whether we want a compact, personal size, slimline, Large print, Giant print, and even a square Bible (if they're still in print).  We have One-Year Bibles, devotional Bibles, metal Bibles, pink Bibles, blue Bibles, green (and Green) Bibles, and the list goes on and on.

It's a veritable Bible buffet!  And while that sounds wonderful (all the Bread you can eat!), buffets are not without their shortcomings:

They're usually expensive. (Try this one out on Amazon.  Go on--add one of each available Bible translation to your shopping cart, and see what number comes up.)

It's hard to focus on just one selection. (With so many choices, where does one even begin?)

I leave full, but rarely satisfied. (Unable to focus on one selection, my plate often looks like a sampler platter.  The tastes all run together, and I find that while I've eaten a substantial amount, I haven't really savored anything).

The same applies to Bible translations, at least for me.  I find myself faced with such a sumptuous spread of Scripture that I find it difficult to choose a main course.  As a result, I flit from translation to translation, sampling the merchandise, but never savoring the flavor.

I'm ready to move away from the buffet line, and toward a gourmet meal.

To that end, I shall embark upon a journey to find a primary Bible translation to which I will commit for the long haul.  That is, I will attempt to find a translation that I use for devotional reading, study, and the vast majority of the teaching and preaching I do.  That's not to say that I won't do my due diligence and check a number of translations in my sermon/Bible study preparation (and even in my personal study); it is, however, a commitment to choose a translation to which I always return after such brief detours.

I plan to use four criteria through which to evaluate translations:

1) Accuracy (not necessarily "literal, word-for-word" accuracy; I'm not convinced that "literal" and "accurate" are synonymous).

2) My personal theological convictions (it seems hypocritical to preach/teach from a translation that routinely varies from my theological perspective).

3) Readability, both personal and public (sorry, KJV; I gotta move on).

4) Availability/Publisher Support (thanks, Rick Mansfield, for pointing out the importance of this one.  And thanks, too, for the idea of doing this to begin with.  Readers, check out his excellent blog (and top ten list, complete with reviews) here.

For your benefit (ok, maybe not.  But at least for my benefit), I will chronicle my journey on this blog.  Feel free to follow along.  And pray for me.  It promises to be a long journey.