Alison Anderson wrote (reflecting some other comments as well):
> I'm far from an expert on versions of the Bible, but I can add a few points.
Since this is one of my areas of specialization, let me try to nip a few
things in the bud!
> First, the versions available on disk or other electronic form "for
> church use" are almost invariably those that are in the public domain.
> Economically that makes sense, of course, but it's sad, and I can't
> imagine there wouldn't be a market for more recent versions.
For many years, with permission of the copyright holders, the Center for
Computer analysis of Texts has made available various ancient and modern
Bible texts (Hebrew, Greek, Latin, English) for private scholarly use;
with the advent of InterNet access, some problems have arisen (making
things "public" without permission or requirement of individual "user
agreements," for example), and things are somewhat more difficult now,
although not usually impossible.
> Second, the RSV was actually a new version from the Greek;
This is false, except for those books ("deutero-canonical" or
"apocryphal") for which there is no Hebrew or Aramaic text. The RSV and
the NRSV are, as someone correctly pointed out, continuations of the
approach of the AV/KJV and the RV/ASV (1881/1901), and are based on the
Hebrew/Aramic scriptures with the "Apocrypha" (including some Eastern
Orthodox choices) added in certain editions (as was already true for the
AV/KJV!).
Unfortunately, there is no recent translation of LXX/OG ("the Septuagint")
into English, although a project is underway to produce such a work in the
next few years (sponsored by the International Organization for Septuagint
and Cognate Studies = IOSCS). Reprints of the old Brenton translation can
still be purchased (Hendrickson publisher), which includes a Greek text as
well (equally outdated).
> see the long
> list of scholars in the introductory material to, e.g., various Oxford
> editions. The editions called "ecumenical study bibles" usually include
> the deuterocanonical books. The NRSV uses inclusinve language in many
> places where the text doesn't rule it out, and identifies as women figures
> in Acts for whom the RSV and others had masculinized names (and which the
> King James version had not changed).
>
> Alison Anderson
> [log in to unmask]
Enough for now. Lots more could be said if time and space permitted.
Bob
--
Robert A. Kraft, Religious Studies, University of Pennsylvania
[log in to unmask]
http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/rs/rak/kraft.html
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