News and Happenings

Sentence Structure (part 2) Before moving on to other topics, I thought I’d take another look at the issue of sentence structure–and even paragraph structure. One would think that all translations would use more or less the same paragraph structure as is found in the original texts. The problem is that the original texts do […]

I’m beginning here an occasional series of posts in which I’ll explore some of the differences between the NLT and other translations. Specifically, I’ll look at underlying differences between dynamic equivalence (DE) translations and formal equivalence (FE) translations, which are also called “word-for-word” or “essentially literal” translations. In these posts I’ll typically use the KJV, […]

The NT writers frequently quote from the OT. When we begin to study NT quotations of the OT, we are instantly drawn into the complex issue of how the Hebrew text is translated–first into Greek and then into English. Let’s look at James 4:6b as an example. The NLT translates this passage as follows: As […]

Mark D. Taylor Brent Kercheville has been writing a series of blogs about his interaction with the NLT text. One of those posts is called “Tongues vs. Languages (1 Corinthians 12-14).” Brent appreciates the NLT’s use of “languages” in place of the more obscure term “tongues” in 1 Cor 12, but he expresses frustration that […]

By Mark D. Taylor The issue of sentence structure in English Bibles is interesting. On the surface, one might assume that an English Bible could/should simply follow the structure of the sentences in Hebrew and Greek. But the very concept of a “sentence” differs from language to language. Let’s look at the prologue to Romans […]

Mark D. Taylor As a dynamic-equivalence translation, the NLT translates the Hebrew and Greek text in natural, understandable English. This means that we try to avoid technical terms that the average reader would not understand. Two such technical terms not used in the NLT are “propitiation” and “expiation.” The Bible Translation Committee chose not to […]

Mark D. Taylor I thought it might be helpful if I commented on the NLT’s frequent use of “Hebrew” and “Greek” footnotes. Both of my examples are from the second edition text (2004 or 2007). Example 1: In Gen 6:2, the NLT text reads, “The sons of God saw the beautiful women* and took any […]

Coins of at least three different nations were used in everyday life in Judea during the NT era. The NT text uses the names of Greek coins, Roman coins, and Jewish coins. The original readers of the NT were presumably very familiar with all of these terms and also knew their relative values, just as […]

Greetings, blogophiles and bibliophiles. My name is Mark Taylor, and I will be contributing to the NLT blog from time to time. In addition to serving as President and CEO of Tyndale House Publishers and Tyndale House Foundation, I’ve had the privilege of serving on the Bible Translation Committee for the New Living Translation. And […]