Question: It is debatable which is more reliable–the Septuagint or the Masoretic Text. Let me put it this way: in making English translations of the Hebrew Old Testament, as a general rule, the opening text to be used in the Masoretic. One obvious advantage of the Masoretic Text, even though it is not as old […]
Question: I wanted to ask you a question about Deuteronomy 32:8-9. In more recent manuscripts it’s translated as “Sons of Israel” but using older manuscripts it’s translated as “Sons of God” or even angels. Scholars say this was changed to sons of Israel because scribes didn’t like that it sounded so polytheistic. Did God actually […]
Question: My question is about the story in John’s gospel about the woman caught in adultery. This has always been one of my favorite, go-to, stories about Jesus to share with people. So, I was pretty disappointed when I learned from a textual critic standpoint that the story is very weak and was likely a […]
Question/Comment: The Dead Sea Scrolls (DSS) do not prove the inerrancy or historical accuracy of the Bible. The writings in DSS show a hugely different history than in the Bible. The Genesis Apocryphon is noticeably different from the Bible’s Genesis. Exodus, 1-2 Samuel and Jeremiah are extremely different in the DSS than in the Bible. […]
Question: My Muslim husband says: Why do Jews & Christians not have Hebrew manuscripts from before the Exile or 600 BCE which could verify that the DSS & Septuagint are exact copies of the original text? Why don’t Christians have the original Aramaic Gospel from 30 CE? Answer: Out of respect for the ancient text and […]
Question: The only evidence of the Septuagint translation is the pseudepigraphical letter of Aristeas. It says: “six elders out of every tribe of Israel wrote it.” First, 10 tribes of Israelites had already been lost in history a long time ago, before this time, which shows that this story is fabricated. Second, if they wrote, […]
Question: Christians deliberately corrupted the Jewish Scriptures to prove that Jesus is God, for e.g. they altered the translation of Isa. 9:6. They translate: “And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” but the Jewish translation is: “The wondrous adviser, the mighty God, the everlasting Father, called his name, “the prince of […]
Comment: I have some comments regarding accuracy of biblical texts and the importance of genealogies in the Bible in response to your reply to my question: Which is correct on the time Adam to Abraham–the Masoretic text or the Septuagint? [Editor’s note: Here is the article: https://evidenceforchristianity.org/which-is-correct-on-the-time-from-adam-to-abraham-the-masoretic-text-or-the-septuagint/ There were statements made in the article that weren’t […]
Question: Why do Christians and Jews have different interpretations for the meaning of the word “Moshiach” in Daniel chapter 9 verses 25-26? Why do Jews translate “Moshiach” as “the anointed one” but Christians translate it as the word “Messiah”? Answer: If we transliterate the Hebrew word Moshiach, we get Messiah. If we translate it, we […]
Question: What is your opinion of The Voice translation? Answer: I have not yet read from The Voice translation. From what I have read about it, this translation was created using 125 scholars, but also artists and other creative people. There appears to have been some solid scholarship behind the translation. The intent was to […]
Question: 2 Corinthians 10:5 mentions the ‘casting down of reasonings’ but this phrase is omitted in the Douay-Rheims Vulgate version. Why is this the case, and which translation should we trust? Answer: The Vulgate is a Latin translation of the Greek New Testament, so I am not all that sure why the content of the […]
Question: I’ve been comparing some “Messianic passages” from the Tanakh (the Hebrew Bible) to the corresponding verses in our Christian Bible (KJV, NKJV, NASB). And I’ve noticed that, in many passages, the Tanakh translation differs significantly from our OT/NT translations. Psalm 22, Isaiah 53, and Zechariah 12, for example, are quite different in the Tanakh, […]
Question: Can you please explain to me why Baptist think they are the chosen one? Jesus was a Jew, not Baptist. I feel like I’m being condemned because I don’t believe in denominations of today. What I do believe is, I am a child of God, and he is my Heavenly Father. Is the KJV […]
Question: What are your thoughts on the Passion Translation of the Bible, accuracy, etc.? I was reading some information online and unsure about sources. Answer: The Passion Translation is not really a translation, at least not in the classic sense. It is more of an interpretation. It is not done by a university-trained biblical scholar. […]
Question: I understand that Catholics came into existence first and then later the Protestants. The Catholic’s Bible has additional material such as extra chapters of Esther and extra books like 1 Maccabees, unlike the Protestant Bible with 66 books. This causes me to think that Protestants removed the additional books and chapters from the Bible […]
Question: I have been trying to study the translations of the Bible, specifically the King James Version (KJV). I have been asked to give an answer to the question, “How do we know the King James version doesn’t leave things out of the Bible?” Also, the Geneva Bible translation came before the King James version. […]
[Editor’s note: I received a long and somewhat rambling set of comments and questions from someone. I asked for a more succinct set of comments and questions so that I could respond. You will see below that the shorter version is still a bit unfocused, but this person asks sufficiently important questions that I felt […]
Question: Jehovah’s Witnesses state that Constantine made the Bible pagan, Hence their New World Translation. Do you have any evidence against this as nobody yet has been able to provide me something that backs up their claim. Thanks very much. Answer: This claim is so blatantly unfounded that for anyone to make the it they […]
Comment: With regard to the concept of hell and Greek understanding, while we know that all Scripture is given by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, The “all Scripture” that is being referred to is the Hebrew Scripture. The King James Version was written by using the Septuagint (Hebrew to Greek translation), converting the Greek into […]
Questions: Why are there so many translations of the Bible and why are there so many denominations? Did God actually walk the earth with Adam and Eve? Answers: You are asking three different questions, with very different answers. The reason there are so many translations into English is, quite simply, because there is a market […]
Question: I have a question concerning the three texts of Torah. I searched in the internet to know the 6000 differences between the three, and found that supposedly 1900 of them where the Septuagint agrees with the Samaritan [editor’s note: the questioner is referring here to the Samaritan Pentateuch], but I found nothing. Do you […]
Question: My question is about John 1:18. If we use a modern translation, we can clearly notice that the verse says that Jesus is God. But the textus receptus translations just say that Jesus is Son. Which do you think is authentic? Answer: This is a question of translation, not of an error, either in the […]
Question: Please check out 1 Corinthians 7:36 and 1 John 5:7 in various Bible versions, They seem to have different meanings. Also, only the KJV includes the term “God manifested in the flesh”, while other versions just say “He appeared in the flesh”. Which of these variations could be right? How do we deal with […]
Question: Is it true that 1 john 5 :7 was added later and was not in Greek manuscripts until the 1500s? Please explain this to me. If so why is it in King James Version? If this is the case, has the Bible been subject to changes by human hands? Answer: Yes, this is true. […]
[Editor’s note: This question is coming from a person responding to Muslim claims that Jesus never claimed to be God] Question: I’d like to ask you 2 questions. 1 What’s your comment on the New World Translation of Zechariah 12:10 “I will pour out on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem […]
Question: Protestants such as myself use the Masoretic Text for the translation of our Bibles. However, the Eastern Orthodox Church uses the Septuagint, a Greek translation we get primarily from the three large codices: Vaticanus, Sinaiticus, and Alexandrinus. How can I explain to someone why the Septuagint is good, but has problems (aside from the […]
Question: I have noticed many changes in my New King James Bibles and agree with many people who have noticed these changes. Is this, in your opinion, God’s will. Answer; There is no indication that Bible translations are inspired. The original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts are inspired, but there is no indication that those who […]
[editor’s note: The person sending this comment included a document claiming that the NIV (and presumably nearly all other translations) have omitted major portions of the New Testament, including John 5:4, Acts 8:37, Acts 15:34, Matthew 17:21, Matthew 23:14, Acts 24:7 and several others.] Comment: As I dug deeper into your site I had to […]
Question: My teacher just told us that the verse in Luke where Jesus sweats blood was not in the original text and is a textual issue. Have you heard this argument before? Answer: It is true that Luke 22:43-44 is not included in the majority of the oldest and most reliable manuscripts of Luke. This […]
Question: I am trying to share the Gospel message to a Muslim, and I need help in responding to his email. Here is his response: [Editor’s note: Because there are so many questions here, the answers are interspersed among the different questions. The questions are in italics. J. O.] God created human being, showed them […]
Question: I wonder why isn’t the name Yahweh mentioned anywhere in the NT? We only see Christ calling him Father in the gospels as well as the apostles addressing Him in the same way. Has it been omitted anywhere in various translations? For a new believer isn’t it essential to know that the Father […]
Question: Can you comment on the Cepher Bible translation and the claims that I have heard that it is the most accurate as well as the most complete Bible translation available today? Answer: This is a fairly obscure translation of the Bible which was published quite recently. I have not used it (or even seen […]
Question: (editor’s note: this question has to do with a Setswana (Botswana) translation of the Bible, as I just finished visiting there) Hi John. Obviously this is a very bad translation but I thought it would be interesting for you to see it. I have read translations that make better sense but please let […]
Question: How do you explain to anyone, specifically Catholics, the canonization of the Bible and the fact that the Apocrypha is not part of the canon? Answer: I suggest you read either my book “Reasons for Belief” which describes the process of canonization of the OT and the NT, or my book “Daniel, Prophet to […]
(editor’s note: This is a follow-up to a previous question which explains his asking about my “methodology used to acquire the [claim of] 99% [accuracy for the Greek NT]) Question: Thanks Dr. Oakes for taking the time to look at my contact form. he openly admits that we should avoid like the plague knowing with […]
[editor’s note: this is a follow-up question to one posted just a couple of days ago] Question: Thanks for taking the time to explain in detail the different translations and for copy pasting the relevant texts. They are helpful indeed. I would appreciate if you can clarify one thing which was the reason behind my […]
Question: Please tell me how do we determine if a certain translation of the bible is reliable or more reliable than others or the most reliable. Thank you very much. Answer: There are more than a dozen really excellent translations into English out there. You can use any one of these and consider them […]
Question: I have spent the last two years trying to learn from the Holy Spirit. During this time the issue of Bible translations has arisen. The Lord led me to look at and compare all the different versions. I found the NIV translation to have omitted many vital scriptures. This has also left me wondering […]
Editor’s Note: This is a series of interactions with a person who is obviously a Muslim making a typical argument against Isaiah 7:14 as a messianic prophecy. See below for further arguments from this person. Question: If you say that the Hebrew word in Isaiah 14 means a virgin and that it is a dual prophecy, […]
QUESTION: The Greek translation of the Hebrew OT was called the Septuagint and I’ve read it was used in the early NT church and often quoted by NT writers. I’ve also read that it contained the Apocrypha, which was not accepted into the Hebrew OT canon. Question #1 “Was the Septuagint read in the NT […]
QUESTION: A few sections of Ezra (4:8-6:18;7:12-26) and Daniel (2:4b-7:28) are written in Aramaic. From some of the research that I have read I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s most likely “Official Aramaic”, however I can’t seem to find a good reason why the author would write in Aramaic and Hebrew. I was wondering […]
QUESTION: I know I’ve asked you questions regarding to the different OT translations and transmissions (Septuagint, SP, MT), however I’ve recently been troubled by two somewhat different positions on the accuracy of the transmission. Emmanual Tov a leading scholar on the dead sea scrolls and textual critic recently came out with a book “Textual Criticism […]
QUESTION: I’m having trouble believing that every single word in the Bible is true. I do know that Jesus’ resurrection is true and can be proven to a certain degree historically and that the creation of the universe can also be proven to a certain degree with scientific data and theories. But I’m having a […]
Question: I was wondering if you had any information regarding the following topic “Has the Bible been changed.” I would guess, through cross referencing all the manuscripts over the past centuries, we would be able to identify what has been changed within the text. Do you have any sources of info/studies for this? I would […]
Question: http://www.intrepidlutherans.com/2011/08/issues-with-niv-2011-saints-are-no-more.html I am interested in your thoughts about the article I found above while searching for the word saint in the NIV. A friend of mine, a sister in my church for many years, didn’t know what a saint was. I was shocked, asked her to study it out and I wanted to quickly […]
Question: My father says he does not believe in organized religion because most churchs seem only to care for themselves and not other people. He also says that the bible is biased because it was written by man and that whomever put the bible together left out some of the texts because they didnt want […]
Question: What comment would you make about the very great differences between the MT, LXX & Samaritan Pentateuch? Answer: Evidence implies that our Greek New Testament text is a nearly perfect descendant of the originals. The case with the Old Testament is significantly different. The time period between the last New Testament book being written […]
Question: I am questioning information I read on the page:https://www.evidenceforchristianity.org/index.php?option=com_custom_content&task=view&id=3954 Dr. John Oakes uses Mark 1:2 as an example of Byzantine copyists attempting to improve a text. He states, "The quote following in Mark 1:2 is taken both from Isaiah and Malachi. Presumably a copier took the role of an editor, removing what hethought of […]
Question: According to NIV & TNIV, Apollos was a Jew & an Egyptian (a native of Alexandria) (Acts 18:24) but GNB says he was a Jew but born in Alexandria. Is NIV & TNIV correct to say a Jew is also an Egyptian? Answer: Now, that is an easy one. In the first century Alexandria […]
Question: Most biblical scholars claim that the King James Version isn’t the best to use today because of the archaic terms and non-usage of the latest surviving documents. Are there any flaws within the New King James Version? Answer: You have the right scoop on the KJV, otherwise known as the Authorized Version. The principle […]
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