An incalculable number of commentators have noted Barack Obama’s oratory gifts - his unerring ease behind the microphone and ability to motivate an otherwise complacent mob into a roaring frenzy of support. Where does this skill come from? How does one man speak with the practiced ease of someone born to inspire, while another’s speech [...]
Also posted in oratory, quotes |
No, this is not a post on politics.
For a bawdy examination of a possible pun in Hosea, see N.T. Wrong’s post from over the weekend: Cunny Punning in Hosea 2. This one definitely fits into the “steamy underbelly” category of Biblical literature, which most English translations bowdlerize into sanitized scripture, so use your own judgment [...]
Reflecting on my last post, I thought it would be useful to gather some definitions of “cadence” to think about. Especially when thinking about how cadence is related to the specific vocabulary choices of a translation.
“The natural sound pattern created by the spoken word.”
“A rising and falling of the rhythms of speech in a poem. [...]
I was recently reading a Theology Today article written by Burton H. Throckmorton, Jr. in 1990 regarding the *new* NRSV and REB translations (both had been released in 1989); I thought that the opening paragraphs were worth quoting:
For over forty years, the Revised Standard Version has been widely thought of as the best English version [...]
Updated: Added Richmond Lattimore’s translation as well as the full NEB translation to the latter part of this post. Also added the NLTse for yet another approach.
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Kenny Pearce added a comment to the BBB post on translating puns regarding the wordplay in the opening verses of John 15. Most traditional translations [...]
I want to take a closer look at a couple of puns in the OT and Apocrypha that were mentioned in the comments to my post on the “smooth” punning in Genesis 3. But first, be sure to check out Mike Sangrey’s observations on what smooth might really mean, posted here and here.
Ray McCalla noted [...]
Also posted in literary bible |
The value of a historical-critical study Bible does show itself from time to time. I was reading through the early chapters of Genesis, looking for more “once upon a time…” campfire stories, when I happened upon the study notes in my REB Study Bible for Genesis 3:1:
3.1: Serpent: an ancient extrabiblical story tells how a [...]
Returning to Kevin Sam’s list of interesting idioms in the NEB, I wanted to take a closer look at Ezekiel 21.7, which the NEB translates as:
When they ask you why you are groaning, say to them, ‘I groan at the thing I have heard; when it comes, all hearts melt, all courage fails, all hands [...]
Peter Lopez has written a “better late than never” response to my post on the authority of Bible translations:
What Makes a Bible Translation Authoritative? My Top Five
After a good discussion with several links worth checking out, Peter comes to the conclusion that “the only Bible translation that is in the top five in terms of sales [...]
Also posted in choosing a bible |
I am continuing my survey of Bible Translation books, now reading Donald Kraus’ volume, Choosing a Bible For Worship, Teaching, Study, Preaching, and Prayer. Kraus is Executive Editor for Bibles at Oxford University Press and presents a fairly even-handed review of translation philosophies, from strict interlinear to cultural paraphrase, though most of his time is [...]
