Using the Right Bible Translation? A professional translator’s perspective on translation choice, by Jonathan Downie
The overall skopos of this translation is to present the Bible in the way its writers would have written it if it were being written today (Strauss 2004: xvi), making it likely to excel is in portraying the emotion, character and effect of the original in a way that is even more familiar to readers than even the expressions used in a translation like the NLT. Here is Romans 8:28-30 in The Message.
That’s why we can be so sure that every detail in our lives of love for God is worked into something good. God knew what he was doing from the very beginning. He decided from the outset to shape the lives of those who love him along the same lines as the life of his Son. The Son stands first in the line of humanity he restored. We see the original and intended shape of our lives there in him. After God made that decision of what his children should be like, he followed it up by calling people by name. After he called them by name, he set them on a solid basis with himself. And then, after getting them established, he stayed with them to the end, gloriously completing what he had begun. (TM)
One of the first things that those who are used to reading the Bible will notice in this passage is the complete absence of any traditional terminology whatsoever. Even words like “firstborn” are absent and instead we have phrases such as “the son stands first in the line of humanity he restored.” While this change is likely to make this translation even easier to read for those who are not familiar with these terms, it increases the disadvantages that we associated with this in our discussion of the NLT. In this case, since the sentences are rephrased entirely, it would prove nearly impossible to use The Message for studies of individual words of phrases in the original languages.
The translation of the last two sentences represents a further stage in the progression from the phrasing of the NKJV. Where translations such as the NLT keep largely the same structure as the NKJV/KJV and fill it with new phrasing, keeping the same level of repetition, The Message goes one step further, making the repetition less obvious, consistent with its aim of prioritising readability in English over the exact representation of specific patterns in the original languages as is to be expected given its skopos.
Taken together, this suggests that the translator was correct in calling his translation a “reading Bible.” The Message reads very easily and, by opting to try to phrase the ideas in a modern style also has the strength of illuminating passages that might have previously seemed dry or overly technical. It therefore seems ideal for those who have either never read the Bible or have lost interest in it. It also should prove useful in offering new insight into familiar passages. It will not, however, prove useful for those attempting to do word studies or for those who seek a translation that uses an exalted style due to the fact that it was never meant for such purposes.
Lessons from a Skopos-based Analysis
More than anything else, this short analysis of four translations has shown that when the skopos of a particular Bible translation is identified, it will give a good guide as to the likely relative strengths and weaknesses of the translation in question and where it is likely to be most useful. Those translations whose skopos is to represent the original structure as far as is grammatically possible are likely to prove less readable for the non-specialist. Conversely, those translations whose skopos is to present the Word of God as if it were being written today will prove less suitable for word studies or for providing a window into the structure of the original languages.
So far, the lessons we have learned have been similar to those that could be learned by assuming that the traditional classifications would be consistent in any given translation. Where skopos theory is more useful than the traditional classifications is in its insistence that the aim of the translation be identified; thereby allowing some form of comparison to be made between this aim and the aims and requirements of the translation user and use. For instance, for detailed study of individual words and expressions in the original languages, it will be worth identifying a translation that aims to show such features. For work with new believers or those unfamiliar with the Bible, however, a translation whose skopos is to avoid the use of theological terminology and to present the Word in more natural phrasing would be preferable. The choice of which translation to use in preaching will be dependant upon the aim of the sermon and on the background of the congregation: preaching to a group of businessmen may call for a different translation than preaching to academics or those from less educated backgrounds, for example.
Category: Biblical Studies, Pneuma Review, Summer 2009
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