The Problem with Mistranslations

Example 1
Imagine that I do not speak English and I always have a translator accompanying me. I am a farmer but for whatever reason every time I say "farmer" my translator says "salesman." Let us presume that my translator gets everything else I say right. If you talk with me there are only a few ways to find out that I am a farmer and not as salesman.

One is to pick up on clues in the context when I speak about my job. I may mention livestock and farm equipment but even then you could assume that I sell those things.

Another way, if you ever even get to the point of questioning my translator's accuracy, is to look up the word salesman in the language I speak. You can find that the word I am saying is not salesman. You then need to find a way to discover the meaning of the word I am actually using.

The power of the word salesman being used by my otherwise trustworthy translator makes you believe something that is not true. It shapes how you view the context of my conversation. It perhaps makes you think that I sell farm equipment rather than farm the land myself.

Example 2
Imagine that your job position originated in a country that spoke a different language than you and they are just now expanding into your country. The person they have to translate their operating manuals grew up in a part of their country that has a slightly different dialect, where words mean slightly or drastically different things than they do where the manuals were originally written. The language barriers prevent you and others from doing the best job that you can and the business as a whole suffers. Everyone thought that they were doing the right thing and going exactly by the book but they never questioned the translation when one part of the book contradicted the other.

The Problem
These situations pale in comparison to the problems with our English translations of the Bible. Some words were intentionally mistranslated in the first place and tradition has kept them there (church, pastor, minister, deacon). Other words are unclear in meaning because they have little to no secular use (grace, faith, repent). These religious words are defined in many different ways but were not religious words in the original language. They were common words easily understood by anyone who spoke the language (grace=favor, faith=trust, repent=change of mind).

Some words are influenced by the beliefs of those who translated them (usually the institutional church). These translators and subsequently those who read their translation believe that the way things are today is the way things have always been and read the present situation into past events. When they see the word "church" in the bible they think of an organization or building, seeing "pastor" they think of the man in charge who preaches at the church, seeing the word "minister" they think of a leader, etc. People are thinking that the farmer is the salesman. Soon they hire salesmen to farm and all sense of meaning is lost to the masses.

From Guardians to Gurus
Untold damage is done by these mistranslations. One English word poorly translated in one verse (pastor in Ephesians 4:11) is part of the basis for thousands upon thousands of men to unwittingly usurp the headship of Christ. Too often I have heard people happily repeat things from sermons they've heard recently which are actually destructive lies. They instantly believe what they are told no matter how shame-filled, self-centered, unloving, or absurd  it is simply because the pastor said so. Pastors need only to point to the word "pastors" in Ephesians 4:11 to justify their office to most despite the fact that the word "pastors" only appears once in all of scripture, the word is plural, the context says little about what the pastor actually is, and the word is a mistranslation (it is supposed to be translated as "shepherds").

I specifically talked with two pastors who knew I was out of the church system and Ephesians 4:11 was the only scripture they used to support their existence. When asked if all Christian groups need pastors I said "Jesus is the Good Shepherd and speaking of Him in Ezekiel 34:15 God says, 'I myself will tend my sheep and have them lie down, declares the Sovereign Lord.'"

The mistranslation perpetuates the false office and false authority. While not all motives are pure most pastors are simply following the traditions of the church thinking that it is what God intends. Sadly those traditions and falsehoods existed 400 years ago and certain words were placed into scripture to support them. While I wish pastors would research their supposed position solely using the scriptures, they aren't to blame. Hundreds of years of man made traditions, falsehoods, and mistranslations stand against the people of God.

Here two questions to ask yourself, "Am I believing false things because of traditions or mistranslations?" & "Do I trust what I hear over trusting the living God?"

Related Posts
Older People as Guides not Officials as Governors:  Explains what a shepherd (mistranslated pastor) actually is.
All Posts on Mistranslations

Saved: Cured of Sin & Made Whole

It has come to my attention that the Greek word for "saved" (as in "Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved") can have other meanings. It is translated as "make well," "heal," or "make whole" in many places. In Mark 6:56 it is translated as cured.

To save means to:
    heal, cure, make well, restore to health
    make whole
    preserve, keep safe and sound
    rescue from danger or destruction, deliver

I went through all the scriptures where this Greek word appears and found the places where the synonyms of "save" make sense to see how impactful they can be. I have also paired some up with other scriptures so we can see how these wordings agree with truth found in other places.

• God did not send the Son into the world to find fault with the world but to make the world well through Him (John 3:17).
  • Jesus said, "I did not come to find fault with the world but to make the world well" (John 12:47).
  • God in Christ made relationship with Himself available to all by no longer counting people's sins against them (2 Corinthians 5:19).
• The Son of Man has come to look for and to cure those who are dying (Luke 19:10).
  • The Son of Man has come to look for and to make whole those who are damaged (Luke 19:10).
• This is a statement that can be trusted and deserves complete acceptance: "Christ Jesus came into the world to cure sinners" (1 Timothy 1:15).
• God our Savior desires all men to be cured, to be made whole, and to come to the knowledge of the truth (1 Timothy 2:4).
• Jesus is able to save and cure and make whole forever those who draw near to God through Him, since He always lives to act for their benefit (Hebrews 7:25).
• Jesus took God's wrath for sin on our behalf so now, through trust, we are made right with God by the blood of Jesus and cured of sin. We are made whole by His life (Romans 5:9-10).
• Jesus will cure His people, removing them from their sins (Matthew 1:21).
  • He has removed our sins from us as far as the east is from the west (Psalm 103:12).
     
• Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be made whole (Romans 10:13).
• By the gospel you are made whole (1 Corinthians 15:1-2).
• We trust that we are cured through the favor of the Lord Jesus. God purified our hearts by trust (Acts 15:9,11).
• By God's loving kindness you have been made whole through trust (Ephesians 2:8).
   
• When the kindness of God our Savior and His love for mankind appeared, He made us whole, not because of righteous things we had done, but according to His mercy. He made us whole through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been made right with God by his favor, we might become heirs having the hope of knowing God forever (Titus 3:4-7).

Did Paul Shame People?

Shame is a sense of guilt, disgrace, loss of favor with God. Shame is something that Christians aren't to have, Christ took away our shame at the cross and He makes us righteous. Shame is also not to be used to manipulate people, it is not to be a motivator. But there are two places in the New Testament where Paul seems to shame people.

1 Corinthians 6:1-6
"Does any one of you, when he has a case against his neighbor, dare to go to law before the unrighteous and not before the saints? Or do you not know that the saints will judge the world? If the world is judged by you, are you not competent to constitute the smallest law courts? Do you not know that we will judge angels? How much more matters of this life? So if you have law courts dealing with matters of this life, do you appoint them as judges who are of no account in the assembly? I say this to your shame. Is it so, that there is not among you one wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren, but brother goes to law with brother, and that before unbelievers?"

The word translated shame here is defined as "a turning in upon oneself." It is not the usual Greek word translated "shame."
In 1 Corinthians 6:5 the issue is that Christians are turning to non-Christians or so-called brothers who are immoral to settle their problems for them. Understanding the correct definition of the word we can easily see Paul saying, "I say this so you will turn in upon yourselves and look for some wise man who will be able to decide between his brethren." Paul is telling them to look at themselves and amongst themselves to find a wise man to judge their matters. Paul is not shaming them with guilt. It is the opposite, the normal word for shame means disgrace but Paul encourages their competence as saints (which they are by grace) and communicates, "Look at yourself. Are you able to help settle these matters?"

1 Corinthians 15:34
"Become sober-minded as you ought, and sin not; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame."
The word translated shame here is the same as the one above and is defined as "a turning in upon oneself." These are the only two places this word appears in the New Testament. Paul tells them to "Wake up, become sober-minded." Understanding the correct definition of the word we can see that Paul is saying "Wake up, take a look at yourselves!" The NLT puts it this way "To your shame I say that some of you don't know God at all." Meaning "look inwardly, examine yourselves to see if you know God." This scripture is about realization not shame and guilt. Even if we took the word shame here to mean guilt or disgrace, which it doesn't, it is still aimed at non-Christians and Paul is not shaming Christians. "To your shame I say that some of you don't know God at all." Meaning "To the some who don't know God I appeal to the presence of your shame to help you realize that you don't know God."


Related Posts
Judges in the Assembly Part 2:  A closer look at the context & intent of 1 Corinthians 6

How "Preach" is Used with Bias in Translating the Bible

I've noticed in personal study that a translator bias/indoctrinated by tradition bias appears when using the word "preach." When "kerusso," one of the primary Greek words translated as "preach," appears in the context of someone who is not Jesus or apostles it is not translated as "preach" but as "proclaim."

Mark 5:19-20 talks of the man who had the Legion of demons cast out of Him.
Jesus said to him, "Go home to your people and report to them what great things the Lord has done for you, and how He had mercy on you."  And he went away and began to proclaim in Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.

The word kerusso was properly translated as "proclaim" there but when referring to Jesus or apostles the same Greek word is translated as "preach." This gives us an underlying idea that only special people "preach" and the common man "proclaims." But truly scripture offers no distinction. This same thing also happens in Mark 7:36 & Luke 8:39.

What I'm pointing out here is that there is an unwarranted clergy/laity style bias that appears when translating the Greek word kerusso. I don't think the word preach should ever be used in a bible translation because when we hear it we think of a non-interactive monolog (a sermon) which is never what scripture refers to.

More on the word preach being an bad translation.

Proper Translation of Hebrews 13:17

Hebrews 13:17
Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive (NKJV)
Obey your spiritual leaders and do what they say. (NLT)
Obey your leaders and submit to them (NASB)
Obey your leaders and submit to their authority. (NIV)
   The NIV adds the word "authority" to the text where there is no word to represent it in the Greek.

Three words are mistranslated in Hebrews 13:17. First I will give the definition of the English word then I will give the definition of the Greek word that is actually in the text.

English word: Obey- To carry out or fulfill the command, order, or instruction of.
Greek word: peitho- to persuade; to be persuaded

English word: Leader(s)- A person who leads; One occupying the first or foremost position.
Greek word: hegeomai-those who lead/guide. It is a verb while leader is a noun. The verb translated properly can be defined as a person/those who lead(s) but the noun leader can and does also give the idea of "One occupying the first or foremost position." I prefer the word guide as opposed to lead because lead has an inherent authoritarian perception coupled with it.

English word: Submit- To give in to the authority, power, or desires of another
Greek word: hupeiko- to yield, to give in to. This Greek word only appears once in the NT. The word hupotasso is the primary word for submit in the NT and is not used here.

Proper translation:
Be persuaded by those guiding you, and be yielding; for they keep watch over your souls as those who will give an account. Let them watch over you with joy and not with grumbling, for this would be unprofitable for you.

This is essentially saying to be persuadable, to not be prideful but to be yielding. Allow those with wisdom to guide you to truth. Listen to the trustworthy. Those who watch over & guide others are to do so joyfully and willfully not with grumbling. We are not to cause them to grumble by our unwillingness to yield.

This verse DOES NOT say that there are leaders in positions or offices who we must obey on the basis of their authority. There is ONE LORD, JESUS CHRIST!

There is no "man of God" who has legitimate authority over other people. There is no guiding or guarding without relationship. If someone is not actually guiding you personally, if that person is not alert to the condition of your life, then that person is not keeping watch over your soul!

Be responsive to those who guide you. Listen to their counsel. They are those who are alert to the condition of your lives and work under the supervision of God and His truth.

For more on Hebrews 13:17 as well as a look at every place the word "leaders" is used in the New Testament (all 4!) read this teaching:  The Word Leaders in the New Testament