Introduction: Have you ever been to a very large food buffet? There are so many items, you can't eat even a little bit of each. So you choose the ones you like best. (If you are on a diet, you DON'T choose the ones you like best!) Christian book stores now present such a buffet of Bibles that we must choose which few are best, for we cannot buy all of them!
I. Every Christian should be a Bible reader, and a Bible student.
A. Because God wants us to study His Word. We want to please Him, and His Word is good for us. (2 Timothy 3:16-17 and 2 Timothy 2:15)
B. Because it's a pleasure. (Psalm 19:8, 10)
C. At the same time, we must face reality. There are two problems which prevent many of us from being Bible students: 1) Some of us simply are not cut out to be students at all. and 2) We all don't have the time for serious study. To you I say, at least be READERS of God's Word. You will retain more than you think, and it will bless your heart. (Illustrate the woven basket drawing water.)
II. Every American should treasure his/her English Bible, because we have it as the result of the blood, sweat and tears of our Christian ancestors. A little history is in order.....
A. None of the Bible appeared in English until 700 AD, when 50 Psalms were translated by Aldhalm, Bishop of Sherbourne. This mss is now in the National Library in Paris.
B. In 735 AD, the Gospel of John was translated into English by "The Venerable Bede."
C. Around 900 AD King Alfred the Great, author of England's first codes of Law, ordered the translation of the Psalms, the Gospels, Acts and Exodus, for the Ten Commandments.
D. About 1000 AD Aelfric, Archbishop of Canterbury, translated the first six books of the Old Testament into English, Genesis through Judges.
E. In 1380, John Wycliffe, the "Morning Star of the Reformation," translated the first entire New Testament into English. His followers, the "Lollards," roamed over England, preaching the Gospel, and spreading the Word of God. He was declared a heretic, but never captured and executed. However, 40 years after his death, in an act of revenge, his bones were dug up, ground to a powder, and scattered on the river.
F. In 1450 something earth-shaking happened: Johann Gutenburg invented the printing press. The first book he printed was the Latin Vulgate Bible.
F. William Tyndale was fluent in 8 languages, a Greek scholar, and in 1525 he translated and published the first English New Testament to ever come off a printing press (all hand-written up to this time). He was declared a heretic and a criminal, but eluded capture for eleven years. Finally, he was caught, imprisoned for 500 days, strangled and then burned at the stake. The Roman Catholic Church burned hundreds of his New Testaments, and anyone found in possession of one was liable to be executed.
G. In 1535 Myles Coverdale and John Rogers (disciples of Tyndale) printed the first complete Bible in English. In 1539 Thomas Cranmer, the Archbishop of Canterbury under Henry VIII, hired Coverdale to create what was called the "Great Bible" because it was 14 inches tall. Copies were kept chained to a desk in all English Churches. Unfortunately, the government changed, "Bloody Mary" became Queen of England, and in 1555 she burned at the stake John Rogers, Thomas Cranmer, and hundreds of other Bible believing Christians. Myles Coverdale fled to Geneva where he and other scholars produced the Geneva Bible in English in 1560.
H. The Geneva Bible was the most popular English Bible until some years after the publication of the King James Version of the Bible in 1611. After the death of Queen Elizabeth I, Prince James VI of Scotland became King James I of England. The Protestant clergy approached him in 1604 about a new translation, got his approval, and thereby the KJV came into existence in 1611. It was larger even than the Great Bible (16 inches tall). The KJV represented the combined efforts of 50 Hebrew, Greek and Latin scholars, and was based on previous English versions. Until the late 20th century, it has been the most popular of all English Bibles.
I. The most popular English Bibles used in America today by Protestants include the KJV, the New KJV, the Revised Standard Version (RSV), chiefly used in the "mainline" denominations, the New American Standard Bible (NASB), the Living Bible, and the New International Version (NIV). There are several Roman Catholic English Bibles, which also include the Apocrypha, books which Protestants do not accept as the Word of God. The most widely used English Bible in the PCA seems to be the New International Version.
III. Finally, which English Version is Best? The answer is twofold: 1) No version is 100% perfect; and 2) It depends on the vocabulary and intention of the reader.
A. No English version is perfect. If you translate the Greek and Hebrew too literally, word for word, you end up with unreadable sentence structure, due to the differences in the languages. If you don't translate literally, you end up adding words and ideas. For example, Luke 24:1
Literal Greek: "But on the one of the week while still very early upon the tomb they came carrying which they prepared spices."
NIV: "On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb."
NASB: "But on the first day of the week, at early dawn, they came to the tomb, bringing the spices which they had prepared."
KJV: "Now upon the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they came unto the sepulchre, bringing the spices which they had prepared, and certain others with them."
New KJV: "Now on the first day of the week, very early in the morning, they, and certain other women with them, came to the tomb bringing the spices which they had prepared."
Living Bible: "But very early on Sunday morning they took the ointments to the tomb."
B. If your vocabulary is limited, or if you are just reading (not studying), then I think the NIV is very useful. On the other hand, if you have a strong vocabulary and knowledge of English sentence structure, and if you want to really dig into the text, the NASB is probably closest to the Greek. For deeper study I recommend a study Bible with notes and references. I like the Nelson Study Bible and the NIV Study Bible. Avoid study Bibles which are automatically prejudiced toward any particular set of beliefs. (Don't get the Charismatic Bible, or the Scofield Dispensational Bible, or the Teenagers Bible, etc. etc.)
Conclusion: A few closing words: 1) Don't argue with anyone about which Bible is the best. They all have their good points and their weaknesses. 2) You may have the best Bible in the world, but it won't make you a better Christian unless you read it and live by it. 3) Let's conclude by reading our "Call to Worship" together again (Psalm 19:7-11).