There are many attempts to translate the Bible into modern English which is defined as the form of English in use after 1800. Since the early 19th century, there have been several translational responses to the rapid spread of Christianity throughout the world. Various denominational and organizational goals have produced, and continue to produce, Bibles that fit the needs of English speakers in all walks of life. Differing base texts, theological emphasis, style, and translation aims (e.g. readability vs literality) are just a few of the variables that contribute to the wide range of Bibles available today.
One of the biggest changes in the late 20th century was the appearance of Bibles which were much less literal in their style. In 1958, J. B. Phillips (1906-1982) produced an edition of the New Testamentletters in paraphrase, the Letters to Young Churches, so that members of his youth group could understand what the New Testament authors had written.
Others followed suit. The Living Bible, released in in 1971, was published by its author Kenneth N. Taylor. Taylor had begun quite simply because of the trouble his children had in understanding the literal (and sometimes archaic) text of the King James version of the Bible. His work was at first intended for children, but then he wondered if he could also make it easier for adults to understand the whole Bible. He took as his basis the literal American Standard Version of 1901, and what he produced was like Phillips' version, a dramatic departure from the King James version.
Taylor began, like Phillips, producing paraphrases of the New Testament epistles, in his "Living Letters" published in 1962. What made the difference was that Billy Graham endorsed the Living Letters in 1963, offering them to those who would receive them, and that in 1971, Taylor went on to be the first to provide a paraphrase of the whole Bible. It proved to be a watershed in Bible versions, awaking the world to the advantages of reading the Bible in modern English. However, although The Living Bible is regarded by many as a good version, it has received criticism from various quarters.
In spite of this widespread criticism, the popularity of The Living Bible, itself a paraphrase rather than a translation, created a demand for a new approach to translating the Bible into contemporary English called dynamic equivalence, which attempts to preserve the meaning of the original text in a readable way. Realizing the immense benefits of a Bible which was more easily accessible to the average reader, and responding to the criticisms of the Living Bible, the American Bible Society produced a new English Bible translation in this more readable style, the Good News Bible. This translation has gone on to become one of the best selling in history. In 1996 a new revision of Taylor's Living Bible was published. This New Living Translation is a full translation from the original languages rather than a paraphrase of the Bible.
Another project aimed to create something in between the very literal translation of the King James Bible and the very informal Good News Bible. The goal was to create a Bible that would be scholarly, but not too formal. The result of this project was the New International Version.
The debate between the formal equivalence and dynamic (or 'functional') equivalence translation styles has increased with the introduction of inclusive language versions, in which various terms are employed to defend or attack this development, such as feminist, or gender neutral, or gender accurate, with new editions of previous versions being printed, alongside new translations, either furthering the number of inclusive versions or reinforcing the availability of conservative versions.
A further process that has assisted in increasing the number of English Bible versions exponentially, is the use of the Internet in producing virtual bibles, of which a growing number are beginning to appear in print ? especially given the development of "print on demand".
In America, one of the primary versions has been the American Standard Version, an American adaptation of the English Revised Version (1885) and versions which stem from it, shown in date order:
The New English Translation is a project to publish a translation of the Bible using the Internet. It is freely available and accompanied by extensive translator's notes. Another Internet based translation is the The Free Bible. It is a wiki, collaborative project--based on Wikisource.
Jewish translations follow the masoretic text, and are usually published in bilingual editions with the Hebrew text facing the English translation. The translations often reflect traditional Jewish exegesis of the bible. As translations of the masoretic bible, Jewish translations contain neither the apocrypha nor the Christian New Testament.
The King James Version of 1611 still has an immense following, and as such there have been a number of different attempts to update or improve upon it.
There have been a number of attempts to produce a Bible which greatly simplifies the English. (Some of these versions are also listed in other categories: for example, the NIrV is also found under the NIV section). These are translations which are not necessarily a very dynamic translation, but go beyond simply everyday English into a restricted vocabulary set, often aimed at non-native speakers of English.
These sacred name Bibles were all done with the specific aim of carrying into English the actual names of God as they were in the originals. Some have been done by people from the Sacred Name Movement. Some of these translations are also derived from the King James Version, altering the names of God.
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