I recently had a discussion with a man I respect very much who teaches from the New International Version (NIV) Bible. My concern was that some Bibles eliminate or change words that I believe change the meaning of scripture. I gave the example of John 3:16 in which the NIV eliminates the word "begotten" before "Son" and replaces it with "one and only Son." I quoted Exodus 4:22 in which God calls Israel His firstborn, John 1:12 which states that we were given the power to become children of God, and Romans 8:16 which states that the Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God. My point being that if Jesus is the "one and only" Son, then how can God be our Father as well? However, if He is the "begotten" Son, then He is the "birth" Son and we are "adopted" into God's family.Taken from bibletruths.net: The meaning of only begotten. "Only begotten" is from the Greek monogenes. This word is used nine times in the Greek New Testament. The word is a compound word, mono, meaning only, and gennesis, meaning birth. "Only begotten" (monogenes) is used five times by John, three by Luke, and once by the writer of Hebrews. Luke used the word to describe the widow's son, "only son of his mother" (Lk. 7: 12, see 8: 42, 9: 38). The writer of Hebrews said Abraham "offered up his only begotten son" (Heb. 11: 17).
The man, with whom I was having this conversation, said that "fanatics take each word of the Bible too seriously and it's really about the idea that it's trying to get across." My concern is...when you change or eliminate words, you take the chance on changing the meaning of the scripture...and potentially the only way to salvation. So, does that make me a fanatic?
O.K. I'm confused. Abraham had another "begotten" son. Right?
ReplyDeleteHey there...misquote on my part. It took my sis' comment for me to realize that the verse I was meaning to reference was not supposed to be GENESIS 4:22, but instead it shouldv'e been EXODUS 4:22..."Then you shall say to the pharaoh, 'Thus says the Lord, "Israel is my son, my firstborn." Thanks, Stace for pointing out the error.
ReplyDeleteAs far as the Abraham reference goes... God only recognized Abraham's son Isaac as legit: Genesis 22:2 "He said, 'Take now your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac and go to the land of Moriah." This is why he is referenced as Abraham's "only begotten" in Hebrews 11:17. Also, God's covenant was with Isaac, not Ishmael...see Genesis 17:15-21. Clearly, God never supported Abraham taking his lineage into his own hands through Hagar.
Hey Randy... it's Bud. So what translation do you teach from?
ReplyDeleteMostly NASB, but in my opinion,the King James is probably the best.
ReplyDelete