Matthew for Everyone!

Matthew for Everyone

by N.T. Wright

I have blogged before that I have joined a group in church to read the New Testament in one year. 

We are currently still in the Gospel of Matthew. 

And in the reading, there are many times when we asked questions and when we come across some complicated verses. This is where after referring to the few commentaries I have on Matthew, namely:

- Donald A. Hagner, Matthew, Word Biblical Commentary

- Ulrich Luz, A Commentary on Matthew, Hermeneia

- R.T. France, Matthew: An Introduction and Commentary, Tyndale New Testament Commentary

- R.T. France, The Gospel of Matthew, New International Commentary on the New Testament

- N.T. Wright, Matthew for Everyone

...I find that I like N.T. Wright's version the most. 

It is not as technical as the rest, it's more readable and insightful in its exegesis.

With that I went and check to see if I have all the volumes in the series and found that indeed I do, except for the 2 volumes on Romans. I actually spent about RM400 buying the series, not including the ones on Romans.

When I went and looked for it in Logos.com, the series is on sale! 

It's now only RM94.37 for 20 volumes instead of a whopping RM904.56.

But I wonder if I can get it even cheaper for the 2 volumes on Romans. I doubt it and I think I will have to pay RM94.37 not for 20 volumes but for only 2.

What a bummer!

Here's the link if you are interested. And of course the link may or may not work with it being time sensitive.

pearlie

Reading the Bible in a Year

My church has started a very good communal practice: sign up to read Scripture together as a church. 

We have four tracks to choose to take part in:

1. The Old Testament and New Testament in One Year with D.A. Carson's For the Love of God via the YouVersion Bible app.

2. The New Testament in One Year with The Bible Project via the YouVersion Bible app.

3. Table Talk by Martin Luther printed or online. 

4. I can't remember what the fourth plan is. It's a light version of an introduction to the Bible and a reading of Galatians in 6 days. 

My hubby and I both chose Option 2. I was contemplating to choose Option 1 but I thought I had better not over commit myself. Reading 4 long passages and one D.A. Carson devotional per day is no joke. 

So I am glad I picked NT in a Year by The Bible Project. And their videos are very well done. I am very impressed with their introduction video to the New Testament.

Check it out here.

pearlie

Which is the preferred Chinese bible translation?

So much for trying to read a novel in Chinese, I should have just stuck to the Bible in Chinese. The beauty of it that I don't even have to read whole book, like a novel, or even whole chapters at any one time. 

A verse a day is good enough. 

Using the Tecarta bible app, they only have the Chinese Union Version available, which I have just purchased at only RM3.90. 

However, what is the preferred Chinese bible translation?

pearlie

A checklist of the M'Cheyne bible reading plan

Mibipi App by Geoffrey Dayley

I was looking for a checklist app that will help me to keep track of my daily bible reading using the M'Cheyne bible reading plan, and found it in this simple app. 

Though I wish it could be more, the app is the only one around, for now. 

This bible reading plan is a good one. It is developed by a 19th Century Scottish minister, Robert Murray M’Cheyne, and it brings you reading through the New Testament and Psalms twice a year, and through the rest of the Bible once each year. You read on average 4 chapters per day.

Have you found any other good bible reading plans?

pearlie

The NIV Zondervan Study Bible Kindle Version

My good friend Noel has been recommending me this new NIV Zondervan Study Bible edited by DA Carson. I have tried the electronic trial version in my Tecarta bible app for three days but at $24.99, I thought I'd give it a pass for the time being. 

I found out today that it was on sale in Kindle Amazon and bought a copy at only $4.99. It is good to save so much but it is challenging to use it in the Kindle version. I am not sure if I can get used to it. 

In the Tecarta bible app, I can easily get to the

books and chapters quite easily and the commentary section appears alongside with the verses. 

The Kindle version is much more challenging because I can only get to the book via its content page, and then flip through the introduction section before clicking on the link in the list of chapters in the books. To get to the commentary section, I would need to tap on the number of the verse and then tap on the back button to go back to the verse. 

In this scenario, a print version would serve me so much better. 

pearlie

Bible by Tecarta

Bible by Tecarta 

I downloaded Tecarta's bible app into my iPhone and iPad some months ago as I had then needed a different version from the ESV bible that I have been using. I used it most in the last three days during the CEP and KVBC conference and I love it. I like it much better than the Crossway ESV bible app. When you use it, you do not need to purchase any of the bible translations. You can "try" them and the app will stream the bible passages to your device as and when you need it.

But more importantly, I find the annotation and highlighting features very useful. I am able to highlight sections of a verse, words or phrases, and not just the whole verse like in the ESV app. The annotation of verses are simpler to use and it is separated from the inbuilt notepad, which I use for sermon notes, not tied to any verses like in the ESV app.

I have since decided to purchase the New Living Translation. I was contemplating buying the NIV Zondervan Study Bible but at USD23.99 and the fact that I don't seem to use it that much when I tried it for a limited period of three days during the conference, I don't think I shall spend the money. 

I give it a 5/5-star review. 

pearlie

Taking it all out of context

I was at lunch when someone partly quoted Matt 7:7, "ask and it shall be given", without realizing that it is from the bible, and was taking it out of context. 

I then realised that quotations taken from famous people may also be taken out of context. I suppose people in general would freely take quotations to be applied in whatever ways that are suitable and relevant to them. And I'm sure the originator of the statements quoted would mind their words being taken out of context.

Christians, particularly bible scholars and theologians, as we all should be, take the context of bible verses very seriously and we would not misinterpret them as we please. We read them in immediate context of the passage and in overall context with the whole of Scripture. 

We must not take bible verses in isolation and interpret them as we like. If we do that, we can take the Word of God to mean anything we please and that we must avoid. The intention of a writer of any books or of a speaker of any speeches is very important. If I say or write something, I am intending it to mean what I intend it to mean, not as what you would want it to mean as you please. More importantly for the Bible when it carries the gospel, a life giving message. 

Dr James Davis of Bible.org says, "When it comes to making claims about what the Bible means, sometimes we hear comments from Christians or non-Christians like the following: “Well, that’s just your interpretation.” “The Bible can be made to say anything you want.” “You can’t really understand the Bible. It is full of contradictions.” “No one can understand the true meaning of anything anyone says.” Or, someone sitting in a Bible study might say, “This is what the Bible means to me.”"

So how are we to know what the bible is really saying?Some verses are very commonly taken out of context. One of them is definitely Philippians 4:13, "I can do all things through him who strengthens me." If you read it with its previous verse, you will see that Paul was talking about the immense suffering he was facing and with that, we cannot apply it to ourselves so freely. 

Paul said, "I know how to be brought low, and I know how to abound. In any and every circumstance, I have learned the secret of facing plenty and hunger, abundance and need. I can do all things through him who strengthens me." (Philippians 4:12-13)

Davis gives 7 principle of biblical interpretation. Do you agree with them? Check it out here for the details. 

Principle 1: Interpretation must be based on the author’s intention of meaning and not the reader.

Principle 2: Interpretations must be done in the context of the passage.

Principle 3: Interpret the Bible literally (or normally) allowing for normal use of figurative language.

Principle 4: Use the Bible to help interpret itself.

Principle 5: Interpretation must be distinguished from application.

Principle 6: Be sensitive to distinctions betweenIsrael and the church and Old Covenant and New Covenant eras/requirements.

Principle 7: Be sensitive to the type of literature 

pearlie

The Kingdom New Testament, A Contemporary Translation by NT Wright

I have recently bought many books by NT Wright including his 18-volume For Everyone series. I am currently reading his New Testament Wisdom for Everyone and found out that he has published a contemporary translation of the New Testament, which is called The Kingdom New Testament. 

  

New Testament Wisdom for Everyone

by NT Wright 

The Kingdom New Testament, A Contemporary Translation 

by NT Wright

If you look at this passage from 2 Peter 1:3-11, you will not sense its familiarity until you read further on, after which you will appreciate how it really brings out the understanding of the passage in a more regular use of the English language. 

3 God has bestowed upon us, through his divine power, everything that we need for life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and virtue. 4 The result is that he has given us, through these things, his precious and wonderful promises; and the purpose of all this is so that you may run away from the corruption of lust that is in the world, and may become partakers of the divine nature. 5 So, because of this, you should strain every nerve to supplement your faith with virtue, and your virtue with knowledge, 6 and your knowledge with self-control, and your self-control with patience, and your patience with piety, 7 and your piety with family affection, and your family affection with love. 8 If you have these things in plentiful supply, you see, you will not be wasting your time, or failing to bear fruit, in relation to your knowledge of our Lord Jesus the Messiah. 9 Someone who doesn’t have these things, in fact, is so short-sighted as to be actually blind, and has forgotten what it means to be cleansed from earlier sins. 10 So, my dear family, you must make the effort all the more to confirm that God has called you and chosen you. If you do this, you will never trip up. 11 That is how you will have, richly laid out before you, an entrance into the kingdom of God’s coming age, the kingdom of our Lord and saviour Jesus the Messiah.

Compare it with the ESV and NIV translations here and you will see for yourself what a useful translation the KNT is. I've also included The Message in the link above to show you that KNT is not a "paraphrased" version either. 

Scot McKnight gave a very good review of it here, saying that, "Better than any translation I know today, other than the most literal of translations (which have an entirely different problem), I hear the author’s Greek behind Tom’s translation. Still, Tom Wright is much more in tune with rendering the Greek NT into contemporary English, and that’s the subtitle of the KNT: A Contemporary Translation. He does so with elan at times. The translation is brisk and energetic, it’s gender neutral, and it has some real surprises that will make you smile — and provide insight at the same time."

I could not find any electronic copy in print at this point of time, and so I might have to make a visit to the bookstore real soon and get myself a copy. 

pearlie 

Questions I had with Genesis

In my recent commute to work, I was listening to Genesis on mp3 and it was very interesting as I began thinking as I listened. These were the few thoughts and questions I had.

1. I realised Adam and Eve actually had quite many years in the garden of Eden before they became discontented and wanted more. They bore another sin names Seth after the death of Cain, when Adam was 130 years old (Gen 5:3). So they would have had many years in Eden before they sinned and were banished.

2. Adam and Eve didn't seem sorry for what they did when they disobeyed God. They did not feel that they needed forgiveness. Was forgiveness something that "existed" then?

3. If Genesis counted for the hundreds of years men lived as literal years, why do we take each of the creation day as millions and billions of years? Moreover, other parts of Scripture interpreting the creation days as single days. 

4. Why did God go through all the trouble with the flood? Why don't he just wipe them all out expect Noah?

pearlie

iOS Bible apps

It is rare for us worshippers to bring our bibles to church or bible study these days. I remember being reminded to bring our own bibles to church rather than using the pew bibles, so that we can personalise our notes and markings in our own copies.

But now, even though I can still see several senior folks bringing their bibles to church services, most, even the seniors themselves, are using bible apps in their phones or tablets.

My son, though he is a techie, for reasons he won't explain, prefers to read print books. And he was lugging the thick and heavy hardcover ESV Study Bible to church every Sunday. Until he realized he has the exact same copy in his iPad!

Now all our printed bibles stay at home, and we have many of them. Had we known...or rather, had I known...


I purchased the Crossway ESV Study Bible app a few years ago and was using it until they discontinued the app recently and transferred it to their free app with in-app purchase options where I can restore the study bible. I'm not sure if I'm happy with it, but I don't have a choice, do I?


Then in my recent reading of Colossians, I chose to read it in the New Living Translation and have read it afresh. I was using the YouVersion Bible app that allows online access to various bible translations. But I found it quite limiting. I wanted to have a better app with the NLT version in my devices and so I went searching for other options and found the Tecarta Bible app.


If Marvin is the best iOS e-reader, then this would be the best bible app. It has these excellent features:

1. Free online access to most bible translations. Offline versions cost around USD7.99 each.

2. Notes are not linked to the verses unlike the Crossway ESV Bible app. I'm not sure which is better though.

3. You can highlight in multiple colours or underline by words or phrases, not necessary by verses, which you can't in the Crossway one that only enables highlighting in whole verses.

4. It allows parallel reading of two bible versions side by side, which is absolutely superb!

Now how I wish I could access my ESV Study Bible in Tecarta.

pearlie

Bible Society Malaysia 30th Anniversary

pearlie

Know your bible translations

I thought this is just too funny, but quite aptly accurate.
What do you think? Which are your favourite versions?

My favourites are the NLT and ESV.

(Source: http://adam4d.com/translations/)


pearlie

My day of languages

If I were to mark each day of my life with a theme -- well, I actually have been doing that in a sense with the title of my daily posts -- then today will be the Day of Languages.

It began when we had a discussion among my colleagues about the Malay language - one of them commented that it does not have an original word for "bag". It uses a loanword: beg.

Later, I remembered Pastor Marvin (of Pantai Baptist Church or PBC, where I am attending for now) had announced that he will be speaking on the topic of the Bible this coming Sunday, in conjunction with the 400th year of the publication of the King James Version of the bible. I am looking forward to hearing it. Other than its spiritual aspect, the history and the technicalities of the Bible takes a very special place of my interests.

It reminded me of two books I have read before -- The Story of English by Robert McCrum and In the Beginning: the Story of the King James Bible and How It Changed a Nation, a Language, and a Culture by Alister McGrath -- that the work of both Shakespeare and the KJV bible is "regularly singled out as one of the most foundational influences on the development of the modern English language" (1). As such, the King James Version serves as a polished jewel in the crown of English language and culture (2).

However, I began to think that with the mark of the 400th year of the KJV, wouldn't the modern version of the English language be considered a very young language? What with the Chinese language that I believe is more than a thousand years old? And I have always thought that the Malay language is a very young language, but English too?

I do know that the modern English language has its origins in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms, which began in the early 5th century.

I shared this with a friend who goes to PBC too and he did not quite believe me when I told him he would not understand Old English. So I showed him The Lord's Prayer in Old English (3):

Original and Translation
Fæder ūre þū þe eart on heofonum
(Father of ours, thou who art in heaven,)

Sī þīn nama ġehālgod.
(Be thy name hallowed.)

Tōbecume þīn rīċe,
(Come thy riche [(kingdom])

ġewurþe þīn willa, on eorðan swā swā on heofonum.
(Worth [manifest] thy will, on earth as also in heaven.)

Ūrne ġedæġhwāmlīcan hlāf syle ūs tō dæġ,
(Our daily loaf do sell [give] to us today,)

and forgyf ūs ūre gyltas, swā swā wē forgyfað ūrum gyltendum.
(And forgive us of our guilts as also we forgive our guilty)

And ne ġelǣd þū ūs on costnunge, ac ālȳs ūs of yfele.
(And do not lead thou us into temptation, but alese [release/deliver] us of [from] evil.)

Sōþlīċe.
( Soothly.)

So in that sense, English isn't so young - it has been evolving for 1500 years till what it is today. A fully developed and perfected language takes a very long time.

A perfected language is one that has a letter of every single sound, one with words that are very original and one that has a wide vocabulary to cover a wide scope in the articulation of meanings. I do not think the Malay language is that fully developed, not even English but it is better, comparatively. I am not sure about the other languages, but I was told that the Arabic language is considered a highly perfected one, as well as Korean.

I went to check out the ages of language and found quite a comprehensive list here in Wikipedia. And I am surprised to find out that Old Malay is as old as Old English, 683AD and 650AD respectively.

Here some familiar ones:
* Greek - 1425-1375 BC
* Old Chinese - 1200 BC
* Aramaic - 950BC
* Hebrew - 950BC
* Korean - 100BC
* Arabic - 512AD
* Old English - 650AD
* Old Malay - 683AD
* Japanese - 700AD
* Old Hindi - 769AD
* Old French - 842AD
* Italian - 960AD
* Middle English - 1066AD
* Thai - 1292AD
* Korean (modern?) - 1446AD
* Early Modern English - 1470AD

Modern English is almost at the last of the list, albeit incomprehensive. And I did not realise that the Greek language is so old, older than Hebrew. But of course that will be Old Greek as compared to the current Modern Greek, which has evolved from Koine or Common Greek, what is used during the New Testament time, i.e. the language of the written text of the NT extant that we have now.

Indeed, a very interesting day of discovery for me.

pearlie

(1) Alister McGrath, In the Beginning, (New York: Anchor, 2001): 253
(2) http://www.sovereignword.org/index.php/defense-of-the-traditional-bible-texts-and-kjb/233-thomas-holland-crowned-with-glory-chapter-05-the-english-jewel
(3) http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Old_English

Actually, that's not in the Bible (CNN Belief)

I found this article in CNN Belief blog. What do you think?

Actually, that's not in the Bible

By John Blake, CNN

(CNN) – NFL legend Mike Ditka was giving a news conference one day after being fired as the coach of the Chicago Bears when he decided to quote the Bible.

“Scripture tells you that all things shall pass,” a choked-up Ditka said after leading his team to only five wins during the previous season. “This, too, shall pass.”

Ditka fumbled his biblical citation, though. The phrase “This, too, shall pass” doesn’t appear in the Bible. Ditka was quoting a phantom scripture that sounds like it belongs in the Bible, but look closer and it’s not there.

Ditka’s biblical blunder is as common as preachers delivering long-winded public prayers. The Bible may be the most revered book in America, but it’s also one of the most misquoted. Politicians, motivational speakers, coaches - all types of people - quote passages that actually have no place in the Bible, religious scholars say.

>>more

pearlie

Word Removal Tool to Aid Memorization

Do you take the effort to memorize bible verses?

The younger you start the longer they stay in your brains. The few verses that I memorized in my younger days are still with me, but the ones I have memorized later in my life have disappeared.

The church I now attend does a bible verse memory execrcise every Sunday, by the pastor before he begins to preach. And I have picked it up again, using the Bible Verses app in my iPhone, which is good because apparently the act of memorizing using a word removal tool really aids in memorization, not flash cards.

For a web-based tool, I think this should be available - www.mybiblememory.com


pearlie

I'd love to read this book

Ryken, Leland. Understanding English Bible Translation: The Case for an Essentially Literal Approach. Wheaton: Crossway Books, 2009. 208 pp.

Review from Christian Book Notes
Introduction
Leland Ryken has been professor of English at Wheaton College since 1968 and has written over 30 books. Most notably, he was the literary stylist for the English Standard Version translation of the Bible published by Crossway as well as the coeditor of the ESV Literary Study Bible.

Review
When you ask the typical Christian why they read the particular Bible translation they are reading they usually give an answer like, “I understand it” or “I was raised with it” or “It was given to me when I became a Christian.” When you ask the typical Christian what translation of the Bible they study, they more than likely offer similar responses.

Read more.

pearlie

Words from the Good Book

This was published in The Star today.

Wednesday December 2, 2009
Words from the Good Book
Mind Our English by LUCILLE DASS

Everyday words and phrases that originated from the Bible.

ACCORDING to The Bible In Facts And Figures, the Old Testament contains 592,493 words; 23,214 verses, 929 chapters and 39 books; the New Testament contains 181,253 words, 7,959 verses, 260 chapters and 27 books. This totals 773,746 words, 31,173 verses, 1,189 chapters and 66 books.

Wow! Expansively impressive. Little wonder that it’s been described as the world’s “greatest book”. This “library of books” (Biblia in Greek) is said to be written by at least 40 authors and took about 1,000 years to compile.

Read more.

pearlie

The Word of God in all simplicity

But to deviate from the truth for the sake of some prospect of hope of our own can never be wise, however slight our deviation may be. It is not our judgment of the situation which can show us what is wise, but only the truth of the Word of God. Here alone lies the promise of God's faithfulness and help. It will always be true that the wisest course for the disciple is always to abide solely by the Word of God in all simplicity.
~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer

Ever since I delved into the study of the Word of God, I have become more sensitive to how it should be read, heard, handled and obeyed. But at this stage, from what I have seen and heard, it saddens my heart. The Word of God is seldom read, seldom preached (most of what is preached is the preacher's anecdote for the day, not the exposition of Scriptures), seldom studied, seldom discussed and as a result seldom obeyed.

But first, a very important question need to be asked: what is the Word of God? Most people these days will say that it also include what the Spirit "tells" them or impress upon them, which if you think about it, could be the reason why the bible is seldom read, preached, studied and obeyed. They are convinced that the Spirit "speaks" to them anyway.

But in this case, wouldn't it will be extrabiblical?

I agree that the Spirit do "speak" to us and "impress" upon us the truth, but I firmly believe that the Spirit reminds and teach us based on what we have learned from God's revelation, that is what is written in the Bible. The Spirit does not add to it, he helps us understand it. So, we still come back to the hearing, reading, preaching, studying and obedience of the written Scriptures, in all its depth and simplicity.

We must hear it read everyday.

We must read it for ourselves everyday.

We must study it.

Preachers must preach the Word, not just give anecdotes or may I say, not even what he thinks the Spirit impressed upon his heart. Preach the Word, it is already given to us.

And from what we hear, learn, study and preach, then we know what and how to obey.

pearlie

Bibles Confiscated

I talked about needing prayers for the sick yesterday - there is another urgent need for prayers, also for the ailing: our country. Kar Yong has it posted in his blog. Take a read, it is important that we know and do something about it:

Bibles Confiscated
Bibles Confiscated - Update

pearlie

BibleReader in Java

I have changed my mobile phone into a Java-based one not long ago, the Sony W850i. I was not too happy when I discovered that I have to give up using the NKJV in the BibleReader, something I have been doing all this while in my Palm Zire and subsequently the Nokia 6680, a Symbian phone.

I received an update from OliveTree.com today announcing that they have updates for BibleReader in Java.

Hip-hip-hurrah! Check it out here. I still would not be able to use the NKJV but at least now I have the bible with me almost all the time.

pearlie