Introduction
N. T. Wright observes, "For too long, we have read scripture with nineteenth-century eyes and sixteenth-century questions. It's time to get back to reading with first-century eyes and twenty-first-century questions" (p. 37). These two sentences inspired me to create this website called "First Century Christian Faith" in 2017, a year after Justification: God's Plan & Paul's Vision (IVP Academic, 2016) came out. Wright continues his quest to read scripture with first-century eyes and twenty-first-century questions in writing the third edition of his The New Testament for Everyone (Zondervan, 2023), which came out on October 17. By the way, Bible Gateway has the third edition of The New Testament for Everyone (NTFE) on its dropdown menu of Bible translations in English.
Question: Did N. T. Wright succeed in translating the original biblical Greek into a "first-century" style of contemporary English?
Analyzing the Translation
Like many Christians, I have a list of verses that I use as a "litmus test" for the accuracy of a Bible translation. These verses include Matthew 4:19, Matthew 8:20, John 15:13, Acts 18:26, Romans 16:1, 1 Corinthians 6:9, 1 Timothy 3:1, and 1 Timothy 3:11. Aside from John 15:13, Bible translators render each of these verses differently according to a doctrinal or denominational bias. Wright wants us to approach them with first-century eyes rather than trying to justify our pet doctrines or our church affiliations. In the following verses, I compare the NTFE translation with the Greek–English interlinear text from Bible Hub. Bible Hub is a production of the Online Parallel Bible Project based in Glassport, Pennsylvania.
Matthew 4:19
Greek: Kai legei autois deute opisō mou kai poiēsō humas halieis anthrōpōn.
Literal: And he says to them, "Come follow after me, and I will make you fishers of people."
NTFE: "Follow me!" said Jesus. "I'll make you fish for people!"
Complementarian readers prefer translations like the English Standard Version (ESV) that render Matthew 4:19 as "Follow me, and I will make you fishers of men." However, in a footnote, the ESV translators admit, "The Greek word anthrōpoi refers here to both men and women." For this reason, I use Matthew 4:19 as a "litmus test" to see if a translation includes this complementarian bias. Jesus told his apostles to evangelize both men and women, hence the noun anthrōpos (G444), meaning "humankind." We may find this Greek root in our English term "anthropology," the study of humanity.
Conversely, if Jesus only wanted his apostles to be "fishers of men," Matthew would have used the noun andros (G435). We see the Greek root andros in the masculine name "Andrew" and the word "android." However, Wright slightly changes the literal Greek wording for the NTFE by shifting the focus from the noun "fishers" to the action of "fishing." Most likely, he decided to de-emphasize the traditional masculine wording standard to Western translation further. Wright would probably argue that he is using his "first-century eyes" to preserve the dynamic theme of evangelism rather than the literal focus on the apostles.
Matthew 8:20
Greek: Kai legei autō ho Iēsous hai alōpekes phōleous echousin kai ta peteina tou ouranou kataskēnōseis ho de Huios tou Anthrōpou ouk echei pou tēn kephalēn klinē.
Literal: And he says to him—Jesus—"Foxes holes have, and the birds of the air nests, but the Son of Man no has where the head he might lay."
NTFE: "Foxes have their dens," replied Jesus, "and the birds in the sky have their nests. But the son of man has nowhere he can lay his head."
The hard conservatives who teach complementarianism are not the only ones who often mistranslate the noun anthrōpos. The liberal translators of the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) and the Common English Bible (CEB) rendered the christological title Huios tou Anthrōpou as the "Human One" rather than the more traditional "Son of Man." Although Wright correctly translates Huios tou Anthrōpou as "son of man," he uses lowercase to indicate that Nicaea's christological sophistications had not occurred when the New Testament was written. However, we can understand Huios tou Anthrōpou as the "Son of Humankind," the masculinity of Jesus was no mere coincidence. Creeds and confessions protect the integrity of biblical doctrine, such as the identity of Jesus as the Son of Man. Therefore, in the Nicene Creed, we say, "he became man," to confess that Jesus came to us not only as a human but also as a male.
John 15:13
Greek: Meizona tautēs agapēn oudeis echei hina tis tēn psuchēn autou thē huper tōn philōn autou.
Literal: Greater than this love, no one has that one the life of them should lay down for the friends of them.
NTFE: No one has a love greater than this, to lay down your life for your friends.
This is the only verse I choose to test a Bible translation without controversy. I go to John 15:13 mainly to see if the translators emphasize "greater love" as the subject of the verse or "no one" as the actor committing the action. Wright emphasizes "no one" as the subject and "greater love" as the object, which is consistent with English grammar rules that disfavor passive voice. However, I prefer to translate the first clause of John 15:13 in the same way it appears in Greek because I believe the author, John, intended for "greater love" to be the subject of the sentence and not the object.
Acts 18:26
Greek: Houtos te ērxato parrēsiazesthai en tē synagōgē akousantes de autou Priskilla kai Akulas proselabonto auton kai akribesteron autō exethento tēn hodon tou Theou.
Literal: He then began to speak boldly in the synagogue, having heard however him, Priscilla and Aquila they took to [them] him and, more accurately, to him expounded the way of God.
NTFE: He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him to one side and expounded the Way of God to him more accurately.
Acts 18:26 is a point of contention when complementarians and egalitarians debate the role of women in church leadership. There are two Greek words of interest here: proslambanō (G4355) and ektithēmi (G1620). The New International Version (NIV) correctly renders the Greek verb proslambanō (G4355) as "invited him to their home" in Acts 18:26. In contrast, other versions, such as the English Standard Version (ESV) translates proslambanō as "took aside" (see Acts 18:26 ESV). The preposition of pros- (G4314) intensifies the verb lambanō (G2983, "to lay ahold of with initiative"), therefore making proslambanō an aggressive reception of another person with strong personal interest. Wright goes for a more literal translation, perhaps because the context would be too challenging to write out in a single verse. The second word, ektithēmi, deals with the nature of Priscilla's exposition to Apollo. The verb means "to send forward" or "to cast forth," referring to someone explaining an idea with force. In other words, Priscilla and Aquila did not quietly take Apollo aside for a sidebar conversation. Instead, they invited him to their house church in Ephesus and thoroughly detailed how John's baptism relates to the Way of God (see "Priscilla & Aquila"). I found it interesting how Wright capitalized "Way" in Acts 18:36, referring to the early name of the Christian movement.
Romans 16:1
Greek: Synistēmi de humin Phoibēn tēn adelphēn hēmōn ousan kai diakonon tēs ekklēsias tēs en Kenchreais.
Literal: I commend now to you, Phoebe, the sister of us being also a server of the church in Cenchreae.
NTFE: Let me introduce you to our sister Phoebe. She is a deacon in the church at Cenchreae.
This verse is also relevant to the debate over women in church leadership. The ESV translators understood Phoebe as a "servant" rather than a "deacon." The Greek noun diakonos (G1249) means "server." However, when Luke wrote the Acts of the Apostles, he clarified that "servers" were explicitly responsible for church administration. See these verses: "It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on [Greek: diakoneō] tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word" (Acts 6:2-4). As a scholar of early church history, Wright knew that Canon 15 in the Council of Chalcedon in AD 451 explicitly mentioned female deacons. So, his calling Phoebe a "deacon" is consistent with its use in ancient Greek.
1 Corinthians 6:9
Greek: Ē ouk oidate hoti adikoi Theou basileian ou klēronomēsousin mē plasnasthe oute pornoi oute eidōlolatrai out moichoi oute malakoi oute arsenokoitai.
Literal: Or not know you that [the] unrighteous ones of God [the] kingdom not will inherit? Not be deceived: neither the fornicators nor image-worshipers nor adulterers nor soft ones nor man-bedders.
NTFE: Don't you know that the unjust will not inherit God's kingdom? Don't be deceived! Neither immoral people, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor practicing homosexuals of whichever sort . . .
This verse is a quick indication in determining the bias of a Bible translation. The Greek malakos (G3120) means "soft" and is also used to describe Herod's "soft" robes. Therefore, scholars never translate it literally because "soft" has other connotations in vernacular English, such as "not gangsta." In context, malakos refers to an effeminate man or the passive male in a homosexual relationship. Conversely, arsenokoitai (G733) refers to the active partner who literally "lifts the man onto the bed." Therefore, Wright is correct in his dynamic translation: "nor practicing homosexuals of whichever sort." The New International Version (NIV) renders the clause as: "nor men who have sex with men" (see here). The liberal scholars of the New Revised Standard Version, Updated Edition (NRSVue) took a broader approach: "men who engage in illicit sex" (see here). They added a mendacious footnote, "Meaning of Gk [Greek] uncertain." Because Wright is an intellectually honest scholar, he studied the words and their historical context rather than trying to force them into a contemporary liberal view of homosexuality.
1 Timothy 3:1
Greek: Pistos ho logos ei tis episkopēs oregetai kalou ergou epithumei.
Literal: Trustworthy is the saying: if anyone overseership aspires to of good a work he is desirous.
NTFE: "Here is a trustworthy saying: if someone is eager to oversee God's people, the task they seek is a fine one."
Translators render the Greek noun episkopēs (G1984) as either "bishop" or the more literal "overseer" depending on whether they come from a high-church or a low-church faith tradition, respectively. For example, the high-church Roman Catholic translation, called the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE), reads: "Whoever aspires to the office of bishop desires a noble task" (see here). Conversely, the low-church Evangelical reading in the NIV says: "Whoever aspires to be an overseer desires a noble task" (see here). The noun episkopēs combines the preposition epi- (G1909) with the verb skopeō (G4648) to form a compound word meaning "to see over." So, when Wright uses the term "overseership" in the NTFE, he is correct. Paul focused on the elder's responsibility to watch over the church rather than on his rank or office.
1 Timothy 3:11
Greek: Gunaikas hōsautōs semnas mē diabolous nēphalious pistas en pasin.
Literal: Women likewise [must be] dignified not slanderers, clear-minded, faithful in all things.
NTFE: The womenfolk, too, should be serious-minded, not slanderers, but temperate and faithful in all things.
This verse is also contested between complementarians who deny women in church leadership roles versus egalitarians who encourage them. Wright translates it dynamically with womenfolk, meaning "the women in a family or society" (Cambridge Dictionary). In other words, he views the gunaikas of 1 Timothy 3:11 as female members of the church. The Greek noun gunaikas (G1135) can mean "woman" as well as "wife," leading scholars to debate whether Paul was talking about the wives of deacons, female deaconesses, or simply the women attending the church. Wright takes the last approach. In contrast, the NIV renders 1 Timothy 3:11 as: "In the same way, the women are to be worthy of respect, not malicious talkers but temperate and trustworthy in everything," with a footnote saying, "Possibly deacons' wives or women who are deacons" (see here).
Conclusion
In the NTFE, Wright gives us a first-century reading of the New Testament as if the apostles wrote in twenty-first-century English. His attempt to provide us with "first-century eyes" with "twenty-first-century questions" is mostly successful. Like many readers of Wright, I take issue with his use of lowercase when referring to the Holy Spirit or the Son of Man. However, he means no blasphemy nor suggests a low pneumatology or christology. Instead, Wright wants us to understand the development of the Trinity in its unrefined, earthy Hebraic context in the New Testament without reading in the later Hellenic vocabulary of Nicaea. Likewise, he takes a conservative approach to all verse translations in the NTFE. His goal was to convey the meaning of the New Testament writers rather than substantiate a later Christian doctrine. In this way, The New Testament for Everyone has enough continuity with conservative translations like the NIV, but just enough differences to make any proponent of later developments feel squeamish.
Prayer
Blessed are you, LORD our God, King of the universe; through Jesus Christ our Lord; for he is your living Word from before time and for all ages; by him, you created all things, and by him, you make all things new. Amen.
Bibliography
The Book of Common Prayer. Huntington Beach, CA: Anglican Liturgy Press, 2019. p. 152. https://bcp2019.anglicanchurch.net/wp-content/uploads/2019/08/BCP2019.pdf.
Byassee, Jason. "Surprised by N.T. Wright." Christianity Today. Carol Stream, IL: Christianity Today, 2014. https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2014/april/surprised-by-n-t-wright.html.
Percival, Henry. "Council of Chalcedon (AD 451)." Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers 14. Eds. Philip Schaff and Henry Wace. Buffalo: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1900. Kevin Knight, edited for New Advent, 2018. https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/3811.htm.
Wright, N. T. Justification: God's Plan & Paul's Vision. Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2016.
⸻. The New Testament for Everyone. Third ed. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2023.
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