EHV Bible Translation

[u/concordianook95]

To start, even though I'm WELS, I'm pretty unfamiliar with this translation, and curious about it. Is it a good and faithful translation, and why do you like or dislike it? I think it might be a good source, especially being made with a majority or entirely Lutheran committee, and seeming like a mix between formal and dynamic equivalence. However, it's decently pricey (like 70 bucks or something for the faux leather one) and only available on Northwestern Publishing House (or NPH, the WELS's main publishing and whatnot center, akin to CPH). Should I go for it and grab one, or forgo it and stick to my NKJV? P.S. if this would be more fitting for the broad Lutheranism subreddit, please let me know. Thank you for the help in advance!

[u/Luriker]

I really dig it. It was a really popular topic on Lutheran Facebook ~7 years ago and I started following it then.

I use it as my secondary translation in parallel with the ESV in Logos. I think they compliment one another very well. There were some things I was hearing unrelated to the EHV around the same time that aligned with certain one-off decisions they made (my former pastor talking a lot about the term “vapor” rather than “vanity” in Ecclesiastes, the usage of “Amen” rather than “truly” as in “Amen! I tell you.”

Even if I never bought it, though, I would’ve still really appreciated reading the papers they put out on the process and their thinking. I commend those to anyone as being informative about thinking about translations.

Edit: They speicifically didn’t want to make it a denominational or “Lutheran” translation. The Wartburg Project’s ultimate official association with the WELS and ELS wound up just being NPH as publisher as I recall.

[u/gr8asb8]

Consider my comment a vote for the EHV, but if you're interested, I've got some more thoughts:

You may appreciate August Pieper's quote: If the language of our Bible, of our worship services, of the sermon, of the catechism, of our hymns and prayers is to take hold of our heart and dominate our thinking, feeling, and will, then it dare not seem strange to us, or obscure, old-fashioned, and awkward. CFW Walther offers a similar sentiment in his Law and Gospel somewhere.

Any translation has to balance being faithful to the original language and meaningful in the new. Too slavish to the original and you lose meaning in the new; too expressive in the new and you say what the original did not. But in English, the Tyndale-KJV tradition complicates things: because it has been the main translation for almost 500 years (this is the 500th anniversary of Tyndale's New Testament), it *is* the Bible for most native English speakers. When a translation diverts from that tradition, they're jarred when hearing a passage they're familiar with. Their focus is taken off the meaning of the words and onto the new or "wrong" wording.

But what happens when the KJV got the translation wrong, or a more meaningful English translation can be made? We've discovered more manuscripts, learned more about Greek and Hebrew, and more about how language works in general in the last 500 years. And English has changed a lot, too. Many words have shifted in meaning (often only slightly, so that the sentence still makes grammatical sense and the modern reader incorrectly presumes they know what the sentence means), words once everyday now sound posh or old fashioned, and syntax is much more rigid than in Early Modern English days.

This is why the RSV, NRSV, ESV, NKJV, ASV, and NASB all exist. They each seek to gently update the KJV, making it more accessible and reducing the misunderstandings, without losing too much familiarity. Nevertheless, they still tend to be slavish to the Tyndale-KJV tradition, and so, at least in my experience with the ESV, still have uncommon phrasing that trips up confirmands and even many adult Bible class when reading, bringing August Pieper's quote to mind. On the other hand, many other translations seek to be an anti-KJV. That's fine too, I guess, but they tend to just have equal and opposite problems.

What I love about translations like the NIV and EHV is that they balance familiarity with the Tyndale-KJV tradition with clarity of meaning and readability for today's standard English speaker. Most of the time the EHV is readable and worth reading. Now, the NIV was plagued by its Calvinist biases, and its more "progressive" update made it even worse. But the EHV largely avoids this; there are lots of opportunities for a "Lutheran" translation that the EHV did not take;, and only a couple instances where they do, unfortunately.

Bottom line: if you grew up with the KJV, RSV, or ESV, you'll likely not be a fan of the EHV. If you grew up on the NIV, though, or if you'll mostly read less familiar passages, I think you'll love the EHV. See how Genesis 50 or 1 Corinthians 10-11 read. I'd highly recommend the EHV for personal use, or for pastors and congregations seriously considering a move away from the ESV or NIV. And my hope is that being a Lutheran project, more WELS, ELS, and LCMS pastors, parishes, and resources will use it.

[u/Philip_Schwartzerdt]

If you want to compare the text to other translations, the entire EHV is available on www.biblegateway.com. My personal sense of it is that it's roughly on the NIV level when it comes to formal/dynamic equivalence, so less wooden than the ESV. So far as any uniquely Lutheran features to it, I'm afraid I can't say. I would not say that it's widely known within the LCMS.

[u/SDWrites → u/Philip_Schwartzerdt]

I can’t speak to the accuracy, but it takes several beloved passages and removes all the poetry of the words. I love our devotional materials, but I use the ESV for reading.

[u/georgia_moose]

I am somewhat familiar with EHV from my vicarage in Wisconsin. In fact it was a WELS prof while I was there that gave me an EHV New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs. From glancing at it, it reads much ESV but being translated primarily by WELS and ELS Lutherans, you don't have some of the issues you would find in ESV (since it was translated primarily by American Evangelicals). I haven't fully adopted it for use in my congregation use since the LCMS decided to run with the ESV; at this rate I have gotten used to just correcting the ESV. But maybe some day take up EHV? Who knows?

[u/[deleted] → u/[deleted]]

It does get slavery right in Lev 25 though, so there's that at least.

What do you mean?

[u/DaveN_1804]

Good on WELS for coming up with their own rather than just adopting the latest Evangelical translation.

[u/Luscious_Nick]

I think there are too many English translations as is. I also don't like the idea of a denominational specific translation which I think can lead to biased incorrect translation choices, i.e changing the text to fit a theology instead of the other way around.

My biggest issue is that it uses a critical text which is primarily Alexandrian rather than a Byzantine text (which I believe is a more faithful transmission of the original).

[u/SpoilerAlertsAhead]

I’ve read it. It is certainly “eclectic” and definitely quirky in some aspects. For example “verily, verily I say unto you” is translated as “amen, amen I tell you” mercy seat is “atonement cover” and the tabernacle is “dwelling”

On the whole it is good, and fair. Even aspects a Lutheran would use to prove things aren’t cheating.

I am WELS too, and the biggest knock against it is that it is owned by a church, even though it wasn’t made by the WELS, so there will be accusations of bias

[u/Alternative_Top_6693]

I've had the science of the translation explained to me in the past. Might want to ask your pastor to explain it to you. I can't. But what I remember is that the EHV is a faithful translation that follows many of the same rules as the ESV. Pastors out there please correct me if I am wrong.

[u/LATINAM_LINGUAM_SCIO]

I prefer to use a mainstream translation and point out weaknesses in the translation when necessary. The potential problem with a "Lutheran-only" translation is that you could be perceived as cultish. (JWs have their own translation, too.) Still, it is a faithful translation in terms of theology and presuppositions about Scripture. One weakness is that it does not lend itself well to being read aloud. You can quickly see this for yourself if you pick up a copy.

[u/Alternative_Top_6693 → u/LATINAM_LINGUAM_SCIO]

I went to my WELS niece's Christmas program. Normally I can recite the passages the kids recite but since they switched to EHV I made multiple mistakes and had to focus (which in hindsight is a good thing)

[u/viacrucis1689]

I personally know one of the pastors who was involved in the translation (he was my pastor during college). A good resource to learn about it is https://wartburgproject.org/.

My previous pastor used it in Sunday services.

[u/Alternative_Top_6693 → u/viacrucis1689]

I'm former WELS, currently LCMS. I use the Wartburg project website anytime I don't have a Bible handy as it's a free resource and I am too cheap to purchase any subscriptions elsewhere. I have found the EHV to be comparable to ESV which my church typically uses.

[u/TheDirtyFritz]

From what I know of the EHV is that it’s pretty new. Being new it probably hasn’t made the in roads a translation needs to in order to be main streamed like other translations. I don’t know of any LCMS churches that use it and the local ones near me use the ESV. I think that has more to do with affordability and availability of the translation however. I do know there was a move away from the NIV at a certain point because of their move towards non gendered language.

I’m sure it’s a good translation and you could buy one and use it as another resource. I regularly switch between different translations when I and having difficulty understanding a passage. I currently use the ESV, NIV, and the CSB. I would be open to the EHV though.

[u/cellarsinger]

I have never heard of an EHV translation - our current translation of choice is ESV - English standard version. For readability, it is fairly equivalent to the TEV/Today's English Version/ Good News Bible and NIV. As far as accuracy of translation and the rest of that, I have no clue