Have you ever been falsely accused by a computer? During prime air conditioning season this past summer, Greg nearly had his household electricity disconnected because a bill he’d never been sent for a service call hadn’t been paid on time. Why? Because the technological wonder governing his account with the power company said so. Fortunately, a live, competent, human being intervened, exercised some personal judgment and overrode the computer’s verdict. But it was a warm reminder of the pertinent 20th century saying “To err is human; to really mess things up requires a computer.” Technology alone can never replace well-reasoned thinking by people.

The translators of the new Holman Christian Standard Bible® offer a valuable paradigm for using computer technology to strengthen the work of Bible translation. They balance it with time-honored scholarship, prayerful debate, and a high regard for the work of those who have gone before – particularly their 17th century counterparts who created the most revered Bible translation of all time.

Faithful to the Core

“One of the core values we share with the King James Version,” says Holman CSB® General Editor Ed Blum, “is that both the KJV and the Holman CSB® translators use the best texts available as the source from which to develop the translation.” Although the specific text to which Blum refers has changed as a result of scholarship over the last four centuries, the guiding principle remains the same.

King James translators believed that to render God’s Word with integrity meant that careful selection of source texts was a serious responsibility. That drove them to texts which had been used by scholars of a generation earlier – men like William Tyndale. For the HCSB® team, the choice has been what contemporary scholars refer to as the Critical Text. For the New Testament, that is embodied in the Nestle-Aland Novum Testamentum Graece (27th edition) and for the Old, the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (5th edition). Alternate texts are measured against these as the primary sources.

In Other Words

Another principle shared with KJV translators is to evaluate how others have rendered the language. The reason for this may not be obvious at first, but translating is not simply a matter of looking up synonyms in a thesaurus.

“Previous translators have had to grapple with hard word choices,” notes Frank Carmical, Associate Editor for the Holman CSB® and Ed Blum’s right hand man. “We’re continually amazed at the wisdom brought to bear in difficult translation situations. Things that at first may not make sense become clear when viewed in light of someone’s earlier finished work.”

For KJV translators, the options for earlier reference in English translations was limited. William Tyndale and his followers in the 16th century were the first to complete an English translation wholly from the original languages. Their work apparently passed muster with the KJV scholars because much of their wording is reflected in the 1611 KJV.

Still earlier translations by Miles Coverdale and John Wycliffe (who translated the Bible into English from the Latin text) also offered perspective to those at work on the King James Version. For the Holman CSB® translators, the field of vision includes dozens of English translations and paraphrases created mostly in the last 100 years.

English translations were not the only ones consulted by KJV translators, however. They accessed the monumental 16th century work of Martin Luther, the German translation that is still highly regarded today. In addition, the Latin Scripture, including the ancient Septuagint version of the Old Testament, were open to examination by KJV scholars and now to Holman CSB® translators.

Writing in Style

To preserve the majesty of the Bible, Holman CSB® scholars also have mimicked the King James’ approach to language style. Ed Blum points out,>

“Many people think that every man, woman, and child in 17th century England talked like the King James Version reads, but they didn’t. King James language style was accessible to a literate person of that time, but it’s not street language. The KJV presents a refined manner of speech. They were concerned about retaining dignity in Scripture.”

While “thee” and “thou” have long since exited the speech patterns of even the most refined gentlemen in America and England, Holman CSB® translators uphold a value for preserving the dignity of wording in Scripture. Word choices avoid a roughness or “street level” quality.

An example of this kind of choice came to light at a gathering of HCSB® translators early in the process of working on the Old Testament. Duane Garrett, professor of Old Testament at Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary and a translator for the book of Psalms, described a wording issue in Psalms 14:1. “The sense in the Hebrew is that the person who does not believe in God is a ‘jerk,’ not just a ‘fool.’ But that terminology doesn’t reflect an appropriate level of respect for God’s Word.”

So, in the Holman CSB^® (as in the KJV) the atheist is still foolish: “The fool says in his heart, ‘God does not exist.’”

King James scholars likewise were careful to render significant theological terms. At a pastors meeting at this year’s Southern Baptist Convention, Dr. R. Albert Mohler, Jr., President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, explained the rightness of retaining words whose meaning cannot be appropriately dumbed down:

“The original audience for Scripture was not your ‘man on the street’ but rather your ‘man in the pew’ who had some level of theological understanding. So we shouldn’t attempt to reduce our language to the street level.”

As a result, the Holman CSB®, like the KJV, includes richly endowed words such as “propitiation,” “atonement,” “justification,” and “redemption.”

Fitting Formats

Finally, through carefully crafted formatting and notation, the producers of the King James went to extra trouble to be sure a reader had every opportunity to internalize Scripture. The King James uses headings to summarize each subsection of Scripture so that readers get an overview of what the verses are about. Cross references and notes that detail alternate readings expand the understanding of certain passages. Further, the KJV provides studies on key words and includes in the text italicized words where words have been added to clarify the original meaning.

The Holman CSB® has picked up all of these techniques for presenting Scripture accurately to its readers (with the exception that words supplied for clarity are denoted in brackets rather than italics).

“We’ve followed many of the same principles as the King James translators,” summarizes Dr. Blum. “One other thing I hope we do is to stand the test of time as well as the King James. We’d be thrilled (and more than a little humbled) if translators in the year 2400 are referencing what we’ve done here.”

Sam Gantt taught Greek and Hebrew at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, for 20 years before joining Holman Bible Publishers in 2001 to head up the communications team for the Holman Christian Standard Bible®. He is an ordained minister and is currently developing an analytical-interlinear Greek-English New Testament for Holman. Gantt’s doctoral studies are in Educational Leadership and Technology at Pepperdine University.

Greg Webster is a freelance writer and director of The Gregory Group advertising and marketing agency. He has spent more than 15 years in various aspects of Christian publishing including marketing, product concept, and editorial development, and holds an M.A. in Theology from Fuller Theological Seminary, as well as the M.B.A. from the University of Georgia.