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In the world today, there are a number of false views that are being taught about God. For example, some believe that God is either male, female or both, while others believe that He is like a man who can be seen and touched. Therefore they have
changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things (Romans 1:23).Let us search the Scriptures to come to a better understanding about the physical nature of God.
God is neither male nor female. Jesus said,
God is a Spirit; and they that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).Furthermore, men, both in times past and today, have created idols because they desire a god that they can see and touch with their hands, either in the form of inanimate(i.e. sun, moon, stars, plants and trees) or animate(i.e. men or animals) objects.
God is an eternal being. David said,
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God (Psalms 90:2).Also,
Thy throne is established of old: thou art from everlasting (Psalms 93:2).In addition, there were no other Gods that existed before Him. In Isaiah 43:10, we read,
Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me.
God is alive. The athiest movement promotes the idea that there is no God. In addition, the Unitarian Universalist church teaches that, since God is non-existant, each man, therefore, is his own god. Paul rebuked the Athenians for worshipping an "uknown God." In Acts 17:22-29, we read,
Then Paul stood in the midst of Mars' hill, and said, Ye men of Athens, I perceive that in all things ye are too superstitious. For as I passed by, and beheld your devotions, I found an altar with this inscription, TO THE UNKNOWN GOD. Whom therefore ye ignorantly worship, him declare I unto you. God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men's hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation; That they should seek the Lord, if haply they might feel after him, and find him, though he be not far from every one of us: For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring. Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
It is by faith (Hebrews 11:3) and through a diligent study of the Bible (2 Timothy 3:15) that one can believe in the existence of God, that He is a Spirit, and that He is alive and well today. Next week, we will examine the character of God.
Ira Mikell
ira@thechristianexaminer.com
Last week, we were able to determine the history of how we received our modern Bible translations. Let us now look at two closely related versions, the King James Version (KJV) and the New King James Version (NKJV).
The KJV was created in 1611 as a revision of the primary English translations of its time, the Tyndale translation, the Bishops' Bible, and the Geneva Bible. These versions were compared with Erasmus' Greek text, the Textus Receptus, and any differences were reconciled.
The one major strength of the KJV is in its faithfulness to the original Greek: no other version is as literally translated as the KJV. Now, in some cases, the literal translation will be difficult to understand due to differences in language and idiom; however, when modern translators began to "explain" certain phrases and words in the text, they have gone overboard, clarifying in many places where clarification is not necessary.
The KJV text is also very pleasing to be read due to the antiquity of its language; Elizabethan English is nice to hear. The KJV is also widely used, and if one wishes to fit in anywhere, the KJV is universally accepted as a good version of the Bible.
Some of the KJV's weaknesses spring from its strengths. While the Elizabethan English is pleasing to the ears, it can be difficult for modern English speakers to understand. The English language has changed significantly over the past three hundred years, and so many of the phrases used in the KJV are simply obsolete.
Furthermore, the Greek text on which the KJV is based has been found to be lacking in some areas. Many words and phrases were added within lines of Scripture in the 1,500 years of copying the New Testament, and these additions are clear when examining the older copies. 1 John 5:7 also in the KJV follows an errant reading perpetuated by Jerome in his translation of the Latin Vulgate in his attempt to refute those who denied the idea of the Trinity, as seen below:
For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one (KJV).
And it is the Spirit who bears witness, because the Spirit is the truth (NASB).The vast majority (in fact, all but one copy, and that one has been questioned) follow the NASB reading of this verse.
These variations make up a small percentage of the text, but they do exist, and for those who would use their Bible for discussion of what the text says, especially with arguments hinging on a word or phrase, the variants are important.
The KJV is a solid version, and is good for any serious Bible student to have in his or her bookcase. Unfortunately, the errors in the texts used to translate this version make it difficult to use in serious argumentation. Also, the language changes in the past three hundred years make the KJV difficult to understand. If you like the language and the challenge, use the KJV, and enjoy it. Before making any arguments hinging on certain words or phraseology, however, consult a more modern version (I recommend ASV or NASB) and/or the Greek texts to determine whether or not the argument is on solid ground.
The NKJV is a modern revision (1981) of the KJV, with the changes mostly in the adaptation of the language from seventeenth century norms to the modern language of the twentieth century.
Since the changes made to the NKJV were mostly to update the idiom and phraseology of the KJV, the literal translation of the text is still present, and helpful. This literal translation is this time paired with more modern language, which makes the version easier to understand.
Along with the KJV, the weaknesses of the NKJV spring from its strengths. The only changes made were in how the language was expressed; no revisions were made due to the discovery of older Greek texts, and thus the NKJV shares the same textual problems as the KJV does: added words and phrases, and even 1 John 5:7 follows the KJV translation. Along with the KJV, arguments involving semantics may be troublesome with the NKJV.
The NKJV shares some of the same strengths and weaknesses of the KJV, yet the language assistance is the reason why in many places the NKJV is more popular. The literal translation of the KJV is made more understandable in the modern English of the NKJV; unfortunately, however, the text is still not as reliable as that of other versions. The NKJV is another good version to have in your collection, but be wary of using it for semantical arguments.
We have now seen the strengths and weaknesses of the KJV and the NKJV; next week, we will examine the American Standard Version and its later derivations, and see how they compare with the versions we examined today.
Ethan R. Longhenry
ethan@thechristianexaminer.com
www.deusvitae.com
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