Translations

     Southside members use a wide variety of English version Bibles.  Our pastor currently preaches from the English Standard Version (ESV).  But the Holman Christian Standard (HCSB) is used frequently within our church too.  Translations of the Bible generally fall into three categories.  Below are lists and explanations of the most common translations: 

I.                    Literal/More Formal (keeps as close as possible to the exact words or phrasing of the original language; the most literal uses terms like the gerah, gomedh, ephah, hin, etc...)

·       King James Version

·           New King James Version

·       New American Standard Bible

·           English Standard Version

·       Holman Christian Standard Bible

II.                  Dynamic Equivalence (translates words and phrases into precise equivalents in modern language.  Biblical measurements are updated to ounces, inches, quarts, etc…)

·         New International Version

·         New Century Version

·         New Living Translation

III.                Free/More Functional (attempts to translate ideas from one language to another, with less concern about exact words; usually referred to as a paraphrase)

·         The Message

·         Living Bible

For more translations go to www.biblegateway.com (or a teenager’s phone!)