weecalvin1509: Correcting or improving?

Just because something is good enough doesn’t mean that it cannot be bettered. Let us apply this to our beloved Authorised (King James) Bible. I picked this thought up initially through using my Newberry Reference Bible.

Let’s take a Greek word: “gnosto” which is translated as “know” in Matthew 6:3 where our left hand is not to know what our right hand is doing in alms giving. It is a basic, no frills Greek word. However, a prefix is sometimes attached to the basic word (“epi” meaning “upon”) which strengthens the word. We pick this up in our AV in 2 Corinthians 6:9 where Paul said they went from being “unknown”, not only to “known”, but “well known” – the prefix being recognised and given full force by the AV translators.

Often the AV men left the fuller “epignosto” to be translated merely as “know”. They do so, for example, in 1 Corinthians 13:12 where Paul speaks of a day that he would “know” (gnosto) even as he is “known” (gnosto). However, Newberry in his marginal note (see above photograph) rightly “upgrades” the translation to “fully know”. If I was preaching on 1 Corinthians 13:12, I look probably to see how the word is translated elsewhere. I see the words, “acknowledge” and “perceived” come up. But I would certainly light upon the “fully know” because the emphasis comes across in the translation.

HERE'S MY POINT

Here's my point: Is it correcting the AV to change the wording from “know” to “know fully” or “well known” when preaching or if translating? I would deny. I am correcting nothing because nothing is wrong. All I am doing (or Newberry is doing to be specific) is replacing an acceptable word with a better one. Improving but not correcting.

Merely for the record: The ESV/NAS/NIV/Amplified Bible all give the “epignosto” in 1 Corinthians 13:12 its full force. (Wuest does in the first use of the word, but not the second.) The AV/NKJV/Geneva/Tyndale do not do so in 1 Corinthians 13:12, but the AV/NKJV do so in 2 Corinthians 6:9 with the Geneva and Tyndale reverting back to the less forceful “know.” Just a thought.

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