Collins Greek Translations

Just some notes.....

Now for some facts that I have learned about the Greek language and text while translating the text:

1. The writers knew what they writing and how to say it as they penned it with guidance of the Sacred Spirit as eyewitnesses of the events as they unfolded. They were just honest reporters.
   
   
2. The Greek language is composed of prepositional phrases that vary from one Greek word to very long statements, and it even has prepositional phrases inside of prepositional phrases.
   
   
3. Many times the writers start a new thought by placing the first word of the phrase in the second place in order to announce the change: For example, “for this reason but…” would be written in English as, “but for this reason….”
   
   
4. All of the words in the Greek text are used and not to be omitted as in other translation, especially the word “the.” When there are two of them together, they are both to be translated as “the” with meanings for both of them, there are many examples of double words.
   
   
5. With some of the Greek words, the translations were difficult to understand in English words. I researched those English words in the dictionary and used that definition; therefore, they are not traceable to a lexicon.
   
   
6. I provided the Greek letter text so that you could check the work. While some words were added to make it readable, some additional words were also added to supplement the meaning, which might not be so clear in the lexical meaning of the word (added in parenthesis).
   
   
7. Many words in English have their root meaning in Greek. For example, the Greek word “kardia” is used in English as “cardiac.” You will find that you probably know more Greek words than you think you do.
   
   
8. Several new English words were created or copied from other sources to have the correct translation for the Greek text. Paul even created his own new word in the Greek text. It is never correct to use an incorrect word or perhaps substitute a noun for a verb (or an action word) just because no correct word existed in the English language. We create new words all the time in English. For example, technology has lead to the creation of thousands of new words.
   
   
9. In Greek when a word is to means the opposite from the root they just put an “a” in front of the root but not all words with an “a” as the first letter are opposite form words.
   
   
10. In Greek when the word as an “e” in front of the root word it happened in the past but not all “e” beginning words are about the past.
    
    
11. The order of words in a Greek phrase is similar to that of the English form. However, you cannot the take a group of words and rearranging them to get a nice sounding religious sentence. For example, where the Greek text says, “to the ones loving God,” in various English translations it is common to find it translated, “to the ones God loves”. There are many examples of this type of mistranslations.
    
    
12. In this lexical translation, the same word in English is used for the same Greek word through out the text. There are some exceptions, but not nearly as many as in the King James Version. The Greek word “kai” or “and” in English, has seventeen different meanings in it that leads to confusion for the learner of the text and reader.
    
    
13. The Greek language is an exact language and very precise language that is easily and clearly understood; it is not vague or with uncertainty in the formal Greek grammar. In one lexicon of the first chapter of The Gospel of John, the Greek word “en” (or “in” in English) gives it three different meanings in the first three verses, even though three of the four were marked with the same grammatical symbols.
    
    
14. I included all of the gambling terms and sexual terms.
    
    
15. This is a work in progress and is never complete until he explains it to us “over there.”
    
    
16. You will be learning a completely different way of thinking. You will learn to think as the Greeks thought.
    
    
17. In Greek, they have their language idioms just as any other language does. You have to learn them along with the rest of the text to know how they used them.
    
    
18. While doing this work, it was difficult at times to maintain the focus of it as a lexical translation. When discussing a phrase, or more specifically a certain word, there were some that would say, “This word means the same thing as…! (They would use a familiar sounding synonym.) I was making a lexical translation not an explanation of the text. I translated the word or phrase with the language that was used in the Greek text by the writer.
    
    
19. I put down the lexical translation whether or not I understood the meaning.
    
    
20. When doing the lexical translation I put down the meaning for that word just as the writer wrote it, not what it could be or should be. The writer didn’t make that change. For example, if the text required “to see” or “we see,” I didn’t put “to know” or “we know” because of a grammar requirement. The writer had that choice of words in his vocabulary and could have inserted it at any point in his writing.
    
    
21. Many words in other translation are not translated, but instead are transliterated. This means the words are just translated as they sound in Greek using the correct English spelling. Unfortunately, this also happened even though a meaning for that word existed but was not used. What was the name of the man that was released before Jesus was killed outright?
    
    
22. Many words are translated with meanings that are not found in any good lexicon. My favorite is Romans 8:28. It is very lengthy so I will not repeat it here. Most of the translations have the same mistakes in this verse.
    
    
23. Besides the many words that are left out, there are also many parts of verses that are left out.
    
    
24. The writers of the New Testament being in Hebrew culture would never have used the slang name for themselves. When Jesus was impaled upon the stake, there was a title over his head. What was he the king of? This is just a poor translation.
    
    
25. I will not venture into textual criticism as to what is the correct text and why except to say that the Textus Receptus has stood the test of time and these later revelations are constantly be revised for many reasons which I will not get into.
    
    
26. One note of warning. Watch the logic that some translations bring forth. The results can be highly improbable or impossible. Not all translators are scholars just because their work is well known and/or used. For example, one current text says that Mary went to see her grandmother (Elizabeth) when she was carrying Jesus in the womb. It is impossible for Elizabeth to have been the grandmother of Mary because the text said that Elizabeth was known to be sterile. Therefore she could not have been the grandmother of Mary. However, she could have been an older sister or an aunt. The Greek text simple states that she was a blood relative.
    
    
27. In this day and age of computer technology, you can research to see who owns the copyright and publishing rights of a translation. It can explain a great deal of editing and publishing abuse in order to use less ink and paper. That means less weight and more profit for them when selling millions of copies.
    
    
28. Look to see if the other translations show the words that have been added. Do they let you assume that they are part of the original biblical Greek text? Do they include the necessary footnotes? And what if they leave words out? Do they leave it up to the reader to discover what they have left out without even an explanation? Again, are there any footnotes to “justify” their work?
    
    
29. Have you ever asked yourself, who owns the text that they are translating from? Who discovered them and are they using them as justification for being a correct text? Have you ever researched where the text is kept, where it was found, and if it is open for inspection or if a copy is on public display to be inspected? In other words, can it be compared to other manuscripts?
    
    
30. Look to see if you can find a copy of the Greek text that the translator used to translate from. How did they arrive at the translation? Was it done in secret and announced to the world as an all-new translation? Most of all check the translation against the Greek text and see if they used the correct meaning for the words. Is the translation just a summary or paraphrase of the verses under consideration?
    
    
31. Find out all you can about the personal belief system of the translators. Do they believe that Jesus did all the doing there was to be done, or do you have to do some else to be rescued?
    
    
32. When choosing a concordance or a lexicon, check to see who or what group has control of editing the text and what belief system it is associated with it. Not all concordances and lexicons are the same. Check for the country of origin and where it is from. Also, what revision is it? What changes were made in the revisions?
    
    
33. When in doubt, return to the Koine Greek and read it again to find the meaning. Never put your eternal destiny in the hands of another translation that is a paraphrase of a verse in Paul’s writing.
    
    

Now that you are ready to learn the Koine Greek, it is as easy as setting time aside each day to read a chapter or two (or even a complete book depending on its size) on the computer. You can read all 3800 pages in just 38 days at one hundred pages a day. In just a short time of reading, you will be able to read the small words of the language. Many words are compound words which when broken down, you will know them as the small words and be able to understand them. For example, such words as near, with, in, or, out of, and other words of the same kind can quickly be recognized and learned.

Once you have selected your reading, size it on your monitor so as to be able to lean back in your chair with your favorite drink in one hand and the mouse in they other hand, and begin to read the pages. The Greek will begin to fly by in full view as you read the English text. When you read a letter from the writers of the first century again and again, the Greek will soon become the words you are reading and not the English. If you make a mistake, look down to correct it and continue on. You will want to practice pronouncing the Greek by reading it from the Romanized Greek text. The more you practice, the easier it will become. Remember the examples above?

As you put in the time, you will soon know the Koine Greek. But as I close this lesson, a word of warning. Just because you have learned the Greek and know what it means and you have come closer to the source of the writing, not everyone will accept the message you have in your heart. You may have to walk down the road of life alone with what you have learned about the Lord Jesus Christ, His Father, what they have done for you, and the way they did it. Let the Sacred Spirit direct your path as you learn to read the Koine Greek. This is coded message from the Father to us. It is not meant to be understood by all who read it, and even less by those who try explain it. For this very reason, I included the Greek text so you can check the work to see if it is completed correctly.

You can go to the sister site to purchase the title of your choice. There is a link to that site on the order page below.

Congratulations as you continue your time here on earth until He invites you home to be with Him, as you are in Him and He is in the Father, then you are in the Father. Let the Sacred Spirit guide you through the learning of the Greek text.

This is the end of this lesson. Below are sample pages from the home site for you to try your hand at learning to read the Greek and see the format style before you purchase the CDs. The samples are the first page of every book in the New Testament for you to read. For many more details on how this work came into being and lessons on the Greek, they are all on the sister site in greater detail.

From the desk of the translator and compiler

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