Today is Thanksgiving here in the U.S., and I feel very blessed to be in a role that helps bring you God's light, peace, and comfort through His Word. As I contemplated what to focus on today, I read Psalm 107:1. It's a favorite of mine whenever I think about how lucky I am to be in good health and have loving friends and family. Today, I looked it up and read it in parallel, or side-by-side, with both the New International Version and the New King James Version of the Bible. I found an interesting difference between the translations. |
Do you spot the difference? |
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Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good; his love endures forever. (NIV)
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good!
For His mercy endures forever. (NKJV) |
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The difference that stood out to me as I looked at these verses side-by-side, was that NIV says God's "love" endures, compared to his "mercy" endures in the NKJV. |
I have several questions. |
What Hebrew word from the Old Testament was translated as "love" and "mercy"? I'm digging in with my Bible Gateway Plus account to find out. To find my answer, I'm going to focus on the NIV and turn on the NIV Reverse Interlinear. - Make sure the New International Version is open
- Open the Page Options and check the box next to "Reverse Interlinear."
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(What's an Interlinear? It's a way of showing the English words from a modern translation below the original language text. A Reverse Interlinear puts the Hebrew or Greek word below the English.) |
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The words from the original language translation will appear below English words. In this case, find "love" and click the word ḥesed and its definition appears. If you're not following along, it lists several meanings in how it's been translated into English. They are, "unfailing love, loyal love, devotion, kindness, often based on a prior relationship, especially a covenant relationship:– love (126), kindness (41), unfailing love (39), great love (5), mercy (4), kindnesses (3), unfailing kindness (3)," and more. |
What's fascinating as you dig into these definitions is that the numbers in parentheses indicate how many times the word, in this case ḥesed, was translated into these English words. It was translated to love 126 times, and only 4 times to mercy! |
Why did the NKJV translators choose to translate it as mercy? |
The answer can be found in the NKJV Study Bible. Here it says, "The key point of this psalm is that God's mercy endures forever. He is always willing to restore those who call on Him." |
What am I most thankful for today? |
I am thankful that we have a merciful God in heaven who will help those who call on him. Now, I will continue studying this theme of mercy, and I've started my next step by searching each translation for the word, "mercy." (There are 222 results in the Old Testament from the NKJV, and only 126 in the whole NIV!) And I will use Bible Gateway Plus to answer any questions I have as I explore. If you join Bible Gateway Plus today, you'll get the best deal of the year, saving 20% off for life! You'll have access to 60+ resources valued at over $3,100. Start your 14-day free trial and see what you can learn when you dig deeper! I pray that you will also continue this study on God's mercy and go deeper with Bible Gateway Plus to answer questions that you have as you read God's Word. Blessings, Jody from Bible Gateway |
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Not quite ready to go this deep? Try the Bible Audio App and hear God's Word instead! |
When your hands are busy, but your mind is free, make a point to listen to God's voice. Choose a narration you'll enjoy from single voice to dramatized editions, and then use the following features. √ Set verses or chapters to repeat. √ Speed up or slow down how quickly the Scripture is read. √ Set a timer and build time for the Bible into your daily schedule. The Bible Audio app is a great way to embrace daily Bible reading as you begin to make the Bible a central part of your day. Upgrade for offline listening, and access to beloved narrations! |
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