If bibles are from god, why do they need to be transliterated at all?

Question

Seems like a true god could speak to us in a language that could be understood by all people.

Answer 1

Good point, especially given that he caused the common tongue to be eradicated at the Tower of Babel. I think maybe because it wasn't written by God... I didn't see his signature in the back or anything, and he isn't listed as an author. Good Question.

Answer 2

Ugh, I am soooo tired of people getting language confused with writing. They aren't the same! Writing is a representation of language--at some point in time, it's basically phonetic, but if the language changes just a little bit, then the writing becomes more abstract. By more abstract, I mean that one spelling doesn't refer to one sound. Ever notice that English has a bunch of bizarre spellings? Some of them are because they were pronounced differently sometime in the past but now the language has left the representation behind. Some of them are because of influential grammar books that said people should spell words a certain way because of aesthetic concerns. Whatever. Based on your question, I doubt I can explain this so you can understand it. Take some linguistics classes.

Writing has its own rules, quirks, and traditions, which do not adhere to the rules of language (spoken or signed.) So if God were speaking to you, then I don't guess it would be too hard to speak your language. But if God were writing something down for you to read, then it would have to be the written form of your language and it would have to conform to the rules of your written language so you could read it. There is no universal alphabet--even the International Phonetic Alphabet has some problems and there is some debate over the symbols in it. Whoever wrote down the Bible, whatever the source of the ideas (God or human inspiration), he or she wrote it in his/her own writing as a representation of what he/she spoke and understood. Did you expect the Bible to be like the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy; changing over and over based on the situation? It's a book, dude! Books outside of Hogwarts stay the same after they're written. So your question is logically invalid because you have mixed two ideas together that don't conform to the same standards. When you have learned the difference between writing and language, ask this question again.

Answer 3

DO YOU THINK GOD HAS A STORAGE ROOM UP THERE AND HE JUST DROPS US A FEW ONCE IN A WHILE? THE BIBLE IS THE "WORD OF GOD" WRITTEN BY THE HAND OF MAN. IT WAS WRITTEN IN THE LANGUAGES OF THE TIME AND TRANSLATED INTO TODAY'S LANGUAGES. HOW MANY PEOPLE DO YOU THINK SPOKE ENGLISH WHEN MOSES PARTED THE RED SEA? A LOT NEEDS TO BE SAID ABOUT THE TRANSLATION OF THE BIBLE. SOME SAY IT HAS BEEN MISTRANSLATED AND SOME SAY MUCH HAS BEEN DELETED BY KINGS WHO HAD THE POWER TO CHANGE WHAT THEY DIDN'T LIKE. I PERSONALLY FEEL IF YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW WHAT WAS REALLY WRITTEN LEARN HEBREW AND READ IT IN ITS ORIGINAL LANGUAGE. THEN YOU CAN MAKE AN EDUCATED AND HEARTFELT DECISION AS TO WHAT HE WAS SAYING TO US. TRUST WHAT YOUR HEART SAYS. SOMEDAY IT WILL BE YOU AND GOD ONE ON ONE AND HE WILL MAKE THE JUDGMENT IF YOU GOT IT RIGHT.

Answer 4

God DID speak to people in a language they understood.

The problem is, I don't understand those langauges, so somebody needs to translate for people like me who don't know Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic (not Arabic).

And to make matters worse, even in the english language, there are so many dialects, that it seems that each group needs things translated to THEIR own version of English. For instance, I never say "Thou" or "thee", so I need a translation that uses words like "You" and "yours", etc.

Furthermore, the english language is so fluid. What I used to mow in the backyard (ie grass), is now something people smoke! And what used to be considered a joyous time (ie "gay") is now a term used for an "alternative lifestyle", so as the language changes, so the translations need to reflect those changes.

Hey, I got an idea - why not read the Bible for yourself, and see exactly what it IS trying to say to us.

Answer 5

Do you speak Hebrew? No? Then it has to be translated for you to read. It's not that God doesn't speak our language, it's that we don't speak his. There is no universal language, and thus there will always be someone who needs a translation.

Answer 6

Because of context and the etymology of language - words change meaning over time. That is why Christ established an authority on earth in his absence.

Answer 7

because at one time there was one language then man messed up and turned away from god so he confused the languages and let man to find his own way

Answer 8

Yep, and there would be no way anything could be interpreted incorrectly. The Bible obviously isn't the word of any god.

Answer 9

The Bible was a storybook designed to keep pillagers off of innocent villagers. It was written by man. Man made. I do not lie. lol! Don't worry about it.

Answer 10

Amen