Accuracy Defined and Illustrated: An NIV Translator Answers Your Questions
By Dr. Ken Barker
International Bible Society. 160 pages. £6.99
ISBN 0 340 64301 3
Since its publication the NIV has sold over 90 million copies and has attracted numerous reviews and critiques. The International Bible Society has encouraged Dr. Ken Barker, the Executive Director of the NIV Translation Centre, to reply to some of these critics, in a series of short books.
In his first book Accuracy Defined and Illustrated, Dr. Barker briefly considers 50 passages in the Old Testament and 100 passages in the New Testament which have been a particular object of criticism. There is also a brief introduction and three appendices.
The value of the book is to be found in its clear explanations of the reasoning behind the translation choices made. They are succinctly expressed and reference is made to supporting evidence in other books from which further information may be gleaned. There are 48 such footnotes in the Old Testament and 79 referring to the New Testament.
This is not a book for those who believe that the NIV translators made their choices as part of a conspiracy theory or for unorthodox theological reasons. It is a reasoned book of explanation. The usefulness of this book lies in the fact that readers can judge the validity or otherwise of the choices made. This reviewer finds a substantial number of the choices made and the reasons given inadequate. However, one of the encouraging facts brought out by this book is that the translators are still considering matters of text and footnotes which need revision. The NIV is not set in tablets of stone; it may yet be improved. Explanatory books such as this one can only help to foster understanding among those who sincerely desire, albeit imperfectly, to see God's Word in modern English.
