The New Testament: An Expanded Translation

I know no other language other than English, however the New Testament was written in the Greek text. Therefore the question I have; "Has the English translation carried over the complete thoughts, feeling, revelation and wonder of God's word for my understanding? In other words, if Paul, Mark, Luke, and other writers of the New Testament were writing to me, has the language barriers been removed in order that I know that I have accurately understood what each have written?Kenneth S. Wuest translation has fulfilled my translation desire. Knowing the true feelings, thoughts, and intent of each writer of the New Testament.For example, the King James renders Hebrews 13:5,65 Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.6 So that we may boldly say, The Lord is my helper, and I will not fear what man shall do unto me.Now if the writer of Hebrews was writing to you who spoke only United States English in the year 2000 he would instead write the following in order to transfer the impact of his words.Hebrews 13:5,6Let your manner of life be without love of money, being satisfied with your present circumstances. For He himself has said, and the statement is on record, I will not, I will not cease to sustain and uphold you. I will not, I will not, I will not let you down. So that, being of good courage, we are saying, The Lord is my helper, I will not fear. What shall man do to me?This translation makes an impact! It speaks God's words clearly to me and it may do the same for you as well.

This is a literal translation that attempts to bring out word meaning as fully as possible (no matter how many words it takes). Thus, it provides bottom-line information that sums up Wuest's other books on NT Greek. The translation is quite valuable when comparing with other texts, especially if a good interlinear is one of them. Although the translation is not easily readable, it can be done with only little difficulty. Some important truths are brought out in Wuest's version.However, there is additional value which was not really intended, and it is this: a careful comparison of many translations and interlinears will expose the reader to cases where Wuest has allowed personal doctrinal bias to pollute the translation. This is especially so in 2 Thes 2 where "the apostasy" is retranslated as "the departure of the church to heaven." To me, this exposes that Wuest perceived the actual text was too problematic to the pre-trib theory without this kind of massaging. Thus, Wuest performs in black-and-white what other pre-tribbies try to do more coyly. This example also shows the degree to which interpretation influences translation. To be sure, this is easier to get away with in a one-person translation because there is no committee to catch you, however committees committed to certain viewpoints are not immune. A wealth of translations is a treasure, and Wuest's should be one of many in your collection. I check it constantly.For one other example of doctrinal influence, check out how Wuest places a paragraph break between Matt 16:27 and 16:28. This also is a black-and-white example of what most other teachers do by way of suggest-and-flee, namely, trying to associate verse 28 with the Transfiguration passage of chapter 17. Wuest's translation has the guts to do this trick in print for all to see, but the result is quite awkward. Examples like these are quite valuable learning tools.

This is the most accurate translation available. Hard to read, but worth it. This is a must for every reader of Scripture.

Kenneth S. Wuest is a master of bringing out the word pictures within the Greek text. Rather than a straight word-for-word translation, Wuest expands the text by including either the word picture or a more expanded definition of the word. Reader Result: a fascinating look at New Testament times and what's really going on in the text. The downside is that the text is a much harder read, requiring serious concentration. Also, you quickly discover that a translator is not necessarily a good writer. Nonetheless, it's a reading bonanza for the person wanting to know what's "really going on" in the text. Wuest's other books are bonafide treasures because of his careful exposition and explanation of NT Greek words. He was clearly a master teacher of the language.