Common english bible
Encyclopedia
The Common English Bible (or CEB) is an English translation of the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures
, including the deuterocanonical books
or apocrypha
included in Catholic Church
and Orthodox Church
canons. The English used is intended to be at "a comfortable level for over half of all English readers," hence the name "Common English". The translation was begun in late 2008 and was finished in 2011.
. The publishing houses participating are Chalice Press (Disciples of Christ), Westminster John Knox Press (Presbyterian Church U.S.A.), Church Publishing Inc (Episcopal Church
), Pilgrim Press (United Church of Christ
), and Abingdon Press
(United Methodist Church
). According to the CEB's preface, the motivation for producing a new translation was that "it has proved difficult to combine concern for accuracy and accessibility in one translation that the typical reader or worshipper would be able to understand." One hundred twenty scholars from twenty-four different denominations worked on the translation.
was translated from the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament
(27th Edition), a standard edition of the Greek used in many versions of the Christian scriptures. With the Hebrew Scriptures
various editions of the traditional Masoretic text
were used: the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia
(4th edition), Biblia Hebraica Quinta
(5th edition), and in some cases the Hebrew University Bible Project
. However, as with many modern Bibles, the Old Testament was occasionally emended using readings from the Dead Sea Scrolls
, the ancient Septuagint Greek translation, and other sources.
For the Apocrypha, the currently unfinished Göttingen Septuagint was used as the basis. Books that were not available in the Göttingen project were translated from the latest revision of Rahlfs Septuagint (2006). Surviving Hebrew manuscripts of some Septuagint books were consulted as well.
so a 7th grade reading level could be attained. The translators' goal is to produce a rendering of the Bible at the same reading level as the USA Today
newspaper.
Portions of scripture were assigned to each of the 120 translators. Each produced a draft translation which was then reviewed and modified by a co-translator. The resulting text was then sent to one of 77 "reading groups", teams of five to ten non-specialists that read it out loud and noted awkward translations. The rendering, along with suggestions for improvement, was then sent to a readability editor to check style and grammar, followed by a complete review by the editor for that section of the Bible. The text was then put before the entire editorial board which resolved any lingering controversies and ensured consistency throughout the entire Bible translation.
The translators include such scholars as Tremper Longman
, Luke Timothy Johnson
, David L. Petersen
, Brent A. Strawn, Beverly Gaventa, Gail O'Day, Cynthia Westfall, and Joel B. Green
. They come from 24 Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish faith communities. Members of the reading groups belonged to 13 denominations. Overall more than 700 people worked on the Common English Bible.
" in the Old Testament (e.g. Ezekiel 2:1) the CEB translates it as "human." In the New Testament where Jesus uses the Greek version of this term of himself—probably with messianic overtones—the CEB renders it "the Human One." Another example of common English is substituting "harass" for "persecute": "If the world harassed me, it will harass you too," (John 15:20).
Contraction
s are used more frequently in the Common English Bible than in more Formal Equivalent translations. For example, the New Revised Standard Version
renders Luke 12:7 as, "But even the hairs of your head are all counted. Do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows." The CEB has, "Even the hairs on your head are all counted. Don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows."
The maps of biblical lands in the Common English Bible are produced by the National Geographic Society
.
The full Common English Bible, both Old and New Testaments and the Apocrypha, can be accessed for passage lookup online at the CEB website.
, Matthew
, the Book of Genesis and the Book of Psalms are being offered for download in .pdf format. Short audio recordings of various scriptures have also been posted. Until July 31, 2010 a free printed copy of the entire New Testament
was also being offered by mail.
In April 2011 Fuller Theological Seminary
, a leading evangelical school, selected the CEB as one of two approved Bible translations for Biblical studies courses, replacing the soon-to-be-discontinued Today's New International Version
.
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, including the deuterocanonical books
Deuterocanonical books
Deuterocanonical books is a term used since the sixteenth century in the Catholic Church and Eastern Christianity to describe certain books and passages of the Christian Old Testament that are not part of the Hebrew Bible. The term is used in contrast to the protocanonical books, which are...
or apocrypha
Apocrypha
The term apocrypha is used with various meanings, including "hidden", "esoteric", "spurious", "of questionable authenticity", ancient Chinese "revealed texts and objects" and "Christian texts that are not canonical"....
included in Catholic Church
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
and Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
canons. The English used is intended to be at "a comfortable level for over half of all English readers," hence the name "Common English". The translation was begun in late 2008 and was finished in 2011.
History
The Common English Bible is sponsored by an alliance of several denominational publishers in the USA operating under an umbrella group called the Christian Resources Development Corporation (CRDC), incorporated in 2009 and based in Nashville, TennesseeNashville, Tennessee
Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...
. The publishing houses participating are Chalice Press (Disciples of Christ), Westminster John Knox Press (Presbyterian Church U.S.A.), Church Publishing Inc (Episcopal Church
Episcopal Church
An episcopal church has bishops in its organisational structure which is calledEpiscopal polityEpiscopal Church may refer to:Anglican Communion:...
), Pilgrim Press (United Church of Christ
United Church of Christ
The United Church of Christ is a mainline Protestant Christian denomination primarily in the Reformed tradition but also historically influenced by Lutheranism. The Evangelical and Reformed Church and the Congregational Christian Churches united in 1957 to form the UCC...
), and Abingdon Press
Abingdon Press
Abingdon Press is the book publishing arm of the United Methodist Publishing House which publishes sheet music, ministerial resources, Bible-study aids, and other items, often with a focus on Methodism and Methodists. Abingdon Press was begun in the early 1900s by The Methodist Church, and is...
(United Methodist Church
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church is a Methodist Christian denomination which is both mainline Protestant and evangelical. Founded in 1968 by the union of The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church, the UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley...
). According to the CEB's preface, the motivation for producing a new translation was that "it has proved difficult to combine concern for accuracy and accessibility in one translation that the typical reader or worshipper would be able to understand." One hundred twenty scholars from twenty-four different denominations worked on the translation.
Textual basis
The CEB New TestamentNew Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
was translated from the Nestle-Aland Greek New Testament
Novum Testamentum Graece
Novum Testamentum Graece is the Latin name editions of the original Greek-language version of the New Testament.The first printed edition was the Complutensian Polyglot Bible by Cardinal Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros, printed in 1514, but not published until 1520...
(27th Edition), a standard edition of the Greek used in many versions of the Christian scriptures. With the Hebrew Scriptures
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
various editions of the traditional Masoretic text
Masoretic Text
The Masoretic Text is the authoritative Hebrew text of the Jewish Bible and is regarded as Judaism's official version of the Tanakh. While the Masoretic Text defines the books of the Jewish canon, it also defines the precise letter-text of these biblical books, with their vocalization and...
were used: the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia
Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia
The Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia, or ', is an edition of the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible as preserved in the Leningrad Codex, and supplemented by masoretic and text-critical notes...
(4th edition), Biblia Hebraica Quinta
Biblia Hebraica Quinta
The Biblia Hebraica Quinta is the fifth edition of the Biblia Hebraica and when complete will supersede the fourth edition, the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia...
(5th edition), and in some cases the Hebrew University Bible Project
Hebrew University Bible Project
The Hebrew University Bible Project is a project to create the first edition of the Hebrew Bible that reproduces the text of the Aleppo Codex and includes a thorough critical apparatus....
. However, as with many modern Bibles, the Old Testament was occasionally emended using readings from the Dead Sea Scrolls
Dead Sea scrolls
The Dead Sea Scrolls are a collection of 972 texts from the Hebrew Bible and extra-biblical documents found between 1947 and 1956 on the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, from which they derive their name...
, the ancient Septuagint Greek translation, and other sources.
For the Apocrypha, the currently unfinished Göttingen Septuagint was used as the basis. Books that were not available in the Göttingen project were translated from the latest revision of Rahlfs Septuagint (2006). Surviving Hebrew manuscripts of some Septuagint books were consulted as well.
Translation methodology
The CEB uses a balance of dynamic equivalence and formal equivalence translation principles. Ease of comprehension was measured using the standard Dale-Chall Readability FormulaJeanne Chall
Jeanne Chall a Harvard Graduate School of Education psychologist, writer, and literacy researcher for over 50 years, believed in the importance of direct, systematic instruction in reading in spite of other reading trends throughout her career.Born in Poland in 1921, Chall was deeply committed to...
so a 7th grade reading level could be attained. The translators' goal is to produce a rendering of the Bible at the same reading level as the USA Today
USA Today
USA Today is a national American daily newspaper published by the Gannett Company. It was founded by Al Neuharth. The newspaper vies with The Wall Street Journal for the position of having the widest circulation of any newspaper in the United States, something it previously held since 2003...
newspaper.
Portions of scripture were assigned to each of the 120 translators. Each produced a draft translation which was then reviewed and modified by a co-translator. The resulting text was then sent to one of 77 "reading groups", teams of five to ten non-specialists that read it out loud and noted awkward translations. The rendering, along with suggestions for improvement, was then sent to a readability editor to check style and grammar, followed by a complete review by the editor for that section of the Bible. The text was then put before the entire editorial board which resolved any lingering controversies and ensured consistency throughout the entire Bible translation.
The translators include such scholars as Tremper Longman
Tremper Longman
Tremper Longman, III is an Old Testament theologian, professor and author of several books, including 2009 ECPA Christian Book Award winner Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry & Writings. He serves as Robert H. Gundry Professor of Biblical Studies at Westmont College in Santa Barbara,...
, Luke Timothy Johnson
Luke Timothy Johnson
Luke Timothy Johnson is the Robert W. Woodruff Professor of New Testament and Christian Origins at Candler School of Theology and a Senior Fellow at the Center for the Study of Law and Religion at Emory University...
, David L. Petersen
David L. Petersen
David L. Petersen is the Franklin Nutting Parker Professor of Old Testament in the Candler School of Theology at Emory University. He is also an ordained Presbyterian minister....
, Brent A. Strawn, Beverly Gaventa, Gail O'Day, Cynthia Westfall, and Joel B. Green
Joel B. Green
Joel B. Green, Ph.D. is Associate Dean for the Center for Advanced Theological Studies and Professor of New Testament Interpretation at Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California, United States, and the author of numerous books, most of which are related to the New Testament.He is an...
. They come from 24 Protestant, Catholic, and Jewish faith communities. Members of the reading groups belonged to 13 denominations. Overall more than 700 people worked on the Common English Bible.
Features
The CEB attempts to substitute more natural wording for traditional biblical terminology. For instance, where most Bibles use the term "son of manSon of man
The phrase son of man is a primarily Semitic idiom that originated in Ancient Mesopotamia, used to denote humanity or self. The phrase is also used in Judaism and Christianity. The phrase used in the Greek, translated as Son of man is ὁ υἱὸς τοὺ ἀνθρώπου...
" in the Old Testament (e.g. Ezekiel 2:1) the CEB translates it as "human." In the New Testament where Jesus uses the Greek version of this term of himself—probably with messianic overtones—the CEB renders it "the Human One." Another example of common English is substituting "harass" for "persecute": "If the world harassed me, it will harass you too," (John 15:20).
Contraction
Contraction (grammar)
A contraction is a shortened version of the written and spoken forms of a word, syllable, or word group, created by omission of internal letters....
s are used more frequently in the Common English Bible than in more Formal Equivalent translations. For example, the New Revised Standard Version
New Revised Standard Version
The New Revised Standard Version of the Bible is an English translation of the Bible released in 1989 in the USA. It is a thorough revision of the Revised Standard Version .There are three editions of the NRSV:...
renders Luke 12:7 as, "But even the hairs of your head are all counted. Do not be afraid; you are of more value than many sparrows." The CEB has, "Even the hairs on your head are all counted. Don't be afraid. You are worth more than many sparrows."
The maps of biblical lands in the Common English Bible are produced by the National Geographic Society
National Geographic Society
The National Geographic Society , headquartered in Washington, D.C. in the United States, is one of the largest non-profit scientific and educational institutions in the world. Its interests include geography, archaeology and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical...
.
The full Common English Bible, both Old and New Testaments and the Apocrypha, can be accessed for passage lookup online at the CEB website.
Marketing
The CEB was finished in 2011 and a marketing campaign was begun in late 2009. As part of the campaign, free copies of the Gospels of LukeGospel of Luke
The Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
, Matthew
Gospel of Matthew
The Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
, the Book of Genesis and the Book of Psalms are being offered for download in .pdf format. Short audio recordings of various scriptures have also been posted. Until July 31, 2010 a free printed copy of the entire New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
was also being offered by mail.
In April 2011 Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary
Fuller Theological Seminary is an accredited Christian educational institute with its main campus in Pasadena, California and several satellite campuses in the western United States...
, a leading evangelical school, selected the CEB as one of two approved Bible translations for Biblical studies courses, replacing the soon-to-be-discontinued Today's New International Version
Today's New International Version
Today's New International Version is an English translation of the Bible developed by the Committee on Bible Translation. The CBT also developed the New International Version in the 1970s. The TNIV is based on the NIV. It is explicitly Protestant like its predecessor; the deuterocanonical books...
.