Quick facts about Bible translation

Translations are not inspired.

• II Peter 1:21

”… translation is an inexact science. No translation is perfect …” - Dr. Mark Strauss, Bible translator

Translation is not simple.

• Mark 1:1
• Idioms
  • German: “Ich glaub, mein Hamster bohnert!”
    • Word-for-word translation: “I think my hamster is polishing the floor!”
    • Thought-for-thought translation: “You’ve got to be kidding me!”
• Figures of speech
  • Numbers 12:9 - “So the nose of the LORD burned against them.”

Translation philosophies exist on a spectrum.

• Spanish: “Como se llama?”
  • Word-for-word: “How yourself call?”
  • Thought-for-thought: “What’s your name?”
• Spanish: “Cuantos años tienes?”
  • Word-for-word: “How many years do you have?”
  • Thought-for-thought: “How old are you?”
• II Samuel 18:25
• II John 1:12

Quick facts about the Christian Standard Bible

• History:
  • 2004: Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) first published.
  • 2009: HCSB revised
  • 2017: Major revision with new name: CSB
  • 2020: CSB revised

Their philosophy is to pursue “optimal equivalence.”

They aim for “gender accuracy.”

• Acts 17:34
• I Corinthians 1:10
• Galatians 4:7

They try to avoid denominational bias.

• Translation team:
  • 100 scholars
  • Different continents
  • Male and female
  • 17 different types of churches
• Acts 2:4 - “languages” vs. “tongues”
• Romans 16:1 - diakonos: deacon or servant?

Why am I using the Christian Standard Bible in class?

The unfamiliar wording will force us to dig deeper.

• John 3:16 - “so” vs. “in this way”
• I John 2:2 - “propitiation” vs. “atoning sacrifice”

It will give us a chance to evaluate the CSB.

• Amos 4:6 - “cleanness of teeth” vs. “absolutely nothing to eat”
• Psalms 147:10
• I Thessalonians 4:4

I’m trying to get us to compare translations, not switch translations.

• Psalms 119:105

Acts 1

Acts 1:1-3 - Prologue

• Acts 1:3
  • The first narrative Luke wrote was the book of Acts:

• Acts 1:3
  • Since Luke no longer uses a title for Theophilus, some suggest that Theophilus had become a Christian. Christians in those days did not address each other using titles.
  • Jesus ascended forty days after the resurrection. Then ten days later was Pentecost, when the apostles received power from the Holy Spirit (Acts 2:1-4).

Acts 1:4-8 - The Holy Spirit Promised

• Acts 1:8 - See John 14:26; Matthew 3:11. This verse is a good summary of Acts.
  • The promise of Holy Spirit baptism:
    • The promise was to the “apostles” (not all Christians).
    • They were to wait for it in “Jerusalem” (not Benchley).
    • It would come “in a few days” (not 2,000 years later).
    • They would be empowered to testify as “witnesses” of Jesus (we are not eyewitnesses today).
  • The events in Acts were prophesied in Isaiah 2:3.

Acts 1:9-11 - The Ascension

• Acts 1:11 - See I Thessalonians 4:16-17. Jesus will return the same way He left.

Acts 1:12-14 - United in Prayer

• Acts 1:12 - This is a measure of distance, not time - 2,000 cubits or about 0.6 miles. This distance was not explicitly specified in scripture. It is something the Jews worked out for themselves based on a few Old Testament scriptures.

Acts 1:15-26 - Matthias Chosen

• Acts 1:18 - The phrase “acquired a field” here is referring to how the chief priests used the money Judas returned to them.

Acts 2

Acts 2:1-13 - Pentecost

• The Old Covenant authorized three annual feasts (Exodus 23:14-17; 34:23; Deuteronomy 16:16)
  • Feast of Unleavened Bread (including Passover)
  • Feast of the Harvest (Feast of Weeks, Feast of Firstfruits … called “Pentecost” in the New Testament)
  • Feast of the Ingathering (Feast of Tabernacles / Booths)
• Only apostles - miracles and tongues
  • Acts 2:7 - “Look, aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans?” (refers to apostles, who were “Men of Galilee” Acts 1:11)
  • Acts 2:14 - ”Peter stood up with the Eleven, raised his voice …”
  • Acts 2:37 - ”… said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Brothers, what should we do?‘”
  • Acts 2:38, 40 - ”Peter replied … With many other words he testified”
  • Acts 2:42 - “They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching”
  • Acts 2:43 - “many wonders and signs were being performed through the apostles”

The downfall of Saul

• I Samuel 9:1-2 - From a worldly standpoint, Saul was to be envied. He came from a wealthy family and was a handsome young man.
• I Samuel 10:6-9 - Samuel prophesied that Saul would have the Spirit of the Lord upon him and he would become another man. Saul evidently started acting differently once the spirit of the Lord came upon him.
• I Samuel 10:24 - They wanted a king and they got what they wanted!
• I Samuel 13:8-14 - This was the beginning of Saul’s downfall.
• I Samuel 31:4-7 - Saul fell on his own sword, dying on the same day as his three sons. But his downfall started when he first disobeyed God.
• If we are not careful, we can make the same mistake as Saul by going our own way rather than obeying God.

The witch of Endor (I Samuel 28)

• Sorcery and contacting the dead is condemned in the strongest language in the Bible. Be careful of this. It is still an issue today.

Introduction

• Titus 2:11-14
• God makes it simple: one thing or the other.

Sin always comes with poison.

• Titus 3:3 - There is something pleasurable about sin.
• Hebrews 11:25
• Proverbs 5:3-5 - Adultery is only a temporary pleasure.
• Proverbs 20:17
• Ecclesiastes 2:1
• Ephesians 2:10
• Ephesians 3:14-19 - This is the life God wants for us!
• Ephesians 4:22

Temptations have always been around and always will be.

• James 4:4 - friendship with the world vs. God
• I John 2:15-17
• Ecclesiastes 1:9
• I Timothy 2:9
• Think about hte effect you are having on others.
• I Timothy 4:12
• You are already valuable as a child of God. You don’t have to seek value by dressing immodestly.
• Luke 17:1

There is tremendous joy in living God’s way!

• Galatians 5:22
• What do we gain from doing things God’s way?
  • A strong, secure family - Titus 2:3-4
  • A blissful marriage - I Corinthians 7:3-4
  • A solid reputation
• I Peter 3:3 - There’s not some better life out there!

The life God has mapped out for us is a good life. And the retirement plan is out of this world!

• Titus 2:12

Making Benchley strong

• Revelation 3:1 - It is possible to be a dead church.

Use the Bible as our guide.

• Acts 11:19-30 - All three of Paul’s preaching journeys started in Antioch.
  • Antioch was a brand new church with both Jews and Gentiles and they were doing well.
  • Acts 11:20 - “Hellenists” here is likely referring to Greek-speaking non-Jews (Gentiles).
• We must fall back to our common ground—the word of God.
• Acts 14:34-15:4
• Acts 11:26; 13:1; 15:35 - Lots of teaching was happening at Antioch!

Be devoted to Jesus above all else.

• Acts 11:20-21 - “a great number who believed turned to the Lord”
• There is one Savior and we must be converted to Him.

Live the life.

• Acts 11:27-30
• Are you using your time and money to live for Christ?
• I John 2:3-6; 1:6 - It is not enough to know the scripture - you must act.
• I John 3:7-8 - The one who practices righteousness is righteous.

Rejoice about spiritual things.

• Acts 8:3-4, 39 - The eunuch rejoiced about his baptism.
• Acts 11:23; 13:48; 16:34 - More rejoicing!
• When’s the last time you rejoiced about something spiritual?