Page 314 - History of The Quranic Text | Kalamullah.Com

294 THE HISTORY OF THE QUR'ANIe TEXT

phraseology. The CEVhowever renders all fiveinstances as Hebrew;
without further annotation. Of course the CEV is meant for easy
verbal reading and not textual study, but that does not excuse in-
correct renditions and assumptions (especially when the correct
phrase isjust as simple).
In the Gospel ofJohn we find:

(9:22) [The blind man's] parents said this because they feared
the Jews, for the Jews had already agreed that if anyone
should confess [Jesus] to be Christ, he was to be put out of the
synagogue.

This is according to the RSV; in the CEVwe read:

(9:22-23) The man's parents said this because they were afraid
of their leaders. The leaders had already agreed that no one
was to have anything to do with anyone who saidJesus was the
Messiah.

Surely if anyone is creating a false image here, it is the translators
who omit the reference to being 'put out of the synagogue', making
the passage sound as though theJewish leaders were slightlypeeved
and ready to rap a few knuckles.
These examples were stumbled upon accidentally in the course of writing
earlier portions of thisbook, and naturally anyone given the inclination and
the time would be able to fmd many additional verses where the translators
have fostered new false impressions. The CEVisonly a recent test case; over
forty English translations alone are in print, each bearing its own pecu-
liarities.For example many evangelistsdeemed initial editions of the Revised
Standard Version too liberal; the New 'Testament inModern English contains
unusual wording; the Liuing Bible mixes text with interpretation, inserting
words which make the text conform to a fundamentalist viewpoint. Most
Bibles adopt a distinct theological view ofJesus Christ by choosing certain
readings over others: "a young woman shall conceive" for "a virgin shall
conceive" (Isaiah 7:14),"the only Son" for "only begotten Son" (john 1:14,
18), 'Jesus Christ" for 'Jesus Christ, the Son of God" (Mark I: I), and so
on. The diversity of theological implications and meanings found in these
Bibles- resulting from insertions, substitutions, or omissions,let alone selec-
tive use of variants - can only be labelled as a corruption of the original
text.