Colwell's apparatus was taken from his book, "What Is The Best New Testament" University of Chicage Press, 1951.
Colwell's Rule of Bible Translations
Below the table are the 64 scriptures from John's Gospel that Colwell uses to determine accuracy in a New Testament. The message being:
*Is your Bible faithful to the best manuscripts available? If not, then why not? What is the motivation behind choosing a weaker reading?*
Why is the TR (Textus Receptus/Received Text) weaker. According to Colwell,
"No scholar today employs this text for any scholarly purpose except as he may use it in writing the history of the Greek New Testament. The King James version is undoubtably the most inaccurate English New Testament in common use today...The King James stands at the bottom of the list also in regard to three spurious passages selected as tests (Mk 16:9-20; Jn 7:53-8:11 and 1 John 5:7-8)." pp. 99, 100
Versions in bold italics are those Colwell had printed, the others are added by me using the same criteria.
| Translation | Agrees with the Critical Text |
Agrees with the later Textus Receptus |
Other |
|---|---|---|---|
| New World Translation | 64 | 0 | 0 |
| 21st Century NT* | 64 | 0 | 0 |
| Goodspeed* | 64 | 0 | 0 |
| Rotherham | 62 | 2 | 0 |
| Byington/BLE | 61 | 3 | 0 |
| New Revised Standard | 60 | 3 | 1 |
| 20th Century NT | 59 | 4 | 1 |
| Lattimore | 59 | 5 | 0 |
| New American Standard | 59 | 5 | 0 |
| Westminster | 58 | 6 | 0 |
| American Standard Ver. | 58 | 6 | 0 |
| Revised Version 1885 | 57 | 7 | 0 |
| Beck's An American Trans | 56 | 8 | 0 |
| New Jerusalem Bible | 56 | 8 | 0 |
| Revised Standard Version | 56 | 8 | 0 |
| New American Bible | 56 | 7 | 1 |
| Moffatt | 56 | 7 | 1 |
| New Berkeley Version | 56 | 7 | 1 |
| Riverside New Testament | 55 | 9 | 0 |
| Barclay's New Testament | 55 | 8 | 1 |
| Kleist & Lilly New Test. | 55 | 9 | 0 |
| Wuest's Expanded Trans. | 54 | 10 | 0 |
| New English Bible | 53 | 9 | 2 |
| Holman Christian Standard | 53 | 11 | 0 |
| God's Word Translation | 53 | 11 | 0 |
| Weymouth's New Test. | 53 | 11 | 0 |
| Williams New Testament | 52 | 12 | 0 |
| English Standard Version | 52 | 10 | 2 |
| Spencer | 51 | 13 | 0 |
| New International Version | 51 | 10 | 3 |
| Basic English Bible | 51 | 12 | 1 |
| New Century Version | 51 | 12 | 1 |
| International Standard Ver | 50 | 14 | 0 |
| Ferrar Fenton | 50 | 14 | 0 |
| Good News Bible | 50 | 12 | 2 |
| Jerusalem Bible | 49 | 15 | 0 |
| Recovery NT | 49 | 15 | 0 |
| NET Bible | 49 | 13 | 2 |
| Jewish NT | 49 | 13 | 2 |
| The Message | 48 | 13 | 3 |
| Centenary Version | 47 | 16 | 1 |
| Contemporary English Ver | 46 | 15 | 3 |
| JB Phillips | 45 | 17 | 2 |
| Living Bible | 42 | 15 | 7 |
| New Living Translation | 41 | 19 | 4 |
| Amplified Bible | 37 | 27 | 0 |
| Confraternity Version | 35 | 27 | 2 |
| Concordant Literal NT | 25 | 28 | 1 |
| Knox Version | 33 | 29 | 2 |
| Challoner | 25 | 27 | 2 |
| Hebrew Names Version | 8 | 55 | 1 |
| New King James Version | 0 | 63 | 1 |
| Revised Webster | 0 | 64 | 0 |
| King James Version | 0 | 64 | 0 |
*The 21st Century NT has 64 points due to its being a dual Literal/Free Translation. Where one side (usually the Free side) had the weaker reading, it was usually corrected by the truer reading on the literal side. At the same time, each side held alone would have done remarkably well, especially the literal side. I think it is encumbent on any Free/Dynamic Equivalent/Paraphrased Bible to include a literal text, if nothing else, than for ease of mind and conscience.
*Colwell chose Goodspeed version as his top New Testament, but I disagree. While taking him at his word for the most part, I cannot agree when it comes to the reading at John 1:18. Colwell's true reading of this verse has "the only begotten God," a faithful rendering of MONOGENHS QEOS. Goodspeed actually has "divine Only Son," a weaker reading as it seeks to combine the reading of both the Textus Receptus (TR) and the Westcott and Hort (WH) text. I left it at the top out of respect for Colwell, but it really deserves a reading of 63, placing the New World Translation as the best stand alone version of the New Testament in English.
The list of 64: TR = Textus Receptus; WH = Westcott and Hort Text
1:15 TR This was he of whom I spake
WH For it was he who said it
1:18 TR the only begotten Son
WH the only begotten God
1:27 TR He it is, who coming after me is preferred before me
WH He is to come after me
1:28 TR Bethabara
WH Bethany
1:39 TR Come and see
WH Come and you will see
1:49 TR Nathanael answered and saith unto him
WH Nathanael answered
1:51 TR Hereafter ye shall see heaven
WH you will see heaven
3:15 TR That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal
life
WH That whoever believes in him may have eternal life
3:25 TR between John's disciples and the Jews
WH between John's disciples and a Jew
4:15 TR come hither to draw
WH come all this way to draw
4:35-36 TR they are white already to harvest. And he that reapeth
WH they are white for harvesting. The reaper is already
4:42 TR is indeed the Christ, the Saviour of the world
WH is indeed the Saviour of the world
4:43 TR departed thence, and went into Galilee
WH went on to Galilee
5:2 TR Bethasda
WH Bethzatha
5:3 TR a great multitude
WH a multitude
5:3-4 TR waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a
certain season into the pool, and troubled the water: whosoever then first
after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever
disease he had.
WH omitted
5:12 TR Take up thy bed, and walk?
WH pick it up and walk?
5:16 TR persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because
WH persecute Jesus because
5:30 TR of the Father which hath sent me
WH him who hath sent me
6:11 TR he distributed to the disciples, and the disciples to them that were
set down
WH he distributed to them that were set down
6:17 TR Jesus was not come to them
WH Jesus had not yet come to them
6:22 TR none other boat there, save that one whereinto his disciples were
entered, and that Jesus went not with his disciples into the boat
WH no other boat there except one and that Jesus had not gone into the boat
with his disciples
6:39 TR of the Father who has sent me
WH of him who has sent me
6:40 TR of him who has sent me
WH of my Father
6:47 TR He that believeth on me hath everlasting life
WH He that believeth hath everlasting life
6:51 TR and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for
the life of the world
WH and the bread that I will give is my flesh, on behalf of the life of the
world.
6:58 TR not as your fathers did eat manna
WH not as your fathers ate and died
6:63 TR the words which I speak
WH the words which I have spoken
6:69 TR thou art that Christ, the Son of the living God
WH you are the Holy One of God
7:20 TR the crowd answered and said
WH the crowd answered
7:26 TR Do the rulers know truly that this is truly the Christ?
WH Do the rulers know that this is the Christ?
7:39 TR for not yet was the Holy Spirit
WH for not yet was the Spirit
7:40 TR many of the crowd
WH some of the crowd
7:53-8:11 TR Pericope Adulterae
WH omits (or in appendix)
8:59 TR and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so
passed by.
WH and went out of the temple
9:4 TR it is necessary for me to work
WH it is necessary for us to work
9:11 TR to the pool of Siloam
WH to Siloam
10:4 TR whenever he puts out his own sheep
WH whenever he puts out all his own
10:26 TR because ye are not of my sheep, as I said unto you
WH because ye are not of my sheep
10:29 TR he who gives to me is greater than all
WH that which he gives me is greater than all
11:30 TR but he was in the place
WH but he was still in the place
11:41 TR Then they took away the stone from the place where the corpse was
lying
WH Then they took away the stone
12:4 TR Judas Iscariot, Simon's son
WH Judas Iscariot
12:22 TR and again Andrew and Philip
WH Andrew and Philip went
12:41 TR These things said Isaiah, when he saw his glory
WH These things said Isaiah, because he saw his glory
12:47 TR my words, and believe not
WH my words, and does not keep them
13:18 TR the one who eats bread with me
WH the one who eats my bread
14:4 TR you know where I am going and you know the way
WH you know where I am going
14:28 TR because I said I am going
WH because I am going
16:4 TR whenever the time comes
WH whenever their time comes
16:16 TR and ye shall see me, because I go to the Father
WH and ye shall see me
16:27 TR I came out from God
WH I came out from the Father
17:11 TR keep those whom you gave me in your name
WH keep them in your name which you gave me
17:21 TR let them be one in us
WH let them be "in us"
18:20 TR where the Jews always meet together
WH where all the Jews meet together
18:40 TR and they all cried out again
WH and they cried out again
19:3 TR and they said
WH and they marched up to him saying
19:29 TR and they filled a sponge with the wine
WH a sponge soaked with wine
19:39 TR a mixture of myrrh and aloes
WH a roll of myrrh and aloes
20:16 TR she said to him Rabbouni
WH she said to him in Hebrew Rabbouni
20:29 TR Is it because you have seen me, Thomas, that you believe
WH Is it because you have seen me that you believe
21:3 TR they went out and embarked in the boat immediately
WH they went out and embarked in the boat
21:15 TR Simon son of Jonah
WH Simon son of John
Colwell's apparatus was taken from the Book, "What is the Best New Testament" by E.C. Colwell, University of Chicage Press.
This is a great listen and at the end he talks about Jason Beduhn and the New World Translation
-Heinz Schmitz
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