Here’s an interesting comment.
For his disciples were gone away into the city to buy food.
John 4:8
That is literally what the Greek text says.
Some versions bracket this verse to mean it is a side comment not relevant to the main story. Other versions include it in the main text.
- Bracketed – ESV, GNB, GW, KJV, MKJV, MSG, Webster
- Included Mainstream – AMP, ASV, BBE, CEV, EMTV, GNT, IBIS, ISV, ITB, LITV, Murdock, NASB, NLT, RV, YLT
- What is going on here? Take time to think about it and decide for yourself.
- Is John 4:8 to be in the flow of the main text or is it a side thought and should be bracketed?
Examine the evidence for yourself. Look at the text to answer that question and use the summary of versions available to you in E-Sword to solve that issue. I have listed them all above. It gives you a powerful comparison of what the versions do with any verse.
For your reference the versions to consult are:
- *AMP – Amplified Version
- ASV – American Standard Version
- BBE – Bible In Basic English
- CEV – Contemporary English Version
- EMTV – English Majority Text Version
- ESV – English Standard Version
- GNB – Good News Bible
- GNT – Greek New Testament
- GW – God’s Word
- KJV – King James Version
- LITV – Literal Version
- MKJV – Modern King James Version
- *MSG – The Message Version (Eugene Peterson)
- Murdock – James Murdock’s Version
- *NASB – New American Standard Bible
- *NLT – New Living Translation
- RV – Revised Version
- Webster – 1833 Webster Bible
- YLT – Young’s Literal Translation
These are the ones I have loaded in E-Sword. Not all of them are free. The ones asterisked cost me a small amount but I figured it was worth it. The rest (not asterisked) are free.
Can you see the power of E-Sword? I am sure you have found the Compare button by now. If not, press it and see what it does.
Here are two very interesting translations from the list above for this verse.
(KJV) (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.)
(MSG) (His disciples had gone to the village to buy food for lunch.)
Two questions to go with them:
- What is going on with the King James that it translates the word “Meat” rather than food?
- Where did they go for lunch in the Message Version, MacDonalds?
- Was it around there? In Sychar?
Enough for this Gem – answer next Gem. Hey for those of you who want to do the work yourself and then check it against my input – don’t feel pressured, just don’t read my next Bible Gem until you are ready to keep going. Simple really.
When all is said and done, more is said than done.
Anon