Continuation Of An Old Apostasy

By Dr. Peter S. Ruckman


     Christian Herald Magazine (Jan. 1979) contains a commercial
advertising pitch for the NIV called "THE BEGINNING OF A NEW
TRADITION." Quite naturally it is the continuation of the Old
Apostasy (Gen. 3:1)--one more addition (after forty-five of them)
to the Alexandrian Library of corrupt translations from North
Africa.

     The NIV was sponsored by the New York Bible Society in 1967.
The executive secretary who originated the idea of producing one
more Alexandrian Corruption was Dr. Edwin Palmer (1960), and
their goal (according to themselves) was to produce a translation
that was ACCURATE (exactly what the RV, RSV, ASV, New ASV, and
the rest of them claimed); a translation that was CLEAR (exactly
what the RV. ASV, NASV, and the rest of them claimed) and
DIGNIFIED (exactly what the RV, ASV, and RSV claimed), and
suitable for public reading (what the RSV, ASV, RV, and NASV
claimed), private devotion, and memorization, etc., etc.

     The committee would have you believe that the translators
were faithful to "THE TEXT" because they believed some other text
was "originally inerrant." "THE TEXT" they translated was not
THAT text.

     Two standards were used: ACCURACY and CLARITY (i.e. where
the AV was clear, change it to make it more accurate; where it
was accurate, change it to make it clearer; but GET THE THING
CHANGED). These were the two alibis used in 1884 (RV), 1901
(ASV), 1960 (New ASV), 1952 (RSV) for altering the Reformation
text 35,000 times.

     Billy Graham says the NIV presents the "Word of God" (Barth
and Brunner's designation; see John R. Rice's correspondence with
Evans) with "accuracy and vitality." Dr. Carl Henry says it is "a 
monumental achievement and a stellar service to the English
speaking world." Criswell at Dallas says "the test of time will
reveal that the NIV will receive wider acceptance and acclaim
than any other version of the Bible since the King James 1611"
(thereby cancelling the RV, ASV, NASV, RSV, NRSV, NEB, TEV,
etc.). Dr. John R. W. Stott recommends it because the translators
had a "CULTURAL SENSITIVITY" in their search for "A DYNAMIC
EQUIVALENT" which was "FAITHFUL AND APPROPRIATE."

     Nuts.

     The NIV is a reissue of Origen's Alexandrian text issued in
1582 by the Jesuit Priests of Rheims, France, and appearing from
time to time as Nestles, Aland, Metzger, Hort, Weiss, etc. (in
Greek), and as the RV, ASV, NASV, RSV, TEV, NEB, etc. (in
English). It is not new, it is not faithful, it is not accurate,
and it is no "clearer" than Pogo or Charlie Brown.

     No member of the committee (or any professor who taught any
member of the committee) knows ONE thing about the Bible that ANY
believer couldn't find in a King James Bible in thirty seconds,
if it dealt with sound doctrine or any fundamental of the faith.
The intelligent believer may use the NIV (with the RV, RSV, ASV,
NASV, NRSV, TEV, NEB, etc.) as interesting reference material to
demonstrate what some people think about the Bible who don't
believe it.

From the Bible Believers' Bulletin
August 1979