Christians throughout the last 1800-2000 years have trusted the Bible as the inerrant, fully reliable, gracious, God breathed revelation of His truth (2 Timothy 3:16-17), which it is. However, there have been variations in translations and in a small number of texts, words and phrases, that how caused some to question this. Experts in Bible translation assure us that these variations, though differing, do not change the meaning or intent of what is being revealed but are just a different way of presenting these truths. These differences are due to the innumerable Greek manuscripts from which the Bible and particularly the New Testament were translated, the expansiveness of the Greek language from which the Bible was first translated into English, and the evolution of language in general. Old words take on new meaning, new words come to represent eternal truths, and thus there is the need to keep the language of the Bible, and specifically the gospel, as accurate and understandable to our present generation as it was to the generation that it was first written to. An example of this would be the original King James Bible translated from the Greek into English in 1611. This translation would have been clearly understood by the English people of that day but is very difficult for many to read and understand today. Today we have the New King James Version (NKJV), which was first published in 1982, as well as many other English translations that have been provided over the past 50 years with more contemporary and thus understandable language and phrasing.
The reason I’ve explained all of this is that in a number of contemporary translations of the Bible there is a notable variation in the translation of the verse I focused on in my last post, namely 1 Peter 2:7. In the New King James, which I use for all Biblical citations in this blog site, it reads “Therefore, to you who believe, He (Jesus) is precious…”. This is similar to many if not most of the English translations of the Bible, notably the Revised Standard Version (RSV) and Modern English Version (MEV).
However, in the English Standard Version (ESV), which is the Bible I find most easy to read and use in my studies, this same verse reads, “So the honor is for you who believe…” The same or similar rendering of this verse is found in the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), “So honor will come to you who believe…”; and in the Common English Bible (CEB), “So God honors you who believe…”.
Each of these translations are descriptive of the one who believes Jesus to be the Christ or Messiah, the Son of the living God, who because of their belief will not be put to everlasting shame in Hell in the end, but rise to everlasting life, the life with God for which man was created (1 Peter 2:6) (John 20:30-31) (1 Daniel 12:2).
The ESV, CSB and CEB translations point primarily to the true believer’s heart evaluation of Jesus as precious, infinitely worthy of our supreme love and eternal praise and adoration, the source of eternal life. The NKJV, RSV and MEV translations point primarily to the unspeakable honor that believers have been given by God in their coming to know, love and proclaim Jesus as such.
The mutuality between these two translations is noted by Charles Spurgeon in his sermon on this verse titled “Christ Precious to Believers”. Spurgeon notes, “It is their faith (given as a gift of God) which apprehends the preciousness of Christ, and without it (faith), Jesus would never be precious in their eyes.” In noting the honor believers receive as a result, Spurgeon states, This thought arises out of another translation of the text, more strictly accurate than the one we use: “Unto you therefore which believe he is honor.” The Lord Jesus sheds honor and glory upon those who believe in him. May that honor be ours!”
These two differing translations of verse 2:7 of 1 Peter appear most clearly reconciled when read in context with 1 Peter 2:9-10 which reads, “But you are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, His own special people, that you may proclaim the praises of Him who called you out of darkness into His marvelous light, who once were not a people but are now the people of God, who had not obtained mercy but now have obtained mercy.”
One commentator writes in regard to this passage, “All true Christians are a “chosen generation”; they make one family, a people distinct from the world: of another spirit, principle, and practice; which they could never be, if they were not chosen in Christ to be such and sanctified by his Spirit. Their first state is a state of gross darkness, but they are called out of darkness into a state of joy, pleasure, and prosperity; that they should show forth the praises of the Lord by their profession of his truth, and their good conduct. How vast their obligations to Him who has made them his people and has shown mercy to them! To be without this mercy is a woeful state, though a man have all worldly enjoyments.”
Here we have laid out for us by the Apostle Peter, and this related commentary, how believers are a people whom God has supremely honored by His sovereignly choosing them to be His own special people, people for whom knowing, loving and being loved by Him would become their greatest joy. God would do so not on the basis of any merit nor works of righteousness which we had done, but solely on the bases of His mercy and grace, for which He would grant us the faith to both see our need for it and to receive it with rejoicing (Titus 3:3-7) (Ephesians 1:3-6) (Ephesians 2:8-10).
Through the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit, believers are restored to spiritual life, forgiven and cleansed from their sin, and empowered by grace to live holy lives, lives that please, honor and glorify God as man was created to do (Titus 2:11-14) (Isaiah 43:7). God lifts us out of the darkness of our spiritual blindness so that we can see the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ, that we may see and embrace Him as precious, both for who He is and what He has done through His sinless life, sacrificial death and miraculous resurrection, to reconcile us to God, through what the Bible refers to as the Gospel (Colossians 1:12-14) (2 Corinthians 4:4-6) (1 Peter 3:18).
And now, having made us fit to do so, God honors us, in Christ, with the immense privilege and responsibility of proclaiming His glory, His preciousness, His praiseworthiness through both the proclamation of the gospel and by our showing forth our transformed lives through our living daily and intentionally for His glory, honor and praise, including suffering for His name (Matthew 28:18-20) (1 Corinthians 10:31).
Greater honor has no man or women, except the one in whom we receive this honor, Jesus Christ, our Lord (Revelation 7:9-12) (Philippians 2:8-11).
Grace and Peace ×