Ecclesiastes 1 | » |
1 The words of David's son, Qoheleth, king in Jerusalem:
2 Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth, vanity of vanities! All things are vanity!
3 What profit has man from all the labor which he toils at under the sun?
4 One generation passes and another comes, but the world forever stays.
5 The sun rises and the sun goes down; then it presses on to the place where it rises.
6 Blowing now toward the south, then toward the north, the wind turns again and again, resuming its rounds.
7 All rivers go to the sea, yet never does the sea become full. To the place where they go, the rivers keep on going.
8 All speech is labored; there is nothing man can say. The eye is not satisfied with seeing nor is the ear filled with hearing.
9 What has been, that will be; what has been done, that will be done. Nothing is new under the sun.
10 Even the thing of which we say, "See, this is new!" has already existed in the ages that preceded us.
11 There is no remembrance of the men of old; nor of those to come will there be any remembrance among those who come after them.
12 I, Qoheleth, was king over Israel in Jerusalem,
13 and I applied my mind to search and investigate in wisdom all things that are done under the sun. A thankless task God has appointed for men to be busied about.
14 I have seen all things that are done under the sun, and behold, all is vanity and a chase after wind.
15 What is crooked cannot be made straight, and what is missing cannot be supplied.
16 Though I said to myself, "Behold, I have become great and stored up wisdom beyond all who were before me in Jerusalem, and my mind has broad experience of wisdom and knowledge";
17 yet when I applied my mind to know wisdom and knowledge, madness and folly, I learned that this also is a chase after wind.
18 For in much wisdom there is much sorrow, and he who stores up knowledge stores up grief.
The New American Standard Updated Version (NASU)
The New American Standard Updated Version (NASU) is a highly respected English translation of the Bible known for its rigorous adherence to the original languages of Scripture. First published in 1995 by the Lockman Foundation, the NASU is an update of the New American Standard Bible (NASB), which was originally completed in 1971. The NASU seeks to improve upon the NASB by enhancing readability and modernizing the language while maintaining the translation’s reputation for being one of the most literal translations available. This makes the NASU a preferred choice for serious Bible study, preaching, and teaching.
A key feature of the NASU is its commitment to formal equivalence, or a word-for-word translation philosophy. The translators aimed to produce a text that is as close as possible to the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek manuscripts. This approach ensures that the NASU captures the precise meaning and structure of the original texts, providing readers with a highly accurate and reliable representation of the Scriptures. The use of formal equivalence makes the NASU particularly valuable for those who desire a deep and detailed understanding of the Bible, including scholars, theologians, and students of the Word.
In updating the NASB, the NASU made several important changes to improve clarity and readability. While maintaining the accuracy and literalness of the translation, the NASU incorporates modern English expressions and smoother sentence structures. This makes the text more accessible to contemporary readers without compromising the precision that the NASB is known for. The NASU also includes updated cross-references and footnotes, which provide additional context and insights, further aiding in the study and understanding of the biblical text.
Despite its many strengths, the NASU has faced some criticism. Some readers and scholars argue that the translation’s emphasis on literalness can sometimes result in a text that feels stiff or less fluid than more dynamic translations. Additionally, while the NASU’s updated language makes it more accessible, some feel that it could go further in adapting to contemporary usage without losing its accuracy. Nevertheless, the New American Standard Updated Version remains a highly esteemed translation, valued for its fidelity to the original texts and its usefulness for in-depth study and precise interpretation of the Bible.