« | Job 10 | » |
1 I loathe my life. I will give myself up to complaint; I will speak from the bitterness of my soul.
2 I will say to God: Do not put me in the wrong! Let me know why you oppose me.
3 Is it a pleasure for you to oppress, to spurn the work of your hands, and smile on the plan of the wicked?
4 Have you eyes of flesh? Do you see as man sees?
5 Are your days as the days of a mortal, and are your years as a man's lifetime,
6 That you seek for guilt in me and search after my sins,
7 Even though you know that I am not wicked, and that none can deliver me out of your hand?
8 Your hands have formed me and fashioned me; will you then turn and destroy me?
9 Oh, remember that you fashioned me from clay! Will you then bring me down to dust again?
10 Did you not pour me out as milk, and thicken me like cheese?
11 With skin and flesh you clothed me, with bones and sinews knit me together.
12 Grace and favor you granted me, and your providence has preserved my spirit.
13 Yet these things you have hidden in your heart; I know that they are your purpose:
14 If I should sin, you would keep a watch against me, and from my guilt you would not absolve me.
15 If I should be wicked, alas for me! if righteous, I dare not hold up my head, filled with ignominy and sodden with affliction!
16 Should it lift up, you hunt me like a lion: repeatedly you show your wondrous power against me,
17 You renew your attack upon me and multiply your harassment of me; in waves your troops come against me.
18 Why then did you bring me forth from the womb? I should have died and no eye have seen me.
19 I should be as though I had never lived; I should have been taken from the womb to the grave.
20 Are not the days of my life few? Let me alone, that I may recover a little
21 Before I go whence I shall not return, to the land of darkness and of gloom,
22 The black, disordered land where darkness is the only light.
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.