« | Zechariah 7 | » |
1 In the fourth year of Darius the king (the word of the LORD came to Zechariah), on the fourth day of Chislev, the ninth month,
2 Bethelsarezer sent Regemmelech and his men to implore favor of the LORD
3 and to ask the priests of the house of the LORD of hosts, and the prophets, "Must I mourn and abstain in the fifth month as I have been doing these many years?"
4 Thereupon this word of the LORD of hosts came to me:
5 Say to all the people of the land and to the priests: When you fasted and mourned in the fifth and in the seventh month these seventy years, was it really for me that you fasted?
6 And when you were eating and drinking, was it not for yourselves that you ate, and for yourselves that you drank?
7 Were not these the words which the LORD spoke through the former prophets, when Jerusalem and the surrounding cities were inhabited and at peace, when the Negeb and the foothills were inhabited?
8 (This word of the LORD came to Zechariah:
9 Thus says the LORD of hosts:) Render true judgment, and show kindness and compassion toward each other.
10 Do not oppress the widow or the orphan, the alien or the poor; do not plot evil against one another in your hearts.
11 But they refused to listen; they stubbornly turned their backs and stopped their ears so as not to hear.
12 And they made their hearts diamondhard so as not to hear the teaching and the message that the LORD of hosts had sent by his spirit through the former prophets.
13 Then the LORD of hosts in his great anger said that, as they had not listened when he called, so he would not listen when they called,
14 but would scatter them with a whirlwind among all the nations that they did not know. Thus the land was left desolate after them with no one traveling to and fro; they made the pleasant land into a desert.
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.