Matthew 21:16
As in many cases in the New Testament, if you look up the verse that Jesus refers to here, Psalm 8:2, in the Old Testament it will not say exactly the same thing. This kind of thing could be the source of confusion, and offense, to those who are weak in their faith. However, this need not be. The New Testament writers, including Matthew, almost exclusively used the Septuagint translation of the Bible. This is a Greek translation of the Hebrew text. It was more known and readily understood by the common man in the time of the Apostles. Thus, they used a translation of the Hebrew so as to facilitate understanding among their readers. Besides this, they would have themselves been quite familiar with the text of the Septuagint.
So, in the King James Version, and many other translations of today, you will find that this verse in Psalms says that God has ‘ordained strength’ (or something of that nature) by the words of the children, not that he has ‘perfected praise’ in this manner. The fact is that the same thought is being put across by both phrases. The Greek word for ‘praise’ refers to an ascription of glory. It is a discourse on the greatness of God. It is a person ascribing strength to Almighty God. The word ‘ordain’ in the Hebrew is easily understood to refer to establishing something in one’s mind. In other words, whether we say that the kid’s words ordained strength, or that they perfected praise, we are getting at the same thing.
There are those who would take issue with all of this on the basis of the verbal, plenary, inerrancy and inspiration of the Scriptures. This simply says that every word of God’s Word is specifically chosen by him, and may not be changed. How then can we reconcile this with the difference between the Greek and the Hebrew? Quite easily. The Septuagint is a translation. Translations, although they may be very good, are not inspired. In this case, because the New Testament writers were themselves inspired, we can be sure of the words that they quote from the Septuagint. So, the Septuagint is not to be held above the original Hebrew. However, please keep in mind that old translation such as the Septuagint may help us understand the originals. Indeed, we must always remember that the ‘originals’ we have are copies, and are not the actual pages upon which the writers of Scripture actually wrote.
Therefore, we must be careful of two things. On the one hand, we should seek to remain faithful to the original as much as possible. Flagrant changes that are touted as ‘just as good’ as the original are corruptions. On the other hand, we must not discourage the use of good, responsible, translations of God’s Word. They are not themselves inspired, but if they are directly based on the inspired originals, like the Septuagint, they carry the weight of the authority of the inspired originals.
Bible Reading: Genesis 17:1-19:38
Scripture Memory: James 1:9 “Let the brother of low degree rejoice in that he is exalted:”
Prayer: Heavenly Father, thank You for Your Word! As Peter said so long ago, we are glad to have the sure Word. To know that we have from You the words You want us to have is so important to our souls. We can hear what You would have us to hear. We can learn as if receiving it straight from Your mouth. We can sit at the feet of Christ and drink it all in! We can be confident in our testimony and witness knowing that You have given us what we are to say and do. It is enough for our faith and our life. We cannot say that the Word leaves too much out. We cannot accuse You of missing what we need. Those today who feel Your Word does not address the issues that they face have missed the point. Your book gives us the answers from the inside out. It is the Spirit through Your Word by Your Son that changes us and makes us able to handle the issues of life. Thank You Father for this Good Friday! We are glad to remember that Jesus bore our sins. Though we are sorry he had to suffer for us, we would never change it! We are unable to save ourselves. We must have that sacrifice. Thank You Father! In the name of the Lord Jesus Christ I pray and praise You, Amen.
Prayer Requests: Pray for a woman who has days of little energy and who loses her voice often. Pray for a family that just lost a five month old baby. Pray for many cases of mental and emotional distress in our country.
Journal Entry #14102