Picture a huge library. You've heard it holds treasures that can change your life. But where do you start? You reach out, try opening the first book your eyes land on, flip to the first page… and you're greeted with unreadable squiggles. Come again? 🤯
The Bible is an ancient library, written a long time ago, bit by bit, by different people in Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. For us to be able to read it today, we've got no choice but to reach for a suitable translation. There are plenty to choose from. Check out this overview of the most widely used ones. How do you pick the best Bible translation?
TIP ⚠️ You don't have to spend a single crown on a Bible — you can have tons of translations, in Czech and other languages, all in one place. In your browser or as a phone app, YouVersion is free here.
Czech Ecumenical Translation (ČEP) ⭐⭐⭐⭐
ČEP came about through the efforts of representatives from several churches decades ago, and it became the most widely used translation. It's the one you'll hear most often at church services. A big plus is that it includes an introduction to every book of the Bible. But time marches on, and since it was created back in the 1970s, it's gradually become less easy to follow.
Bible of Kralice (BK) ⭐⭐⭐
ČEP was actually created to replace the by-then nearly unreadable Old Czech Bible of Kralice. Back in the 17th century, that translation was a true gem of the Czech language. It sticks closely to the original-language texts, though modern translations actually work from older manuscripts than the Kralice translators had access to. If you want to dive into this one, keep an Old Czech dictionary within reach.
➡️ Read the 1613 Bible of Kralice online.
Bible 21 (B21) ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Published in 2009, this is a 21st-century translation of the Bible. It aims to be readable and smooth, drawing on newer translation theory. Through fresh, contemporary language, you can hear old, deep truths. I grew up spiritually on this translation, and years later I still love coming back to it.
TOP TIP! 💚 Compare different translations against each other (foreign-language ones too, if you like). Especially when you hit a tricky passage, seeing how other translators handled it can really help.
Czech Study Translation (ČSP) ⭐⭐⭐
The Study Translation came out the same year as B21. It's strongly shaped by the church background its translators come from. As a translation, it's the most faithful to the original wording, so it isn't especially easy to read. But it offers plenty of biblical cross-references in the footnotes. This translation tends to be appreciated by people who are already familiar with biblical texts and know their way around the ancient biblical languages.
Jerusalem Bible (JB) ⭐⭐⭐
Alongside B21 and ČSP, the Jerusalem Bible also appeared in 2009. It's a translation from a Catholic background that aims for readability and clarity. It's not translated directly from the biblical languages but from French, though the final text was checked against the originals. JB comes with an extensive set of notes.
Word on the Way (SNC) ⭐⭐
Word on the Way isn't so much a translation as a loose paraphrase. It aims to be as easy to understand as possible, so that it's accessible even to people who've never come into contact with the Bible before. To do that, it freely adds extra sentences and interprets whole sections according to the translators' own judgment. That can limit you if you want to study the Bible more deeply later on, but it can be a good fit for a first encounter with the Bible.
In Czech there are plenty of other translations too, including, for example, Miloš Pavlík's very literal new translation, the New World Translation that comes from the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Sýkora-Hejčl translation, or the New Testaments of Col, Žilka, or Škrabal… 😎
Whichever translation you pick up, you'll find a whole space of mystery opening up in front of you that one or two translations alone won't answer. Every translation is always an interpretation, and not every interpretation is exhaustive. 🤷 That's why reading the Bible alone at home isn't quite enough. It's best if you have people around you that you can talk with about what the Bible says. We'd love to see you among us at SafePoint!
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