Psalm 23 question

Fellow Logos users can you give me some direction with this?

Psalm 23.1

The Lord is my shepherd...

Lexham English Translation translates Lord Yahweh

Complete Jewish Bible translates Lord Adonai

I understand that God's name YHWH is considered so holy by Jewish people that they will not pronounce it and so they substitute Adonai which means Lord or Master.

I am right in thinking the Complete Jewish Bible is aimed at Messianic Jewish people (Christians) who still consider the name of God too holy to pronounce?

What benefit is it to have a bible that has Adonai instead of Lord when they mean the same thing?

Is something lost or gained by having the word Adonai?

I have used the CJB as an example but I could have used TLV as it also uses Adonai.

Would I benefit from having either CJB or TLV?

Thanks

P A

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Comments

Keith Pang

To be honest, I do not think this is an appropriate place to discuss this type of thing. It will devolve into theological opinions which are not allowed to be discussed on the forums if my memory serves me right.

MJ. Smith

I am right in thinking the Complete Jewish Bible is aimed at Messianic Jewish people

Yes

What benefit is it to have a bible that has Adonai instead of Lord when they mean the same thing?

You would have to ask this of the translators. Their choices represent their religious stance which is not the same as mine.

Would I benefit from having either CJB or TLV?

I have no way of knowing. I use the CJB with its companion commentary as my main source of knowledge on a religious group that my father used the same translation/commentary for. I found it necessary for our conversation. I asked that the TLV be included in Logos so I wouldn't make incorrect assumptions about Messianic Jewish by over-generalizing from Stern. My father has been dead for a decade (he only made it to 98); since his death, I use these translations less but am still glad they are in my library when I need them.

Allen Browne

Lexham English Translation translates Lord Yahweh
Complete Jewish Bible translates Lord Adonai ...

What benefit is it to have a bible that has Adonai instead of Lord ... ?

P A, did you notice that most recent English translations present the name of God as LORD with the ORD in small-caps? That's the visual clue that it's the covenant name revealed to Moses and the people formed into his nation by the Sinai covenant.

So, ultimately it's not about what word appears in our English translation. As long as you can recognize the name as you read.

In this particular case (Psalm 23:1), it's so good to see David (the shepherd of God's people) recognizing that he himself is a man under authority.

mab

https://community.logos.com/discussion/comment/1202000#Comment_1202000

I am a Messianic believer. In our congregation, it's pretty common to use the CJB and the reference to Adonai is often used in prayer. It relates to His rulership. It's a title. You can make too much or too little of a name.

Right now I am personally using the new LSB which uses Yahweh. It's not a big leap at all for me since I once read from the Jerusalem Bible. It's probably the most reliable way to translate the word. Reverence for His name is always right, and that is the thing to keep in mind.