REQUEST for FL -- Re: NASB 2020

Hi David

You can configure this in Logos using current capability - and I've just seen John's suggestion which is another good way of doing this.

Set up a collection containing just the two Bibles you want to switch between - I've used NASB and NIV for illustration. Ensure the Collection is set to Show in parallel resources

Then, from one of the Bibles, choose that collection in the parallel resources menu

Now the left / right arrow will cycle between just these two resources.

David Paul said:

The NASB has been the most literal English Bible for some time...

Noticed 2012 Lexham English Bible (LEB) is missing from Bible Translations chart, which should be next to NASB (possibly between NASB and Interlinear).

Keep Smiling [:)]

David Paul said:

If LEB is in fact MORE literal and word-for-word than NASB, I'd be willing to call on it...I just need to have evidence to accept that claim.

The LEB preface doesn't claim to be more literal than the NASB but it does speak about its approach to being literal. This could be a good place to start to explore this question:

First, the LEB achieves an unparalleled level of transparency with the original language text because the LEB had as its starting point the Lexham Hebrew–English Interlinear Bible and the Lexham Greek–English Interlinear New Testament. It was produced with the specific purpose of being used alongside the original language text of the Bible. Existing translations, however excellent they may be in terms of English style and idiom, are frequently so far removed from the original language texts of Scripture that straightforward comparison is difficult for the average user. Of course distance between the original language text and the English translation is not a criticism of any modern English translation. To a large extent this distance is the result of the philosophy of translation chosen for a particular English version, and it is almost always the result of an attempt to convey the meaning of the original in a clearer and more easily understandable way to the contemporary reader. However, there are many readers, particularly those who have studied some biblical Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek, who desire a translation that facilitates straightforward and easy comparisons between the translation and the original language text. The ability to make such comparisons easily in software formats like Logos Bible Software makes the need for an English translation specifically designed for such comparison even more acute.

Second, the LEB is designed from the beginning to make extensive use of the most up-to-date lexical reference works available. For the Old Testament this is primarily The Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament (HALOT), and for New Testament this is primarily the third edition of Walter Bauer’s A Greek–English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (BDAG). Users can be assured that the LEB as a translation is based on the best scholarly research available. The Hebrew text on which the LEB Old Testament is based is that of Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia. The Greek text on which the LEB New Testament is based is that of The Greek New Testament: SBL Edition (SBLGNT), a new edition produced by Michael W. Holmes in conjunction with the Society of Biblical Literature and Logos Bible Software. In its evaluation of textual variation, the SBLGNT uses modern text-critical methodology along with guidance from the most recently available articles, monographs, and technical commentaries to establish the text of the Greek New Testament.

Naturally, when these two factors are taken into consideration, it should not be surprising that the character of the LEB as a translation is fairly literal. This is a necessary by-product of the desire to have the English translation correspond transparently to the original language text. Nevertheless, a serious attempt has been made within these constraints to produce a clear and readable English translation instead of a woodenly literal one.

 W. Hall Harris III et al., eds., The Lexham English Bible (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2012).

Here is a chart from Lexham's Textual Criticism that may be of interest.

Widder, Wendy. Textual Criticism. Edited by Douglas Mangum. Lexham Methods Series. Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2013.