15 replies to this topic

[12raffaj12]

What copy of The Bible and The Torah should I read?

[CLynn]

When I read the Bible I refer to several translations to be sure I get a correct meaning.  It is often necessary to read NIV or NLT which is in plain language, but I like to always cross reference with the earlier translations to make sure I get a proper meaning... KJV and Geneva Bible... with much reliance of God for wisdom and understanding.  Understanding scripture is no easy matter, or to be taken lightly.
I am getting a chronological copy of the Qur'an to study.  I only recently learned that there are different translations of the Qur'an.  I have been referred to Pickthall's, but I do not know if this is the best translation.  I am sure it would be best to cross reference with several also.  Too bad I will never understand Arabic.  :-(
I haven't a clue regarding the Torah.  I subscribed to 'reading Torah everyday' on Facebook but it has been written in Hebrew so no help there.  :-(   I am only just gtting around to studying Judaism.

[Renaissance_Man]

It's not clear what you are seeking here.  Are you asking for a recommendation of a particular Bible translation?  And by Bible I take it you mean the Christian New Testament?  The Bible consists of both the Old and New Testaments which include the Torah.

For a casual reading, you can pick up pretty much any copy like the New Revised Standard Version or if you want a Jewish source, the Judaica Press Tanach of the Torah.  Both are available online.  One warning is Christians mistranslate many Old Testament verses to suit their beliefs as well as spinning other OT verses.  I would reference Jewish or other non-Christian translations if you are studying hte OT.

[nemesis]

Salam raffa

King James bible.

N

[hasanhh]

I you want to read a bible, a Douay translation will probably be best. Most translations have a political agenda and stuff is changed , added, deleted or altered.

Do not waste your time with "study guides" as they are worse.

When you read the gospels, just remeber who says what. John Ch.8 is important here (Satan=Liar) and then "bible says, satan says, "son of god".  Paul was a rabid satanist --here, just glance at Romans3, 2nd paragraph.

And there is Luke 27:32 (what concerns me is at an end).

And the Old Testament was "written" in the 2nd Century BCE and the New Testament was compiled in the 4th Century CE.

Also lookup Clement of Alexandria.

[ZephyrWind]

The Torah is a part of the Bible-- the first five books.  If you read the Bible, you will be reading the Torah also.  Unless you would like to read a separate Torah and Bible?  By the Bible, I am assuming you want to read a Christian Bible (OT and NT), or were you speaking of the Jewish Bible, or Tanakh (which is the OT in the Christian Bible).  I am also unsure if you are interested in reading a protestant Bible, Catholic Bible, etc.?

I realize that I am probably making this much more complex than you are intending to ask.

I read both the Bible and Qur'an on a regular basis (daily).  The Bible version that I prefer at present is the New King James Version.  I would recommend it.  I would also recommend beginning with Proverbs and Psalms.

[12raffaj12]

Salam
Thank you guys very much. Will be getting the King James Bible and the Judaica Press Tanach but will read with caution.
Say I wanted to cross reference and see if certain verses correspond with the Quran what should I read?
Would it be possible to get all the types of Bibles be it Protestant or Catholic?
Thanks again

[hasanhh]

ZephrWind:

Starting where you suggested is more like "sayings" and "romanticising"

The emphasis in the Old Testament is appropriately placed at Exodus 20, Deuteronomy5 and if he uses a Douay Translation "Deutero-Isahia" is included here.

[ZephyrWind]

hasanhh, on 29 August 2012 - 09:41 PM, said:

ZephrWind:

Starting where you suggested is more like "sayings" and "romanticising"

The emphasis in the Old Testament is appropriately placed at Exodus 20, Deuteronomy5 and if he uses a Douay Translation "Deutero-Isahia" is included here.

I disagree that it is "romanticising" and "sayings."  If that is all that the Psalms and Proverbs are to you, then you have missed so much from them.  

I suggested he start there, because for a new reader of the Bible, they are not an overwhelming place to begin.  He may find a familiar language in some of the Psalms that he reads in the Qur'an.  Additionally, he may find himself seeing a lot of the same principles in Proverbs that are held in Islam.

If he wants to read the ten commandments first, then he may.  They are certainly an important part, and a starting point for understanding the remaining 603 mitzvot, as well as what Jesus spoke of when he was asked about the greatest commandment.

"Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?" Jesus said to him, "'You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets.  Matthew 22:36-40

I have no doubt that he will find many commonalities in Islam with regards to the law.  Since he is wanting to cross-reference the Qur'an with the Bible, he could just as well begin with reading about shared figures: Jonah, Moses, Abraham, etc.  In Yusuf Ali's translation, the commentary references a great deal of Biblical scriptures.  Perhaps he should use Yusuf Ali as a starting point to comparing the Bible and the Qur'an.

Some say that the essence of the torah can be found in the nitzavim, Deuteronomy 29:9-30:20.

We also could say that Jesus words sum up the essence of the Torah:  "Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets." (Matthew 7:12)

Although, Jesus was not the originator of those words.  Usually Hillel is given that honor, but we won't find Hillel in the Bible.  A man came to Hillel and said that he would convert if Hillel could teach him the entire Torah while he stood on one foot.  Hillel replied, "What is hateful to you, do not do to your neighbor: that is the whole Torah while the rest is commentary; go and learn it."

But still, I like to go back to Proverbs:  "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom."

[shia-gangsta]

hz umars sunnah to read the bible, as you will see in hadiths and history

[Dina]

It is worth remembering that there are different interpretations, translations and explanations of the Bible - in other words, different versions which the various sects (Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Jehovah's Witness, etc) adhere to. So it is as well if you try to read from as many of these Books as you can.

Regarding the Torah: I highly recommend "Commentary On The Torah" by Richard Elliot Friedman. Anyone familiar with the Arabic language will find similarities in the grammar and structure in Hebrew language, as translated and explained by the scholar.

I think it is very important for Muslims to read and study the Earlier Scriptures, for they provide the backdrop to the narrative in the Qur'an.

[rotten_coconut]

I would recommend:
- ESV (English Standard Version) -> a literal but readable, based on RSV
- ISV (International Standard Version) -> although balanced between literal-idiomatic, it's a completely new translation which employs newly discovered materials such as Dead Sea Scrolls

[12raffaj12]

Thanks. Research getting underway.

[Luqman72]

Iirc there may be a hadith reporting abu bakr was old to study koran not bible. I suppose it may be because of his historical significance such that the template moulding his piritual energies had o be pure. GIGO as they say. But i  read very little islamic literature. I do a lot of dua and zikr though. For me a 100% pure focus is impossible and maybectgat would be too monkish or extreme? What i got from the bible is the idea of Gods word and law bringing life but i believe the crucifiction as substitution and sacrifice is a human invention. Iirc there is a hadith saying if you eat and drink with the unbelievers you become as them. So maybe read but dont swallow everything. Of course scholarship is a noble trait though if combined with virtue. But every sea has its currents so be warned. In sha Allah things will turn out for the good.

[Psyche24]

www.biblegateway.com allows you to read the Bible (which includes the Torah as its first chapters) in 33 translations.

The most famous translation is the King James Version (KJV) which gradually died down as people stopped using olde English.
The Young's Literal Translation (YLT), as evident by its name, is the most literal translation but subsequently hard to understand.
The Orthodox Jewish Bible (OJB) or Complete Jewish Bible (CJB) are commonly used by Messianic Jews who want their translation to retain the original names (ex. "Yeshua" instead of "Jesus").
The Easy-to-Read Version (ERV) is excellent for a notice Biblical student.
etc...

[placid]

Hi Raffaj,

Quote from ZephyrWind Post 6:
“I read both the Bible and Qur'an on a regular basis (daily).  The Bible version that I prefer at present is the New King James Version.  I would recommend it.  I would also recommend beginning with Proverbs and Psalms.”

Response: --- In my studies I also read the Bible and Quran each day, and my preference is also the New King James, as it is simply an update of the Olde English in the King James, --- which is also a good Version. They are ‘authentic’ from the Greek Manuscripts.

Don’t listen to the critics, --- about the Bible being changed, or that Jesus used somebody else’s words. --- The proof is that the Codex Siniaticus, which was compiled in about 400 AD, has the same verse numbering and wording as the King James, and New King James. --- And when Gabriel gave the Revelations to Muhammad, in 625 AD (225 years later) he ‘confirmed’ the Torah and the Gospel, in Surah 3:3-4. (If it had been changed or corrupted before that, then Gabriel would have known it, would he not?)

If you want to read the Psalms and Proverbs first that is fine, but you need to get into the New Testament. --- A good idea is to read one or more Psalms a day, and also start with Matthew 1, and read one or more chapters a day.
--- If you take time to read all the suggested material you will be adopting the opinions of others before you get to reading the Scriptures themselves.
(Also, research only needs to be done after you have read it all to know what it says.)

--- The New Testament is the New Covenant that God made with man.
And it is important ‘how you read.’ --- If you read as a skeptic, or a critic, or as an unbeliever, you will end up the same way.
--- So you need to say to yourself, “This is the Word of God, so I will believe what I read.”

You see, in reading the Bible and the Quran you should not read it to form your own opinion about it, as though you can judge God’s word, as to what is right and what is wrong, --- but to believe that it is God’s message to mankind, to lead us to salvation. --- If you pray for God’s guidance before you read, --- you can ask Him to filter out any faulty interpretation that may have come in through the translating.

One more thing. --- If you get a New King James or the King James (or some others like the New American Standard Version), you can get it in a ‘Red Letter Edition,’ with all the words of Jesus in red. --- Also they come with ‘cross references’ to other verses. --- Either a ‘center column’ reference, or ‘cross reference‘ footnotes.
--- And because of the cross references, you don’t need to start at Genesis because the New Testament is the fulfilling of the Old Testament, and as you read in the Gospels and come to a cross reference, then you can go back to the OT and check it out. --- (It saves a lot of time.)  


Placid