Just a quick note about a couple additions to the blogroll.

I have a link to Bobby Grow’s blog again (Devoted Life)…he goes through a lot of blog names (hopefully he will keep this one for a while).

Also, a link to Ben Witherington’s blog has been added. I definitely recommend you check his blog out. Dr. Witherington is an excellent Bible scholar and his posts (and many of the comments) are interesting to read through.

Again, a link in my blogroll does not mean I support the listed blog (100%). It merely means that I read it.

You may see quite a few of these types of entries as I read through the ESV completely this year. I will post things as I run across them in my normal reading. Since I read the Better Bibles Blog frequently, I have become more conscious to exactly how things are translated and if they could be improved upon without losing the meaning of the original.

So the question for today is…what does it mean to lick up everything? Are we talking about dogs or men here?  If you have ever seen a person walking around licking up everything let me know.

I am very surprised that even some of the “modern” translations kept the phrase (the NET Bible didn’t even have a note on it after keeping the phrase). Below are several different versions for comparison.

Since I will be replacing my regular (carry around) Bible (1977 NASB) this year with either the ESV or the HCSB, I have to say the HCSB beats the ESV on this verse.

Numbers 22:4

(CEV) They said to the Midianite leaders, “That bunch of Israelites will wipe out everything in sight, like a bull eating grass in a field.” So King Balak

(ESV) And Moab said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will now lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.” So Balak the son of Zippor, who was king of Moab at that time,

(GNB) The Moabites said to the leaders of the Midianites, “This horde will soon destroy everything around us, like a bull eating the grass in a pasture.” So King Balak

(HCSB) So the Moabites said to the elders of Midian, “This horde will devour everything around us like an ox eats up the green plants in the field.” Since Balak son of Zippor was Moab’s king at that time,

(NASB) Moab said to the elders of Midian, “Now this horde will lick up all that is around us, as the ox licks up the grass of the field.” And Balak the son of Zippor was king of Moab at that time.

(NET.) So the Moabites said to the elders of Midian, “Now this mass of people will lick up everything around us, as the bull devours the grass of the field. Now Balak son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at this time.

(YLT) and Moab saith unto the elders of Midian, `Now doth the assembly lick up all that is round about us, as the ox licketh up the green thing of the field.’ And Balak son of Zippor is king of Moab at that time,

AMDG

Since I am one who believes we, as Christians, are truly “free” and we are no longer “bound” by OT law…I thought I would post this PDF file of 1050 (800) NT commands that I ran across by Finnis Jennings Dake.

You may also view them at the following URL in html format, though I caution you, the colors used on the webpage are horrid.

1050 NT Commands

AMDG

Today I ran across some information that makes me question some of the links in my blogroll (well not really question the links but the actions of the blog owners).

Without saying too much…take a look at this post and/or this post and decide for yourself (it isn’t a joke).

I realize there will always be a “line” there that “famous” people in the ministry will try to defend (I am talking about the spending of money on conventions/cruises and the like). However, I wonder how Christ-like and how (ir)responsible blowing money in such a way really is.

Steve Camp and Phil Johnson have been in my blogroll for a long time. Since they are in my blogroll, I felt it was important for me to point out that

having a link in my blogroll != support for said person and/or organization

(”!=” means “not equal to”). My blogroll simply consists of blogs that I read, visit, and/or find interesting. You may find blogs in my blogroll that I do not agree with so do your DD and always check everything against the Scripture.

AMDG

My wife and I had a discussion about a verse in our daily reading today. She asked me what it meant and I thought it was a good blog entry.
…her thigh shall fall away…

Hmmm…that sounds like it could be a good thing doesn’t it? Perhaps some Bible diet that causes women to lose weight in their thighs/leg area (worded in old english of course “shall fall away”).

Here is a bit more of the verse, …her belly (stomach) will swell, and her thigh will shrivel…

Ok so maybe it doesn’t sound all that great when you read more of the verse. Below is the full verse:

Numbers 5:27 NET
(27) When he has made her drink the water, then, if she has defiled herself and behaved unfaithfully toward her husband, the water that brings a curse will enter her to produce bitterness — her abdomen will swell, her thigh will fall away, and the woman will become a curse among her people.

I wanted to point out that sometimes “literal” translations become counter productive when we have no idea what the meaning is. What in the world does “her thigh will fall away” mean? It sounds to me like some sort of weight loss program that is actually working. When you read the whole verse it obviously doesn’t have to do with weight loss but some people still may take it as her leg falling off or something similar. If you read it in context with other verses around it you may get a better picture of what it truly means. However, you may not. Why not tranlsate the idiom so that people can understand it?

Hebrew experts please correct me here if need be. It should read something along the lines of…her womb will (fall away, shrivel, dry up, stop functioning) and she will be unable to have children.

I found it interesting that the NET Bible didn’t translate it to be more understandable. Below is a sample of different translations.

(CEV) If the woman has been unfaithful, the water will immediately make her unable to have children, and she will be a curse among her people.

(GNB) If she has committed adultery, the water will cause bitter pain; her stomach will swell up and her genital organs will shrink. Her name will become a curse among her people.

(GW) If she has become unclean by being unfaithful to her husband, the water that can bring the curse will go into her and become bitter. Her stomach will swell, her uterus will drop, and she will become cursed among her people.

(KJV) And when he hath made her to drink the water, then it shall come to pass, that, if she be defiled, and have done trespass against her husband, that the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her, and become bitter, and her belly shall swell, and her thigh shall rot: and the woman shall be a curse among her people.

(MSG) If she has defiled herself in being unfaithful to her husband, when she drinks the water that delivers a curse, it will enter her body and cause acute pain; her belly will swell and her womb shrivel. She will be cursed among her people.

(NASB) ‘When he has made her drink the water, then it shall come about, if she has defiled herself and has been unfaithful to her husband, that the water which brings a curse will go into her and cause bitterness, and her abdomen will swell and her thigh will waste away, and the woman will become a curse among her people.

(Webster) And when he hath made her to drink the water, then it shall come to pass, that, if she is defiled, and hath done trespass against her husband, that the water that causeth the curse shall enter into her, and become bitter, and her belly shall swell, and her thigh shall perish: and the woman shall be a curse among her people.

AMDG

Addendum 3/7: In regards to my statement about the NET Bible above…to their credit, on a verse prior to this one (with the same phrase) they do have a translation note and a study note. I have reproduced the notes below. Just another reason why I like the NET Bible so much. In addition, it is mentioned on one of the comments below that the NET Bible translation philosophy is to translate more literal in the case of something questionable like this. I like that philosophy as long as there is a note to go along with it.

TEV takes the expression “your thigh” as a euphemism for the genitals: “cause your genital organs to shrink.”

Most commentators take the expressions to be euphemisms of miscarriage or stillbirth, meaning that there would be no fruit from an illegitimate union. The idea of the abdomen swelling has been reinterpreted by NEB to mean “fall away.” If this interpretation stands, then the idea is that the woman has become pregnant, and that has aroused the suspicion of the husband for some reason. R. K. Harrison (Numbers [WEC], 111-13) discusses a variety of other explanations for diseases and conditions that might be described by these terms. He translates it with “miscarriage,” but leaves open what the description might actually be. Cf. NRSV “makes your uterus drop, your womb discharge.”