Research in: Classics

TRANSLATING THE BIBLE

All ancient texts are mediated through their textual tradition -- when and where copies were made (and by whom), what survives, and how we work with those surviving texts today.  Because translations of the Hebrew Bible are, simultaneously, historical sources and sacred texts still in use today, there are additional complexities involved in creating those editions. 

Factors to note that affect the composition of editions and translations of the Bible include....

• Source: Which original manuscript(s) was/were used. If you're interested in understanding more about how this happens, you can visit our library guide on critical editions. The New Catholic Encyclopedia also has a detailed article about the different manuscripts of which many modern Bible versions are composed. 
   
• Editorial Choices: How the compiler(s)/editor(s) chose to interpret and translate the manuscripts they used (again, see the guide on critical editions).
   
• Canon: Which parts of the Bible the compiler(s)/editor(s) considered valid. The so-called deuterocanonical or apocryphal books, for example, are not accepted as canonical by many Protestant denominations and do not typically appear in such translations as the King James Version. The New Catholic Encyclopedia has a useful (if Catholic-focused!) overview of the different canons.  
   
• Denomination/Authority: Related to the above, who (i.e., which denomination/church body/ruler/etc.) worked on and signed off on this version. In Catholic publications this kind of approval is often called the imprimatur (Latin for "let it be printed") and/or nihil obstat ("nothing hinders it" -- i.e., there are no objections). 
   
• Purpose/Audience:  Examples of this might include study Bibles (which may include additional marginalia, contextual information, etc.); red-letter Bibles (in which words spoken by Jesus Christ in the New Testament appear in red); and 'Youth' Bibles (which typically use less-formal or even colloquial language to make the text more accessible to younger readers). 

If at all possible, when you pick up a new version of the Bible, try to examine the introduction, preface, and/or any other explanatory information in the front of the Bible which will give you context for how that particular version was put together. 

LOCATING HEBREW TEXTS 

in the library...

At Holy Cross, we organize our books using a system called Library of Congress Classification or LCC. LCC is based on the subject of the books. Each letter represents a specific subject. Each subject is broken down into more specific letter sections, each of which is further broken down into number ranges for specific topics. Most call numbers have additional  numbers and letters on the end of them, which are used to give each book a unique spot on the library shelves. 

Here are the areas where you will find editions and translations of relevant ancient texts. These are also marked on the map attached this box: 

You can see the detailed breakdown of the biblical sections here (begins on page 45) and of the Hebrew literature sections here (begins on page 25). 

SUGGESTED EDITIONS

The library contains dozens of copies of the Bible in all different translations and editions -- but not all editions are equal! Here are some of the editions you might wish to consult in your study of Biblical Hebrew: 

ONLINE COLLECTIONS OF TEXTS

In addition to the resources available in Dinand Library and in the online library collections, there are a number of free resources that you can use to access and search Hebrew texts. These can be helpful for tasks like quickly reading a passage or looking up the translation of words, and they can also be useful for projects where you need to research how often or in which places a particular word is used.