Luke 9:44 Fun

A New Low in Biblical Translation?

There is a lot of bad translation in all English Bibles, but Luke 9:44 may be a new low. Here are two version of it. Look only at the first part of the verse:

KJV: Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men.
NIV: Listen carefully to what I am about to tell you: The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.

Notice that there isn’t a word in that initial phrase that is the same in two translations. Which is right? Here is a hint: no word in the NIV corresponds to anything in the Greek. This isn’t to say that the KJV isn’t also full of odd things, put if you are curious about what Jesus really said, continue.

What his listeners heard isn’t one of Jesus’s common lines, but it is kind of humorous.