Then the Lord God said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil; and now, he might reach out with his hand, and take fruit also from the tree of life, and eat, and live forever” Genesis 3:22 NASB Live forever – “But two horrible fears haunt man steadily, trailing him like an everlasting shadow: the…
For He has satisfied the [a]thirsty soul, and He has filled the hungry soul with what is good. Psalm 107:9 NASB Soul – Did you see that tiny footnote before the word “thirsty”? I hoped that the footnote would explain that the Hebrew word nepeš does not mean “soul,” ah, but not a chance. The footnote merely says…
and He will wipe away every tear from their eyes; and there will no longer be any death; there will no longer be any mourning, or crying, or pain; the first things have passed away. Revelation 21:4 NASB Death – Inevitability! The quip “death and taxes” isn’t always true, but “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,” and “the…
For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you on the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the life that makes atonement.’ Leviticus 17:11 NASB Life/ souls/ life – “Life is in the blood.” How many times have we heard this…
Abram took his wife Sarai and his nephew Lot, and all their possessions which they had accumulated, and the people which they had acquired in Haran, and they set out for the land of Canaan; so they came to the land of Canaan. Genesis 12:5 NASB People – Language evolves. Words that used to mean one thing now mean…
For He sates the thirsting throat and the hungry throat He fills with good. Psalm 107:9 Robert Alter Throat – Robert Alter stresses the need to translate Hebrew terms consistently. His point is simple. Hebrew has a rather sparse vocabulary. Often a single Hebrew word has many different potential English translations. Since English style tends…
Then the Lord God formed the man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and the man became a living [g]person. Genesis 2:7 NASB Living person – You’ll notice the little footnote in the NASB text. The footnote reads “Or soul,” but that is about as misleading as you could get. God does not…
But those who seek my [f]life to destroy it, will go into the [g]depths of the earth. Psalm 63:9 NASB Life/depths – Did you notice the two footnotes in this verse from the NASB? The tiny (f) and (g) indicate that the translators want the reader to notice something about the Hebrew words. But if you looked at…
My soul clings [e]to You; Your right hand upholds me. Psalm 63:8 NASB Clings – You know this verb. It’s used in the famous marriage verse, Genesis 2:24. “For this reason a man shall leave his father and his mother, and be joined to his wife; and they shall become one flesh.” Of course, the NASB translation changes…
The Lord will guard your going out and your coming in from this time forth and forever. Psalm 121:8 NASB And forever – We reach the end of this short poem. The end is “forever,” an appropriate place to close our thoughts about God’s care. According to the poet, God is constantly watching over us (the metaphor…
