Chapter 1

Produced by Martin Ward

Weymouth New Testament in Modern Speech Preface and Introductions

Third Edition 1913 Public Domain--Copy Freely

These files were produced by keying for use in the Online Bible. Proofreading was performed by Earl Melton. The printed edition used in creating this etext was the Kregal reprint of the Ernest Hampden-Cook (1912) Third Edition, of the edition first published in 1909 by J. Clarke, London. Kregal edition ISBN 0-8254-4025-4.

Due to the plans to add the Weymouth footnotes, the footnote markers have been left in the text and page break indicators. Other special markings are words surrounded with "*" to indicate emphasis, and phrases surrounded with "<>" to indicate bold OT quotes. See WEYMOUTH.INT in WNTINT.ZIP for the introduction to the text, and information on Weymouth's techniques.

The most current corrected files can be found on:

Bible Foundation BBS 602-789-7040 (14.4 kbs)

If any errors are found, please notify me at the above bbs, or at:

Mark Fuller 1129 E. Loyola Dr. Tempe, Az. 85282 (602) 829-8542

Corrections to the printed page ---------------------

Introduction says personal pronouns referring to Jesus, when spoken by other than the author/narrator, are capitalized only when they recognize His deity. The following oversights in the third edition were corrected in subsequent editions. Therefore we feel justified in correcting them in this computer version.

Mt 22:16 Capitalized 'him'. Same person speaking as in v.15.

Mt 27:54 Capitalized 'he'.

Joh 21:20 Capitalized 'his'

Heb 12:6 Capitalized last 'HE' (referring to God).

==== changes made to printed page.

Lu 11:49 Added closing quote at end of verse as later editions do.

Lu 13:6 come > came (changed in later editions)

Ro 11:16 it > if (an obvious typesetting error corrected in later editions)

1Co 11:6 out > cut (an obvious typesetting error corrected in later editions)

Php 4:3 the Word 'book' in 'book of Life' was not capitalized in various printings of the third edition, but it was in later editions. So we have capitalized it here.

2Ti 1:9 deserts > desserts (misspelling perpetuated in later editions)

==== no change made:

Eph 6:17 did not capitalize 'word' as in Word of God.

PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION

The Translation of the New Testament here offered to English-speaking Christians is a bona fide translation made directly from the Greek, and is in no sense a revision. The plan adopted has been the following.

1. An earnest endeavour has been made (based upon more than sixty years' study of both the Greek and English languages, besides much further familiarity gained by continual teaching) to ascertain the exact meaning of every passage not only by the light that Classical Greek throws on the langruage used, but also by that which the Septuagint and the Hebrew Scriptures afford; aid being sought too from Versions and Commentators ancient and modern, and from the ample _et cetera_ of _apparatus grammaticus_ and theological and Classical reviews and magazines--or rather, by means of occasional excursions into this vast prairie.

2. The sense thus seeming to have been ascertained, the next step has been to consider how it could be most accurately and naturally exhibited in the English of the present day; in other words, how we can with some approach to probability suppose that the inspired writer himself would have expressed his thoughts, had he been writing in our age and country. /1

3. Lastly it has been evidently desirable to compare the results thus attained with the renderings of other scholars, especially of course witll the Authorized and Revised Versions. But alas, the great majority of even "new translations," so called, are, in reality, only Tyndale's immortal work a little--often very litLle--modernized!

4. But in the endeavour to find in Twentieth Century English a precise equivalent for a Greek word, phrase, or sentence there are two dangers to be guarded against. There are a Scylla and a Charybdis. On the one hand there is the English of Society, on the other hand that of the utterly uneducated, each of these _patois_ having also its own special, though expressive, borderland which we name 'slang.' But all these salient angles (as a professor of fortification might say) of our language are forbidden ground to the reverent translator of Holy Scripture.

5. But again, a _modern_ translation--does this imply that no words or phrases in any degree antiquated are to be admitted? Not so, for great numbers of such words and phrases are still in constant use. To be antiquated is not the same thing as to be obsolete or even obsolescent, and without at least a tinge of antiquity it is scarcely possible that there should be that dignity of style that befits the sacred themes with which the Evangelists and Apostles deal.

6. It is plain that this attempt to bring out the sense of the Sacred Writings naturally as well as accurately in present-day English does not permit, except to a limited extent, the method of literal rendering--the _verbo verbum reddere_ at which Horace shrugs his shoulders. Dr. Welldon, recently Bishop of Calcutta, in the Preface (p. vii) to his masterly translation of the _Nicomachean Ethics_ of Aristotle, writes, "I have deliberately rejected the principle of trying to translate the same Greek word by the same word in English, and where circumstances seemed to call for it I have sometimes used two English words to represent one word of the Greek;"--and he is perfectly right. With a slavish literality delicate shades of meaning cannot be reproduced, nor allowance be made for the influence of interwoven thought, or of the writer's ever shifting--not to say changing--point of view. An utterly ignorant or utterly lazy man, if possessed of a little ingenuity, can with the help of a dictionary and grammar give a word-for-word rendering, whether intelligible or not, and print 'Translation' on his title-page. On the other hand it is a melancholy spectacle to see men of high ability and undoubted scholarship toil and struggle at translation under a needless restriction to literality, as in intellectual handcuffs and fetters, when they might with advantage snap the bonds and fling them away, as Dr. Welldon has done: more melancholy still, if they are at the same time racking their brains to exhibit the result of their labours---a splendid but idle philological _tour de force_ --in what was English nearly 300 years before.

7. Obviously any literal translation cannot but carry idioms of the earlier language into the later, where they will very probably not be understood; /2 and more serious still is the evil when, as in the Jewish Greek of the N T, the earlier language of the two is itself composite and abounds in forms of speech that belong to one earlier still. For the N.T. Greek, even in the writings of Luke, contains a large number of Hebrew idioms; and a literal rendering into English cannot but partially veil, and in some degree distort, the true sense, even if it does not totally obscure it (and that too where _perfect_ clearness should be attained, if possible), by this admixture of Hebrew as well as Greek forms of expression.

8. It follows that the reader who is bent upon getting a literal rendering, such as he can commonly find in the R.V. or (often a better one) in Darby's _New Testament_, should always be on his guard against its strong tendency to mislead.

9. One point however can hardly be too emphatically stated. It is not the present Translator's ambition to supplant the Versions already in general use, to which their intrinsic merit or long familiarity or both have caused all Christian minds so lovingly to cling. His desire has rather been to furnish a succinct and compressed running commentary (not doctrinal) to be used sidc by side with its elder compeers. And yet there has been something of a remoter hope. It can scarcely be doubted that some day the attempt will be renewed to produce a satisfactory English Bible--one in some respects perhaps (but assuredly with great and important deviations) on the lines of the Revision of 1881, or even altogether to supersede both the A.V. and the R.V.; and it may be that the Translation here offered will contribute some materials that may be built into that far grander edifice.

10. THE GREEK TEXT here followed is that given in the Translator's _Resultant Greek Testament_.

11. Of the VARIOUS READINGS only those are here given which seem the most important, and which affect the rendering into English. They are in the footnotes, with V.L. (_varia lectio_) prefixed. As to the chief modern critical editions full details will be found in the _Resultant Greek Testament_, while for the original authorities--MSS., Versions, Patristic quotations--the reader must of necessity consult the great works of Lachmann, Tregelles, Tischendorf, and others, or the numerous monographs on separate Books. /3 In the margin of the R.V. a distinction is made between readings supported by "a few ancient authorities," "some ancient authorities," "many ancient authorities," and so on. Such valuation is not attempted in this work.

12. Considerable pains have been bestowed on the exact rendering of the tenses of the Greek verb; for by inexactness in this detail the true sense cannot but be missed. That the Greek tenses do not coincide, and cannot be expected to coincide with those of the English verb; that--except in narrative--the aorist as a rule is _more_ exactly represented in English by our perfect with "have" than by our simple past tense; and that in this particular the A.V. is in scores of instances more correct than the R.V.; the present Translator has contended (with arguments which some of the best scholars in Britain and in America hold to be "unanswerable" and "indisputable") in a pamphlet _On the Rendering into English of the Greek Aorist and Perfect_. Even an outline of the argument cannot be given in a Preface such as this.

13. But he who would make a truly _English_ translation of a foreign book must not only select the right nouns, adjectives, and verbs, insert the suitable prepositions and auxiliaries, and triumph (if he can) over the seductions and blandishments of idioms with which he has been familiar from his infancy, but which, though forcible or beautiful with other surroundings, are for all that part and parcel of that other language rather than of English: he has also to beware of _connecting his sentences_ in an un-English fashion.

Now a careful examination of a number of authors (including Scottish, Irish, and American) yields some interesting results. Taking at haphazard a passage from each of fifty-six authors, and counting on after some full stop till fifty finite verbs--i. e. verbs in the indicative, imperative, or subjunctive mood--have been reached (each finite verb, as every schoolboy knows, being the nucleus of one sentence or clause), it has been found that the connecting links of the fifty-six times fifty sentences are about one-third conjunctions, about one-third adverbs or relative and interrogative pronouns, while in the case of the remaining third there is what the grammarians call an _asyndeton_--no formal grammatical connexion at all. But in the writers of the N.T. nearly _two_-thirds of the connecting links are conjunctions. It follows that in order to make the style of a translation true idiomatic English many of these conjunctions must be omitted, and for others adverbs, &c., must be substituted.

The two conjunctions _for_ and _therefore_ are discussed at some length in two Appendices to the above-mentioned pamphlet on the _Aorist_, to which the reader is referred.

14. The NOTES, with but few exceptions, are not of the nature of a general commentary. Some, as already intimated, refer to the readings here followed, but the great majority are in vindication or explanation of the renderings given. Since the completion of this new version nearly two years ago, ill-health has incapacitated the Translator from undertaking even the lightest work. He has therefore been obliged to entrust to other hands the labour of critically examining and revising the manuscript and of seeing it through the press. This arduous task has been undertaken by Rev. Ernest Hampden-Cook, M.A., St. John's College, Cambridge, of Sandhach, Cheshire, with some co-operation from one of the Translator's sons; and the Translator is under deep obligations to these two gentlemen for their kindness in the matter. He has also most cordially to thank Mr. Hampden-Cook for making the existence of the work known to various members of the OLD MILLHILIANS' CLUB and other former pupils of the Translator, who in a truly substantial manner have manifested a generous determination to enable the volume to see the light. Very grateful does the Translator feel to them for this signal mark of their friendship.

Mr. Hampden-Cook is responsible for the headings of the paragraphs, and at my express desire has inserted some additional notes.

I have further to express my gratitude to Rev. Frank Baliard, M.A., B.Sc., Lond., at present of Sharrow, Sheffield, for some very valuable assistance which he has most kindly given in connexion with the Introductions to the several books.

I have also the pleasure of acknowledging the numerous valuable and suggestive criticisms with which I have been favoured on some parts of the work, by an old friend, Rev. Sydney Thelwall, B.A., of Leamington, a clergyman of the Church of England, whom I have known for many years as a painstaking and accurate scholar, a well-read theologian. and a thoughtful and devout student of Scripture.

I am very thankful to Mr. H. L. Gethin. Mr. S. Hales, Mr. J. A. Latham, and Rev. T. A. Seed, for the care with which they have read the proof sheets.

And now this Translation is humbly and prayerfully commended to God's gracious blessing.

R.F.W.

/1. I am aware of what Proffessor Blackie has written on this subject (_Aeschylus_, Pref. p. viii) but the problem endeavoured to be solved in this Translation is as above stated.

/2. A flagrant instance is the "having in a readiness" of 2 Cor. 10.6, A.V. althoglgh in Tyndale we find "and are redy to take vengeaunce," and even Wiclif writes "and we han redi to venge."

/3 Such as McClellan's Four Gospels; Westcott on John's Gospel, John's Epistles, and _Hebrews_; Hackett on _Acts_, Lightfoot, and also Ellicott, on various Epistles: Mayor on _James_; Edwards on _I Corinthians_ and _Hebrews_; Sanday and Headlam on _Romans_. Add to these Scrivener's very valuable _Introduction to the Criticism of the N.T._

PREFACE TO THE THIRD EDITION

For the purposes of this edition the whole volume has been re-set in new type, and, in the hope of increasing the interest and attractiveness of the Translation, all conversations have been spaced out in accordance with modern custom. A freer use than before has been made of capital letters, and by means of small, raised figures, prefixed to words in the text, an indication has been griven whenever there is a footnote. "Capernaum" and "Philadelphia" have been substituted for the less familiar but more literal "Capharnahum" and "Philadelpheia." Many errata have been corrected, and a very considerable number of what seemed to be infelicities or slight inaccuracies in the English have been removed. A few additional footnotes have been inserted, and, for the most part, those for which the Editor is responsible have now the letters ED. added to them.

Sincere thanks are tendered to the many kind friends who have expressed their appreciation of this Translation, or have helped to make it better known, and to the many correspondents who have sent criticisms of the previous editions, and made useful suggestions for the improvement of the volume.

E.H.C.

ABBREVIATIONS USED IN THE NOTES

Aorist. Dr. Weymouth's Pamphlet on the Rendering of the Greek Aorist and Perfect Tenses into English.

A.V. Authorised English Version, 1611.

Cp. Compare.

ED. Notes for which the Editor is responsible, wholly or in part.

I.E. That is.

Lit. Literally.

LXX. The Septuagint (Greek) Version of the Old Testament.

n. Note.

nn. Notes.

N.T. New Testament.

O.T. Old Testament.

R.V. Revised English Version, 1881-85.

S.H. Sanday and Headlam's Commentary on 'Romans.'

V.L. Varia Lectio. An alternative reading found in some Manuscripts of the New Testament.

V.V. Verses.

In accordance with modern English custom, _ITALICS_ are used to indicate emphasis. [In the etext, surounded by **]

Old Testament quotations are printed in small capitals. [In the etext, surrounded by <>]

During Christ's earthly ministry even His disciples did not always recognize His super-human nature and dignity. Accordingly, in the Gospels of this Translation, it is only when the Evangelists themselves use of Him the words "He," "Him," "His," that these are spelt with capital initial letters.

The spelling of "me" and "my" with small initial letters, when used by Christ Himself in the Gospels, is explained by the fact that, before His Resurrection, He did not always emphasize His own super-human nature and dignity.

The Good News as Recorded by Matthew

There are ample reasons for accepting the uniform tradition which from earliest times has ascribed this Gospel to Levi the son of Alphaeus, who seems to have changed his name to 'Matthew' on becoming a disciple of Jesus. Our information as to his subsequent life is very scanty. After the feast which he made for his old friends (Lu 5:29) his name only appears in the New Testament in the list of the twelve Apostles. Early Christian writers add little to our knowledge of him, but his life seems to have been quiet and somewhat ascetic. He is also generally represented as having died a natural death. Where his Gospel was written, or where he himself laboured, we cannot say.

Not a little controversy has arisen as to the form in which this Gospel first appeared, that is, as to whether we have in the Greek MSS. an original document or a translation from an earlier Aramaic writing. Modern scholarship inclines to the view that the book is not a translation, but was probably written in Greek by Matthew himself, upon the basis of a previously issued collection of "Logia" or discourses, to the existence of which Papias, Irenaeus, Pantaenus, Origen, Eusebius and Jerome all testify.

The date of the Gospel, as we know it, is somewhat uncertain, but the best critical estimates are included between 70 and 90, A.D. Perhaps, with Harnack, we may adopt 75, A.D.

The book was evidently intended for Jewish converts, and exhibits Jesus as the God-appointed Messiah and King, the fulfiller of the Law and of the highest expectations of the Jewish nation. This speciality of aim rather enhances than diminishes its general value. Renan found reason for pronouncing it "the most important book of Christendom-- the most important book which has ever been written." Its aim is manifestly didactic rather than chronological.

The Good News as Recorded by Mark

This Gospel is at once the briefest and earliest of the four. Modern research confirms the ancient tradition that the author was Barnabas's cousin, "John, whose other name was Mark," who during Paul's first missionary tour "departed from them" at Pamphylia, "and returned to Jerusalem" (see Ac 12:12,25; 15:37,39; Co 4:1O; 2Ti 4:11; Phm 1:24; 1Pe 5:13). His defection appeared to Paul sufficiently serious to warrant an emphatic refusal to take him with him on a second tour, but in after years the breach was healed and we find Mark with Paul again when he writes to Colossae, and he is also mentioned approvingly in the second Letter to Timothy.

Scholars are now almost unanimous in fixing the date of this Gospel between 63 and 70, A. D. There is no valid reason for questioning the usual view that it was written in Rome. Clement, Eusebius, Jerome and Epiphanius, all assert that this was so. That the book was mainly intended for Gentiles, and especially Romans, seems probable from internal evidence. Latin forms not occurring in other Gospels, together with explanations of Jewish terms and customs, and the omission of all reference to the Jewish Law, point in this direction. Its vividness of narration and pictorial minuteness of observation bespeak the testimony of an eye-witness, and the assertion of Papias, quoted by Eusebius, that Mark was "the interpreter of Peter" is borne out by the Gospel itself no less than by what we otherwise know of Mark and Peter.

In a real though not mechanical sense, this is "the Gospel of Peter," and its admitted priority to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke affords substantial reason for the assumption that it is to some extent the source whence they derive their narratives, although Papias distinctly affirms that Mark made no attempt at giving a carefully arranged history such as that at which Luke confessedly aimed.

In spite of the witness of most uncial MSS. and the valiant pleading of Dean Burgon and others, modern scholars are well nigh unanimous in asserting that the last twelve verses of this Gospel are an appendix. Yet less cannot honestly be said than that they "must have been of very early date," and that they embody "a true apostolic tradition which may have been written by some companion or successor of the original author." In one Armenian MS. they are attributed to Aristion.

The Good News as Recorded by Luke

Modern research has abundantly confirmed the ancient tradition that the anonymous author of the third Gospel is none other than "Luke the beloved physician" and the narrator of the "Acts of the Apostles" (see. Col 4:14; 2Ti 4:11; Phm 1:24). Even Renan acknowledges this, and the objections of a few extremists appear to have been sufficiently answered.

The date is not easy to settle. The main problem is whether the book was written before or after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70, A.D. Not a few scholars whose views merit great respect still think that it preceded that event, but the majority of critics believe otherwise. Three principal dates have been suggested, 63, A.D., 80, A.D., 100, A.D. If we accept 80, A. D., we shall be in substantial accord with Harnack, McGiffert, and Plummer, who fairly represent the best consensus of scholarly opinion.

There is no evidence as to where this Gospel was composed, although its general style suggests the influence of some Hellenic centre. Its special characteristics are plain. It is written in purer Greek than the other Gospels, and is manifestly the most historic and artistic. It has also the widest outlook, having obviously been compiled for Gentiles, and, especially, for Greeks. The Author was evidently an educated man and probably a physician, and was also a close observer.

Eighteen of the parables and six of the miracles found here are not recorded elsewhere. Those "portions of the Gospel narrative which Luke alone has preserved for us, are among the most beautiful treasures which we possess, and we owe them in a great measure to his desire to make his collection as full as possible." Luke's object was rather to write history than construct an "apology" and for this reason his order is generally chronological.

This Gospel is often termed, and not without reason, "the Gospel of Paul." Luke's close association with the great Apostle--an association to which the record in the Acts and also the Pauline Letters bear testimony--at once warrants and explains the ancient assumption that we have here a writing as truly coloured by the influence of Paul as that of Mark was by Peter. This is especially the Gospel of gratuitous and universal salvation. Its integrity has recently been placed beyond dispute. Marcion's edition of it in 140, A.D., was a mutilation of the original!

The Good News as Recorded by John