It's all Greek to Me!

By Amie May

We hear it often when someone is confused… “Well, it’s all Greek to me.” The underlying message is, “I don’t get it, I don’t understand it, and it is probably something so far beyond me that I never will.”

Hmmm.

Think about that for a minute. Greek, that is, Koine Greek, is the language of the New Testament. It was the language that the disciples of Jesus employed to tell nothing less than the Greatest Story Ever Told. Greek was the language that could actually form some sort of common bond between first century Jews and Gentiles. For whatever reason, it was the language of the day God chose to enter into in order to forever change mankind. Once we begin to get a glimpse into this language, we begin to see just how plain and useful it was.

First we need to be aware that Greek is a living language, that is, it is still spoken today – but it is much different than the Greek language of 2000 years ago! Just think of how different the English language of our day is from say that of Shakespeare’s day. You get the point. It is almost unrecognizable. Such is the way first century Koine Greek would appear to modern Greeks today.

Greek is different from the way the English language is constructed. Word order is not the name of the game…case endings are. And for some, that can be daunting. But it need not be.

While many are intimidated by it, in reality it is a very worthwhile study because it has a richness, and its own sort of simplicity to it that actually makes it very enjoyable to work with.

Because this is different from the way we’re used to speaking, it may take a while to adjust to – but here’s the good news – you may never even get to the point where you can read and interpret Greek in a fluent manner, but by learning just a little bit of it, such as the alphabet and another tidbit or two, you can mine the depths of the entire New Testament!

Yes, I can hear what you’re thinking, “That sounds cool, but is it really all that necessary to really learn this stuff?” That’s the same thing I asked once upon a time…back in the day, as my kids would say.

When I was in grad school, I asked my professor why I should have to take Greek when we had such good translations of the Bible to go by. His answer, “So you’ll quit preaching stupid sermons!” Ouch. What did he mean by that?

Greek is a very nuanced language and often the translators seek a more fluent reading in translating it into English than providing a more accurate one. Sometimes the difference in interpretation/translation is night and day. For instance, when I look at Bible translations, I always go to 2 Corinthians 3:11 to see how they translated the Greek tense. It is speaking about the old Mosaic system and the timing of its passing. The question is, was it “passed” or was it “passing” away at the time Paul was writing – I think we would all agree that this makes a BIG difference in whether we see the transition period between the cross and the Fall of Jerusalem or not.

Well, in this instance, as in many others, translators have to make a lot of decisions and sometimes their own understanding of the story gets in the way. So if you come to a verse like 2 Corinthians 3:11 and it appears that the old covenant system is still standing post-Pentecost, but your view of the story has it passing away at Pentecost, its going to make a difference in the way you choose to deal with the verb tense in the verse at hand.

Literally the verse reads, “For if what is passing away? [present tense] was glorious, what remains is much more glorious” (NKJV). Literally, that is the correct reading. It is in the “present” tense…it is in the process of passing away as Paul writes. But let’s check a few other translations and see how they handle the present tense passing of the old covenant system as presented in the original Greek.

NIV – “And if what was [past tense, incorrect] fading away came with glory, how much greater is the glory of that which lasts!”

Amplified – “For if that which was [past tense, incorrect] but passing and fading away came with splendor, how much more must that abide in glory and splendor which remains and is permanent!”

NRSV – “For if what was set aside [past tense, incorrect] came through glory, much more has the permanent come in glory!”

New American Bible – “If what was [past tense, incorrect] destined to pass away was given in glory, greater by far is the glory that endures.”

Look at how many mistranslate this passage…and this is just one verse! When you delve into the study of the resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15, you will be stunned at how many translators change the singular term “body” into the plural form “bodies.” It is almost too blatant to believe. So, as you can see, the list of things that need to be read in their original format is almost endless.

I think you get the picture. So why does this happen? How can men who know Greek so well provide a mistranslation of it? There are probably many reasons, but one of them isn’t that they’re not very concerned with a literal reading of the text. They do want an accurate translation, but they know it has to be readable for the modern person. Part of making it readable is to be sure the translation is faithful to our ‘clear’ understanding of the story today…which most anybody will tell you includes the old covenant going away at the cross…anybody but the apostle Paul, that is.

And this is why we all need a working knowledge of Koine Greek. With just a Greek linguistic tool or two, there are very few passages that we can’t immediately find the simple translation to. Perhaps the most helpful of tools would be a Greek/English Interlinear. These have the Greek text written out with the English words underneath.

Often, by using such a tool, even if a person doesn’t know anything at all about Greek, he/she is able to see the more literal way the text should read and it could render great riches in their understanding of the story.

My personal favorite is the New King James Version, Greek English Interlinear New Testament published by Thomas Nelson Publishers. The English translation is excellent and the format is very user-friendly as well.

I encourage you to obtain a working knowledge of Greek and then begin using it here and there in your studies. You’ll be greatly encouraged to see all of the things you begin to pick up that normally you would have just taken the word of the translator for. Like anything else, the more you use it, the better you’ll get at it.

So in the future when somebody says, “It’s all Greek to me,” you can say, Wonderful, let’s sit down and see what it has to say!

Blessings in your studies.