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1st John Bible Nerd-Study - Week 35

Week 35 —1st John Bible Nerd-Study

*Missed last week? Click here for 1st John Bible Nerd-Study - Week 34

NASB (77' vs 95') + 4:1-6 + Westcott


I know we're deep in the study now - but remember to always, first thing, devote the "searching" to the discovery of Christ. Only if the sword of the Spirit is able to slice into our depths will the same Spirit reveal the truth hidden within that sword.

For the translation this time I'd like to settle the issue of 1977 vs 1995 with NASB (at least for 1 John). I remember talking with some like John Saunders (who introduced me to NASB) how they despised the updates in 1995. The more literal translations were still there but now in the footnotes instead of the text itself. Plus, if you're used to Thee's and Thou's then the update ruined it. The 1977 version kept that archaic language for things like Psalms and prayers. In studying 1 John I figured it'd be a great time to do some comparing so we can have something to say on the debate. It's difficult to find a 1977 version. They are treasures now. In the link above, it starts out with both compared. But if you want to just read the 1977 or 1995 version(s) I've added them afterward.

We're continuing on our focus of verse by verse memory and meditating. This time is 4:1-6. This is a strange section to most of us, talking about testing the spirits.

And for our commentary this time, we're back to a very nerdy one: B. F. Westcott. Remember, the Westcott-Hort Greek text? (WH) He's the Westcott guy of the team. Westcott gets into the very smallest of details and is focused on the Greek language. Christian Chen said this is "long recognized as one of the most thorough commentaries on the Greek text--invaluable notes on some of the most important doctrinal subjects touched upon in this Epistle such as "The Fatherhood of God", 'on the Idea of Love', etc." - (This is a note from "Bring ... the Books" - A Guide to Christian Classics by Christian Chen). Westcott is not the guy that you always agree with on conclusions but he was one of the nerdiest on the Greek text. Greek scholars are students when reading his writings.

Remember to not be overwhelmed (so many notes in his commentary!) but find your sweet spot in 1 John that you're especially studying and go to that section with this commentary. If you get carried away and read the whole thing all the better! Sometimes I get started with something like this and then 1-2 hours later (when Katherine is searching for me) discover that I got lost reading way too many pages. It is fascinating to "fellowship" with these commentaries after you know the text well enough. You don't have to keep looking things up because it's in your heart and you can quickly confirm or question something that's said.

I'm pasting the archive.org link since it gives a few options. I always like the PDF option, but they have a variety: https://archive.org/details/epistlesstjohn00dclgoog/page/n78/mode/2up

Here is another link just for the PDF in case that's easier.



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