Motivations and Urgency of Evangelism - Evangelism Unlimited

Thomas P. Johnston 167
Greek
Byzantine/
Latin Vulgate
kai. h` ca,rij
auvtou/ h` eivj
evme. ouv kenh.
evgenh,qh(
avlla.
perisso,teron
auvtw/n
pa,ntwn
evkopi,asa(
et gratia eius in
me vacua non
fuit sed
abundantius illis
omnibus
laboravi
Note the
translation of
Jerome was
usually a wordfor-word
translation of
the Greek
A Study of Translation Issues Based on the French Translations of 1 Corinthians 15:10
French
Lefèvre ✠
(1530)
French
Louvain ✠
(1550)
and his grace and his grace
was not [at all] was not [at all]
idle in me, but I idle in me. * But
labored more I labored more
abundantly than abundantly than
they all they all
& sa grace na
point este
oyseuse enmoy
/ may iay
laboure plus
abondanment q
euly tous
“ne … point” is
an emphasized
“ne … pas”
& sa grace n’a
point esté
oyseuse en
moy.
* Mais i’ay
labouré plus
abondamment
que eux tous
A strong break
is added to the
text, with both a
period and a
star
French
Geneva
(1560-1669)
and the grace
that [is] toward
me, was not [at
all] in vain: but I
worked much
more than they
all
et la grace qui
[est] envers
moi, n’a point
esté vaine:
mais j’ai
travaillé
beaucoup plus
qu’eux tous
This shows the
literal historic
French
Protestant
translation:
changed “idle”
to “vain”, “labor”
to “work”; note
the removal of
the Louvain
strong break
French
Ostervald
(1744)
and his grace
toward me was
not [at all] in
vain, but I
worked much
more than they
all
et sa grâce
envers moi n’a
point été vaine,
mais j’ai
travaillé
beaucoup plus
qu’eux tous
This version
replaced the
Geneva as the
Protestant
translation
French Louis
Segond
(1910)
and has grace
toward me was
not in vain; far
from that, I
worked more
than they all
et sa grâce
envers moi n’a
pas été vaine;
loin de là, j’ai
travaillé plus
qu’eux tous
Segond
translated
perisso,teron
as “far from
that”
French
Jerusalem ✠
(1973)
and his grace
on my behalf
was not sterile.
Far from that, I
worked more
than they all
et sa grâce à
mon égard n’a
pas été stérile.
Loin de là, j’ai
travaillé plus
qu’eux tous
This Catholic
translation
followed the
punctuation of
the French
Louvain,
changing “vain”
to “sterile”
IBS French Le
Semeur ✠
(1992, 1999)*
and this grace
that was
testified to me
was not
ineffective. Far
from there, I
have pained at
the task more
than all the
other apostles
et cette grâce
qu’il m’a
témoignée n’a
pas été
inefficace. Loin
de là, j’ai peiné
à la tâche plus
que tous les
autres apôtres
Marketed like
the NIV for
French
Protestants by
the UBS, it
exceeds other
Catholic
translations in
theologically
Catholic
renderings
French Bible
Français
Courant (1997)
and the grace
that he provided
me has not
been
ineffective: on
the contrary, I
worked more
than all the
other apostles
et la grâce qu’il
m’a accordée
n’a pas été
inefficace: au
contraire, j’ai
travaillé plus
que tous les
autres apôtres
[analyze this
translation in
light of the
translation
history]
*The 1995 Contemporary English Version is close to the 1992, 1999 French Le Semeur: “But God was kind! He made me what I am,
and his wonderful kindness wasn’t wasted. I worked much harder than any of the other apostles, although it was really God’s
kindness at work and not me” [notice the seeming aversion to the word “grace”].
b. Vain preaching, 1 Cor 15:14
2. The effective reception of God’s grace:
a. Through spiritual work, 1 Cor 15:58, Eph 2:10
b. Through participation in the Gospel, Phil 1:5
III. Thoughts for Consideration:
A. What is your motivation in life? You must have one, what is it?
B. Are your motivations “the worries of the world, and the deceitfulness of riches, and the desires for
other things” which “enter in and choke the word, and it becomes unfruitful” (Mark 4:19)?
C. Are you motivated to share the Gospel?
D. Won’t you make this your one motivation?