Freethought & Rationalism Archive

BibleBelted · 05-29-2002, 12:51 PM

Can anyone clarify the differences between the King James and NIV translations of David's conquest of the Ammonites.

The KJV appears to say that David murdered everyone and burned their bodies in brick-kilns, while the NIV (and others) say he only enslaved them and put everyone to work making bricks.

Which translation is correct? or most likely?

The passages:

1 Chronicles 20:3

Quote:

From the King James:

And he brought out the people that were in it, and cut them with saws, and with harrows of iron, and with axes. Even so dealt David with all the cities of the children of Ammon. And David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

Quote:

The same passage from the NIV:

and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes. David did this to all the Ammonite towns. Then David and his entire army returned to Jerusalem.

The same story is told in 2 Samuel 12:31

Quote:

KJV:

And he brought forth the people that were therein, and put them under saws, and under harrows of iron, and under axes of iron, and made them pass through the brick-kiln: and thus did he unto all the cities of the children of Ammon. So David and all the people returned unto Jerusalem.

Quote:

NIV:

and brought out the people who were there, consigning them to labor with saws and with iron picks and axes, and he made them work at brickmaking. He did this to all the Ammonite towns. Then David and his entire army returned to Jerusalem

If "David and his entire army" left, why wouldn't the Ammonites just quit the brick business and go back to doing whatever they did before, like raising crops and livestock?

Or did they eat the bricks?

I have a fairly recent English translation of the Tanakh, also. It agrees almost entirely with the KJV. I think it even uses the language "hacked with saws," but I don't have access to it right now.

[ May 29, 2002: Message edited by: BibleBelted ]</p>

ShottleBop · 05-29-2002, 01:58 PM

The New King James Version reads:

Quote:

1 Chronicles 20
3And he brought out the people who were in it, and put them to work[1] with saws, with iron picks, and with axes. So David did to all the cities of the people of Ammon. Then David and all the people returned to Jerusalem.

Footnotes

20:3 Septuagint reads cut them.

The Bible Gateway (www.biblegateway.com) lets you compare 11 different translations (all Christian, though, I believe).

Here is a possible explanation for the confusion:

Quote:

3. cut them with saws, &c.--The Hebrew word, "cut them," is, with the difference of the final letter, the same as that rendered "put them," in the parallel passage of Samuel [2 Samuel 12:31]; and many consider that putting them to saws, axes, and so forth, means nothing more than that David condemned the inhabitants of Rabbah to hard and penal servitude.

(from <a href="http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/JamiesonFaussetBrown/jfb.cgi?book=1ch&chapter=020" target="_blank">http://bible.crosswalk.com/Commentaries/JamiesonFaussetBrown/jfb.cgi?book=1ch&chapter=020</A> )

[ May 29, 2002: Message edited by: ShottleBop ]</p>

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