« | Numbers 34 | » |
1 The LORD said to Moses,
2 "Command the people of Israel, and say to them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan in its full extent),
3 your south side shall be from the wilderness of Zin along the side of Edom, and your southern boundary shall be from the end of the Salt Sea on the east;
4 and your boundary shall turn south of the ascent of Akrabbim, and cross to Zin, and its end shall be south of Kadeshbarnea; then it shall go on to Hazaraddar, and pass along to Azmon;
5 and the boundary shall turn from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt, and its termination shall be at the sea.
6 "For the western boundary, you shall have the Great Sea and its coast; this shall be your western boundary.
7 "This shall be your northern boundary: from the Great Sea you shall mark out your line to Mount Hor;
8 from Mount Hor you shall mark it out to the entrance of Hamath, and the end of the boundary shall be at Zeded;
9 then the boundary shall extend to Ziphron, and its end shall be at Hazarenan; this shall be your northern boundary.
10 "You shall mark out your eastern boundary from Hazarenan to Shepham;
11 and the boundary shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain; and the boundary shall go down, and reach to the shoulder of the sea of Chinnereth on the east;
12 and the boundary shall go down to the Jordan, and its end shall be at the Salt Sea. This shall be your land with its boundaries all round."
13 Moses commanded the people of Israel, saying, "This is the land which you shall inherit by lot, which the LORD has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe;
14 for the tribe of the sons of Reuben by fathers' houses and the tribe of the sons of Gad by their fathers' houses have received their inheritance, and also the half-tribe of Manasseh;
15 the two tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan at Jericho eastward, toward the sunrise."
16 The LORD said to Moses,
17 "These are the names of the men who shall divide the land to you for inheritance: Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun.
18 You shall take one leader of every tribe, to divide the land for inheritance.
19 These are the names of the men: Of the tribe of Judah, Caleb the son of Jephunneh.
20 Of the tribe of the sons of Simeon, Shemuel the son of Ammihud.
21 Of the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad the son of Chislon.
22 Of the tribe of the sons of Dan a leader, Bukki the son of Jogli.
23 Of the sons of Joseph: of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh a leader, Hanniel the son of Ephod.
24 And of the tribe of the sons of Ephraim a leader, Kemuel the son of Shiphtan.
25 Of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun a leader, Elizaphan the son of Parnach.
26 Of the tribe of the sons of Issachar a leader, Paltiel the son of Azzan.
27 And of the tribe of the sons of Asher a leader, Ahihud the son of Shelomi.
28 Of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali a leader, Pedahel the son of Ammihud.
29 These are the men whom the LORD commanded to divide the inheritance for the people of Israel in the land of Canaan."
The Revised Standard Version (RSV)
The Revised Standard Version (RSV) is a widely respected English translation of the Bible that was first published in 1952 by the National Council of Churches. It was developed as a revision of the American Standard Version (ASV) of 1901, with the primary aim of providing a more accurate and readable text while retaining the literary qualities of its predecessor. The RSV sought to modernize the language of the ASV without sacrificing its faithfulness to the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek manuscripts, making it a significant milestone in the history of English Bible translations.
One of the key features of the RSV is its commitment to formal equivalence, or a word-for-word translation approach. This method ensures that the translation closely mirrors the structure and wording of the original texts, allowing readers to engage more directly with the biblical languages. The translators of the RSV were guided by the latest biblical scholarship of their time, and they endeavored to produce a text that was both accurate and elegant. This combination of precision and literary quality has made the RSV a popular choice for both academic study and liturgical use.
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Despite its many strengths, the RSV has faced some criticism over the years. Some conservative scholars and readers have expressed concerns about certain translation choices, arguing that they reflect modernist theological perspectives. Additionally, the RSV’s use of archaic language in certain passages has been a point of contention for those seeking a more contemporary rendering of the Bible. Nonetheless, the Revised Standard Version remains a highly respected and influential translation, valued for its accuracy, literary excellence, and broad ecumenical acceptance. It continues to serve as a foundation for later revisions and translations, such as the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) and the English Standard Version (ESV).