''The Amplified Bible'' (AMP) is an
English language translation of the
Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
produced jointly by
Zondervan
Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). They are a part of HarperCollins Christian Publ ...
and
The Lockman Foundation
The Lockman Foundation is a nonprofit, interdenominational Christian ministry dedicated to the translation, publication, and distribution of Bibles and other biblical resources in English and other languages.
The foundation's core products are t ...
. The first edition as a complete volume was published in 1965. “Amplifications” are words or phrases intended to more fully bring out the meaning of the original text but distinguished from the translation itself by a unique system of brackets, parentheses, and italics. The translation is largely one of
formal equivalence
The terms dynamic equivalence and formal equivalence, coined by Eugene Nida, are associated with two dissimilar translation approaches that are employed to achieve different levels of literalness between the source and target text, as evidenc ...
(word-for-word).
History
Frances Siewert (1881-1967) was active in Christian education and the widow of a
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
minister who died in 1940. About 1950 she conceived the idea of a New Testament with “amplifications” to more fully bring out the meaning of the original Greek words. The
Lockman Foundation
The Lockman Foundation is a nonprofit, interdenominational Christian ministry dedicated to the translation, publication, and distribution of Bibles and other biblical resources in English and other languages.
The foundation's core products are t ...
supported her work beginning in 1952. Using the 1901
American Standard Version
The American Standard Version (ASV), officially Revised Version, Standard American Edition, is a Bible translation into English that was completed in 1901 with the publication of the revision of the Old Testament. The revised New Testament had b ...
as a base text, she modernized the style and incorporated glosses, explanatory phrases, and alternative renderings into the text. Her complete New Testament was published by
Zondervan
Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). They are a part of HarperCollins Christian Publ ...
in 1958.
Billy Graham
William Franklin Graham Jr. (November 7, 1918 – February 21, 2018) was an American evangelist and an ordained Southern Baptist minister who became well known internationally in the late 1940s. He was a prominent evangelical Christi ...
enthusiastically endorsed the Amplified New Testament, and it became a commercial success.
With continuing support from the Lockman Foundation and Zondervan, she then devoted herself to a similar edition of the Old Testament, relying heavily on the 1952
Revised Standard Version
The Revised Standard Version (RSV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 1952 by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA. This translation itself is a revision of the Ameri ...
. Her two Old Testament volumes were published in 1962 and 1964. The Lockman Foundation then employed several scholars to revise the entire work for a one-volume edition, which was published in 1965.
In 1987 an expanded edition was published with additional amplifications; that version is now referred to as the Classic Edition (AMPC).
In 2015 the Amplified Bible was updated again for readability and clarity, with refreshed English and improved amplifications.
Translation methodology
The Amplified Bible largely offers a word-for-word (
formal equivalence
The terms dynamic equivalence and formal equivalence, coined by Eugene Nida, are associated with two dissimilar translation approaches that are employed to achieve different levels of literalness between the source and target text, as evidenc ...
) translation, in contrast to thought-for-thought (dynamic equivalence) translations at the opposite end of the Bible translation spectrum.
Amplification is indicated by parentheses, brackets, italicized conjunctions, and bold or italicized text. Each form provides different kinds of information to the individual reader.
Theologian
Gordon Fee
Gordon Donald Fee (May 23, 1934 – October 25, 2022) was an American-Canadian Christian theologian who was an ordained minister of the Assemblies of God (USA). He was professor of New Testament Studies at Regent College in Vancouver, British ...
and Mark Strauss stated that the Amplified Bible
:is unique among Bible versions in that it provides “amplifications”—synonyms and explanations in brackets and parentheses within the text… The strength of this version is that it acknowledges that no single English word or phrase can capture precisely the meaning of the Hebrew or Greek.
However, they also criticized it in that it has
:had a run of popularity far beyond its worth. It is far better to use several translations, note where they differ, and then check out these differences in another source than to be led to believe that a word can mean one of several things in any given sentence, with the reader left to choose whatever best strikes his or her fancy.'
Andreas J. Köstenberger, David A. Croteau, and Joe Stowell remark that the Amplified Bible is "truly one of the most unique English translations," in which nuances in translation are indicated using various punctuation marks such as words or phrases in brackets, to show that they are "not explicitly contained in the original texts."
But the translation has also been viewed as being guilty of "illegitimate totality transfer" by giving multiple potential meanings of a word in a particular passage. Readers may incorrectly conclude that multiple meanings of a word may apply regardless of the one which context would suggest.
[Sam Storms, Biblical Studies: How to Interpret the Bible (Edmond, OK: Sam Storms, 2016).]
Comparison example
Acts 16:31 is the example used in the Publisher's Foreword, illustrating some of the features of the Amplified Bible, in comparison with other translations:
Acts 16:31,
King James Version
The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an Bible translations into English, English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and publis ...
: And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.
Acts 16:31,
American Standard Version
The American Standard Version (ASV), officially Revised Version, Standard American Edition, is a Bible translation into English that was completed in 1901 with the publication of the revision of the Old Testament. The revised New Testament had b ...
: And they said, Believe on the Lord Jesus, and thou shalt be saved, thou and thy house.
Acts 16:31, Amplified Bible: And they answered, “Believe in the Lord Jesus
s your personal Savior and entrust yourself to Himand you will be saved, you and your household
f they also believe"
References
{{Reflist
External links
''Amplified Bible Classic Edition'' (1987 printing)AMP text onlineAmplified Bible Online
1965 non-fiction books
Bible translations into English
Zondervan books
1965 in Christianity