Question:
I have read the entire Jewish New Testament and Commentary by David Stern and would like your thoughts on this translation with its emphasis on expressing its original and essential Jewishness. Your blog site is cool. My daughter just put me onto it.
Terry Dodd
Answer:
I like Stern’s translation, and think it is very useful.
Like most “one author” translations it has a specific emphasis and goal that could not be accomplished through existing translations. In this case, Stern wants to restore Jewish flavor and content from the ancient texts. Since his audience is modern, he often uses Jewish terms and phrases that are modern, idiomatic and specific to Jews familiar with “Yiddishkeit”, or Yiddish-flavored Jewishness—the Jewishness of Eastern Europe.
Obviously Yiddish was not spoken in ancient times. His restorationist goal is accomplished for his modern audience. But we shouldn’t think that Yeshua and his disciples, or Paul, spoke all of the phrases which Stern uses. And we can be sure they didn’t use any of the Yiddish terms.
What I love about Stern’s translation is that he causes Jewishness to be so overt that it can’t be missed. This stirs many thoughts which surely need stirring in the minds and hearts of modern readers. I say to David Stern : “Great job!”.
I think that Stern's New Testament Commentary is a must have resource for every Messianic believer, and for everyone who wants to better understand the New Testament itself. Stern has prepared an extraordinary work, with many references which would take a lifetime of study to become familiar with.
Love and shalom,
Rabbi David