[Will Kinney]

Psalm 138:2 Magnified thy word ABOVE all thy name

Psalm 138:2 "I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for the lovingkindness and for thy TRUTH: for thou hast magnified thy word ABOVE all thy name."

The word "Truth" is disappearing from the modern bibles. The word TRUTH is found 118 times in the Old Testament of the KJB. In the NASB the number is down to 92, 26 fewer times than the KJB and in the NIV the number is down to 41 times, or about one third the number of times as in the KJB. Maybe with one or two more modern, improved, up to date versions, we will finally be rid of that pesky word "truth". It seems the modern scholars are working on it.

The NIV and nas have substitued "faithfullnes" for truth, and the meaning is not the same. For example in Psalms 100:5 "For the LORD is good; his MERCY is everlasting; and his TRUTH endureth to all generations." The NASB has "lovingkindness" instead of "mercy" and "faithfulness" instead of truth.

Mercy is God not dealing with us as our sins and iniquities deserve. The NIV has "love" instead of mercy, and faithfullness instead of truth.

In fact, if you look at the complete concordances, the words "mercy, merciful, and mercies" occur 288 times in the Old Testament of the KJB, while in the NASB only 51 times and the NIV only 85 times. They substitute either lovingkindness, or as in the niv "love" which is a totally different word in Hebrew and in English.

Love and mercy are not at all the same things. Mercy implies that we deserve judgment, punishment and condemnation, but God has not done so with us. Love does not have this meaning at all. Something is definitely lost in the modern versions.

The phrase in Ps. 138:2 "thou hast magnified thy word ABOVE all thy name" is found in the 1917 and 1936 Hebrew- English versions, Revised Version, the NKJV, the American Standard Version, Green's interlinear, Webster's 1833, Spanish of 1909 and 1960, Darby, Youngs, Rotherham's 1902 Emphasized Bible, the Complete Jewish Bible, and the Italian Diodati. This is literally what it says.

The NASB however says: "For Thou hast magnified Thy word ACCORDING TO all Thy name". The word is # 5921 - (al) - and it means "above" as in Gen. 1:7 the waters were above the firmament" and Gen.27:39 dew from heaven above.

The NIV, Holman, and the 2001 ESV read: "You have exalted above all things your name and your word." Just by switching a few words around they have changed the meaning of the whole sentence. But at least they correctly translated "above" whereas the NASB did not.

Thr RSV is interesting in that it reads: "Thou hast exalted above everything thing Thy name and Thy word." It reads basically like the NIV, ESV, but the RSV tells us in their footnotes: - 'Hebrew "exalted Thy word ABOVE all thy name." The NRSV reads like the RSV, and its footnote tells us they have "corrected" the text (Cn), and that the Hebrew literally says what is found in the KJB. A similar footnote is found in the ESV.

Daniel Wallace's goofy NET version renders the verse: "for you have exalted YOUR PROMISE ABOVE THE ENTIRE SKY." Then in his footnote he tells us: "3tc The MT reads, “for you have made great over all your name your word.” If retained, this must mean that God's mighty intervention, in fulfillment of his word of promise, surpassed anything he had done prior to this. However, the statement is odd and several emendations have been proposed. Some read, “for you have exalted over everything your name and your word,” while others suggest, “for you have exalted over all the heavens your name and your word.” The translation assumes an emendation of “your name” to “your heavens” (a construction that appears in Pss 8:3 and 144:5). The point is that God has been faithful to his promise and the reliability of that promise is apparent to all."

How foolish of men to change the true words of God. The result of "altering the text" by men like Daniel Wallace is that they "understand neither what they say, nor whereof they affirm" (1 Timothy 1:7). There is no specific promise made in this Psalm that "surpassed anything he had done prior to this", as Mr. Wallace tells us. David is merely praising God for the Truth of His Word in all circumstances. It is foolish presumption on the part of some wannbe scholar to alter the text of the inerrant words of God merely because he doesn't understand the meaning of a certain passage. The fault is not with the Text, but with the Fool who places his own understanding above what God has written. Men like Wallace clearly do not believe in an inerrant Bible in any language.

Holman Standard - "You have exalted Your name AND Your promise above EVERYTHING ELSE."

Judaica Press Complete Tanach - "for You magnified Your word OVER ALL YOUR NAMES."

The Message- "Most holy is your name, most holy is your Word. "

Catholic Douay Rheims - "for thou hast magnified THY HOLY NAME ABOVE ALL."

Lamsa's translation of the Syriac - "for thou hast magnified thy word above EVERY name."

The King James Bible was the FIRST ENGLISH TRANSLATION TO GET IT RIGHT.

Wycliffe 1395 - "for thou hast magnefied thin hooli name aboue al thing."

Geneva Bible 1599 - "for thou hast magnified thy Name ABOVE ALL THINGS BY THY WORD."

Coverdale 1535 - "for thou hast magnified thy worde, acordynge vnto thy greate name."

English Standard Version 2001 - "for you have exalted above all things your name AND your word." FOOTNOTES: OR, YOU HAVE EXALTED YOUR WORD ABOVE ALL YOUR NAME." At least they got it right in their footnote!

This is what the Hebrew and the King James Bible read, but the new version editors have a much lower view of God's word, and Psalm 138:2 is one example of many where they have changed what God really said.

In what sense then can God magnify His word above His name? My understanding of this is that God Himself is subject to His spoken word and compelled by His very nature to fulfill what He has sworn to do. Let's look at some examples of this.

Hebrews 6:13-18 "For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multplying I will multiply thee...For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: That by two immutable things, in which is was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us."

We see God's spoken words promising a seed to Abraham and making a mighty nation from his loins. See Genesis 15:5; 21:13. Yet later in Israels history when they had grievously sinned and God threatened to destroy them, Moses pleads with God in Exodus 32:7-14 "Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants, to whom THOU SWAREST BY THINE OWN SELF, and SAIDST unto them, I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of will I give unto your seed, and they shall inherit it forever." Then we read "And the LORD repented of the evil which he thought to do unto his people."

Christ Himself was God manifest in the flesh and when it came time for Him to go to the cross and become sin for His people, His soul was exceedingly sorrowful, even unto death. He prayed that if it were possible this cup of suffering might pass from Him. Yet He knew the Scriptures promised that these things must be so and He yielded to the Father's will and word. "The scriptures must be fulfilled"; and "Thus it is written, and thus IT BEHOOVED Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day." See Mark 14:49, Luke 24:46.

If God has sworn in His word to do something, then He is subject to this oath and bound by His word to fulfill it, no matter what the cost to Himself nor to His Son, and without regard to the sins and unfaithfulness of His people.

The King James Holy Bible is always right!

Accepted in the Beloved - Ephesians 1:6

Will Kinney

[pbiwolski]

Exod. 20:7
Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

If that's what He said about His name, my what He's gonna do to those that mess with the word exalted above His name!

By His grace, I sincerely intend not to be found guilty. Praise the Lord for the perfect and preserved words of God.

[Will Kinney]

Originally Posted by pbiwolski

Exod. 20:7
Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain.

If that's what He said about His name, my what He's gonna do to those that mess with the word exalted above His name!

By His grace, I sincerely intend not to be found guilty. Praise the Lord for the perfect and preserved words of God.

Good point. Definitely something to take seriously.

Gracias,

Will K