The New International Version (NIV)

NIV in Comparison to Other Translations

Endorsements

"I wanted to personally thank you for your work translating the Bible. I've used the NIV for my personal devotion in God's word since it came out years ago. It's also the primary translation I use in preaching. There are so many heroes in the faith that often go unnoticed to the general public. Even though many people may not know your name, your work is impacting their lives on earth and eternity in heaven. I'm one of the many blessed by your work. Thank you for using your gifts to bring God's word to life in today's generation."

Craig Groeschel (Pastor of LifeChurch)

"The NIV communicates the message of the original authors of Scripture better than any translation I'm aware of. This is THE translation for our generation."

Andy Stanley (Founder, North Point Ministries)

"The NIV has been my go-to Bible in the pulpit ever since it came out. I still use the '78 version that my father gave me. It reads aloud easily and can be clearly understood by any audience. It also puts familiar passages in a fresh light. I feel at home in its pages. I celebrate the 50th anniversary of the commissioning of the NIV."

Anne Graham Lotz (Author and Evangelist)

Frequently Asked Questions

1. What is the committee on Bible Translation (CBT)?
   The CBT was formed in 1965 to create a modern English Bible translation from the oldest and most reliable biblical manuscripts available. Since then, the committee has continued to meet each year to monitor developments in biblical scholarship and English usage and to reflect these developments in periodic updates to the text. The committee represents the very best in evangelical biblical scholarship. The members – a self-perpetuating, independent body of 15 – are drawn from various denominations and some of the finest academic institutions in the world.
2. What are the CBT translation guiding principles?
   The chief goal of every update to the NIV is to ensure that the text reflects the latest and best biblical scholarship and established shifts in English idiom and usage. The 2011 NIV update represents our latest effort as a committee to articulate God's unchanging Word in the way the original authors might have said it if they had been speaking in English to the global English-speaking audience today. This is the reading experience that the NIV seeks to recreate. Our aim is to translate the NIV in such a way as to provide the optimum combination of transparency to the original documents and ease of understanding in every verse.
3. How does the CBT work? Explain the translation process.
   Members of the committee work individually – each in their own particular areas of specialty – as well as in small groups and as a full committee. In addition to considering proposals from within the committee, we also solicit and receive input from Bible scholars, ministers, missionaries and lay-people. Every proposal is evaluated with many leading to revisions to the text, while others are tabled for discussion at future meetings for potential inclusion in later updates. And changes are not made easily. At least 70 percent of the committee members present at the time of the voting are required to agree before the text can be altered. This ensures that no individual, indeed not even a large group of individuals, can hold sway in the committee.
4. What manuscripts were used when translating the NIV?
   The translators of the NIV have used the Old Testament and New Testament texts that are widely accepted among modern scholars as giving us the best possible access to what God inspired in the original documents.
   
   For the Old Testament the standard Hebrew text, the Masoretic Text, as published in the latest edition of Biblia Hebraica, has been used throughout. The NIV translators have sometimes used variants of the Hebrew Masoretic tradition or other ancient versions, where these seemed to provide a superior text than the Masoretic tradition. These are all noted in footnotes.
   
   The translators have used the accepted Greek New Testament text, as printed in the Nestle-Aland and United Bible Societies' Greek New Testaments. Here also the translators have occasionally accepted a variant printed in these editions. Footnotes usually indicate the options in each case.
   
   The translators have used the accepted Greek New Testament text, as printed in the Nestle-Aland and United Bible Societies' Greek New Testaments. Here also the translators have occasionally accepted a variant printed in these editions. Footnotes usually indicate the options in each case.
5. What are the differences between the NIV 1984 and the updated NIV 2011?
   All the changes in the updated text are attributable to at least one of the following factors: changes in English, progress in scholarship and concern for clarity. About 95% of the text of the updated NIV remains exactly the same as the 1984 text it replaces, based on the number of word changes.
6. Why are there updates made to the NIV?
   The original NIV charter requires us to constantly monitor developments in biblical scholarship and changes in English usage and to reflect these changes in periodic updates to the text. Without these periodic updates the NIV would be unable to maintain the priorities that have drawn people to it over the years: providing the optimum blend of transparency to the original text and ease of understanding for a broad audience. In the latest update in 2011, about 95% of the text remains exactly the same as the 1984 NIV that it replaces, based on the number of word changes.