Christian Standard Bible (CSB) review

I occasionally post about Bible translations. In this post, I'll say a bit about a new translation, the Christian Standard Bible, published in March, 2017.

The CSB is a major revision of the Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB), a relatively popular translation that I, admittedly, don't know much about. Not knowing what to expect, I picked up an inexpensive promotional copy of the CSB when it was first released a few months ago. After a few months of browsing through it, I really REALLY like the CSB!

First, the CSB is not a revision (of a revision of a revision...) of the King James Version, so it doesn't flow in the "Tyndale tradition" like, say, the ESV. But that's OK. Although I use the KJV as my "benchmark" bible, it's nice to have a translation with a different flow.

Not being an expert on ancient Hebrew and Greek, my impression is that the CSB is about as "literal" as the ESV, but, again, with a less KJV "feel." The CSB really excels in its economy of words, in that most passages seem to be rendered succinctly and efficiently. I like that; it feels like good writing.

The publisher seems to be aggressively marketing the CSB. For example, its twitter feed is active and useful, and the entire translation is already available on major online Bible platforms.

So if you're looking for a fresh, modern, and understandable translation, check it out. I leave you with a small sample, and a useful prayer (Psalm 25:4-5, CSB),

Make your ways known to me, Lord;
teach me your paths. 
Guide me in your truth and teach me,
for you are the God of my salvation;
I wait for you all day long.

Moses and the snake

In chapter 21 of Numbers, the Israelites begin grumbling at God, which prompts God to send poisonous snakes throughout the camp. When the people repent, God commands Moses (verse 8, KJV),

Make thee a fiery serpent, and set it upon a pole: and it shall come to pass, that every one that is bitten, when he looketh upon it, shall live.

Upon first glance, this seems like a strange passage. Why not just heal the afflicted? Why set up something that could easily become the object of idolatry?

As with many passages in the Old Testament, the full significance of the "snake on the pole" would not become evidence for several thousand years. Only when Jesus spoke with Nicodemus did the concept of something being hung on a pole come in to full focus (John 3:14-15, KJV),

As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of man be lifted up: That whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have eternal life.

I see three lessons here:

1. God's plan for salvation does not require much from us. Just look up at something!
2. The snake itself was insignificant, but it portends something far more important -- Jesus on the cross.
3. The Bible is meant to be consumed in its broad sweep. That is, the snake story seems strange in isolation, but it's meant to be interpreted alongside material from the New Testament.

So in our prayers today, let us "look up" to that simple, and gracious, offer of salvation.

Nothing really belongs to "us"

In 1 Samuel 30, David takes 400 men into battle against the Amalekites, but 200 men remain behind due to exhaustion. After the victory, a dispute breaks out regarding the spoils of the battle. The 400 men who went into battle argue (1 Samuel 30:22, KJV),

Because they went not with us, we will not give them ought of the spoil that we have recovered.

But David answers (verses 23 and 24, KJV),

Ye shall not do so, my brethren, with that which the LORD hath given us, who hath preserved us ... but as his part is that goeth down to the battle, so shall his part be that tarrieth by the stuff: they shall part alike.

In modern market-based systems, it's easy to view our money/houses/possessions as rewards for our hard work. We want to take ownership of those items and use them almost like trophies that testify to our ingenuity.

But this passage from 1 Samuel serves to remind that, whatever we have, and however we came about possessing it, it ultimately came from, and belongs to, God. And as such, it doesn't really belong to us, but should be used for the betterment of others.

This lack of covetousness is difficult; our brains want to covet! But we can train ourselves through diligent, and never-ceasing, prayer.

God's dealings with us

Try as we might, we'll never fully comprehend God's intentions, as least not during this life. To make that clear, God says (Isaiah 55:8-9, KJV),

For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways ... For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.

But despite our inability to grasp God's intentions, I believe we can comprehend his dealings toward us. I believe Psalm 106 makes this clear in three (nonconsecutive) verses. First, in verse 6 (KJV),

We have sinned with our fathers, we have committed iniquity, we have done wickedly.

That verse describes our hopeless, fallen state. But then in verse 8 (KJV),

Nevertheless he saved them for his name's sake, that he might make his mighty power to be known.

God saved us, not because we deserve saving, but rather to make his compassionate power known to us. How should we react? In verse 12 (KJV),

Then believed they his words; they sang his praise.

We can't "pay" God for his forgiveness. All we can do is believe and offer our praise.

Those three verses appear to summarize God's dealings with us. Let us use those verses to guide our prayers.

The four witnesses

A person's testimony about himself, whether true or not, may not be convincing. To be persuasive, testimony needs witnesses. To that end, Jewish law required two witnesses for any testimony to be deemed credible.

So what made Jesus' claims about his divine mission accurate? In John 5:31-47, Jesus provides four witnesses, thus doubling the number required by Jewish law.

The first was John the Baptist. Jesus said (John 5:33, KJV), "Ye sent unto John, and he bare witness unto the truth." For example, consider John 1:7 (KJV): "[John] came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light, that all men through him might believe."

The second was the teachings and works of Jesus. In John 3:2 (KJV), Nicodemus, the Jewish Pharisee, said, "Rabbi, we know that thou art a teacher come from God: for no man can do these miracles that thou doest, except God be with him."

The third was God himself. Consider Peter's retelling of the Transfiguration (2 Peter 1:16-18, KJV): "[We] were eyewitnesses of his majesty ... when there came such a voice ..., This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased ... when we were with him in the holy mount."

The fourth witness was the Old Testament scriptures. Jesus said (John 5:39, KJV), "Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." (For a book-length treatment of the Old Testament prophecies of Jesus, see this.)

That larger point is that Jesus was not some lone voice claiming supernatural authority. Rather, there were witness, double the number required under Jewish law at the time. The onus on us is to believe those witnesses.