Should we trust the TNIV?

| Susan Olasky

The justification given for making extensive gender changes in modern Bible translations is that today's readers, women especially, either don't understand or are offended by traditional usage.

If the problem is lack of understanding, the simple solution would be to explain that in English, as in many languages, "he" or "his" is generic—it includes women. That simple explanation clarifies not only the Bible but a world of literature.

But of course, the real problem is not understanding, but feminist-inspired offense. Some women whose consciousness has been "raised" don't like the fact that the inspired writers of the Bible often used a male example to represent a larger truth. As Westminster Theological Seminary Professor Vern Poythress wrote in WORLD (Nov. 21, 1998), "At this point modern ideology clashes with the Bible, which teaches that Christ and Adam were representatives for larger groups (Romans 5:12-21), and that fathers are representatives for their families (Ephesians 5:22-6:4)." Other Greek verses use masculine pronouns "to convey to Greek readers a picture of a male figure representing a general truth."