Textus Receptus Bibles
Julia E. Smith Translation 1876
| 8:1 | And concerning sacrifice to idols, we know, (for we all have knowledge. Knowledge puffs up, and love builds the house. |
| 8:2 | And if any one thinks to know anything, as yet he has known nothing as he ought to know. |
| 8:3 | And if any one love God, the same is known of him.) |
| 8:4 | Concerning food therefore of sacrifices to idols, we know that an idol nothing in the world, and that none other God but one. |
| 8:5 | For also though they are called gods, whether in heaven, whether upon the earth, (for there are many gods, and many lords,) |
| 8:6 | But to us one God, the Father, of whom all things, and we for him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom all things, and we by him. |
| 8:7 | But not in all, knowledge: and some with consciousness of the idol even till now eat as a sacrifice to idols: and their consciousness being weak is contaminated. |
| 8:8 | And food sets us not before God: for neither, if we eat, do we abound; neither if we eat not, do we want. |
| 8:9 | And see ye lest this your power be a stumble to the weak. |
| 8:10 | For if any one see thee having knowledge reclining in the idol's temple, shall not his consciousness, being weak, be built up to eat the sacrifices to idols; |
| 8:11 | And shall the weak brother be destroyed upon thy knowledge, for whom Christ died? |
| 8:12 | And so sinning against the brethren, and striking their weak consciousness, ye sin against Christ. |
| 8:13 | Wherefore, if food offend my brother, I will eat no flesh forever, lest I shall offend my brother. |
Julia E. Smith Translation 1876
The Julia Evelina Smith Parker Translation is considered the first complete translation of the Bible into English by a woman. The Bible was titled The Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments; Translated Literally from the Original Tongues, and was published in 1876.
Julia Smith, of Glastonbury, Connecticut had a working knowledge of Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Her father had been a Congregationalist minister before he became a lawyer. Having read the Bible in its original languages, she set about creating her own translation, which she completed in 1855, after a number of drafts. The work is a strictly literal rendering, always translating a Greek or Hebrew word with the same word wherever possible. Smith accomplished this work on her own in the span of eight years (1847 to 1855). She had sought out no help in the venture, even writing, "I do not see that anybody can know more about it than I do." Smith's insistence on complete literalness, plus an effort to translate each original word with the same English word, combined with an odd notion of Hebrew tenses (often translating the Hebrew imperfect tense with the English future) results in a translation that is mechanical and often nonsensical. However, such a translation if overly literal might be valuable to consult in checking the meaning of some individual verse. One notable feature of this translation was the prominent use of the Divine Name, Jehovah, throughout the Old Testament of this Bible version.
In 1876, at 84 years of age some 21 years after completing her work, she finally sought publication. The publication costs ($4,000) were personally funded by Julia and her sister Abby Smith. The 1,000 copies printed were offered for $2.50 each, but her household auction in 1884 sold about 50 remaining copies.
The translation fell into obscurity as it was for the most part too literal and lacked any flow. For example, Jer. 22:23 was given as follows: "Thou dwelling in Lebanon, building as nest in the cedars, how being compassionated in pangs coming to thee the pain as in her bringing forth." However, the translation was the only Contemporary English translation out of the original languages available to English readers until the publication of The British Revised Version in 1881-1894.(The New testament was published in 1881, the Old in 1884, and the Apocrypha in 1894.) This makes it an invaluable Bible for its period.