The majority of Christians believe there are only 1 God and 1 body of Christ. Yet there are thousands of Christian denominations with a vast variety of different views on how to translate the Bible or even how to interpret a bible translation.

The reason for this is:

• Copies of the original bible manuscripts of the same language often differ. In the majority of cases the differences could be ignored because it makes no difference to the original meaning of the text, however there are a few cases where an entire verses had to be added or removed.
• The Hebrew language is vastly different from Latin which is the root language of most Western languages. For example:
  • The usage of pronounce is very different: In English we have he/she/it in Hebrew there is only he/she. For example:
    • Is the Spirit a "he" (distinct person) or an "it" (part of a person)?
    • Is the Word a "he" (distinct person or God Himself) or an "it" (something God had said)?
  • The grammar and lexicon is vastly different: This means the translators often needs to be creative and add or restructure words to make the translated sentence readable. When the translator was not careful he or she might have unintentionally changed the original message.
• In both Hebrew and Greek, the same word could have multiple different English meanings. This often sparks debates on which word the translator should have chosen because often the word chosen is the word that best fits the translator's view.
• Both the Hebrew and Greek text contains idioms which are uncommon in the Western culture. Some view the idioms as literal and others metaphoric according how they understood they intended meaning could have been.
• The Hebrew and Greek text were all written in UPPERCASE. It is the translator's decision which words should be written with lowercase and Uppercase. For example when text refers to "He" (uppercase) if often indicate a pronoun referring to God. But translators might make mistakes and incorrectly refer to God or man which could change the deity of the subject or incorrectly attribute something to God.
• In English a name is simply a designation to identify someone or something. Therefore, some bible translators changed certain names to more pronounceable names. For example the name Yaaqob was changed to James in the King James Version because King James, who sponsored the translation project, wanted his name in the bible too. However, in Hebrew each name has a meaning which either communicate the purpose of the person or place or in the case of a grouping of names it often spells a message which gets lost when translators change these names.
• Some modern bible translations removed God's name to honour the original Jewish tradition to avoid pronouncing God's name as a form of respect. Instead, these translations replaced God's name with "Lord" which often causes confusion with other lords who are not God.
• Often bible translators invent new words to communicate a complex concept, for example godhead, justification, righteousness, sanctification and so forth.
• The church fathers decided which Hebrew and Greek books to include in the Bible based on their understanding and views. Some Christian denominations disagree with this decision and may add extra books or reject certain books.
• Even when 2 denominations agree on a Bible translations, they might view the meaning of the symbolism and metaphors used in the text differently.
• Sadly, some church denominations deliberately also altered their bible translations to fit their views to "maintain order and peace" (avoid debates and questioning of wrong practises) within their congregations.
• Bible translators often add titles to the bible which was not included in the original manuscripts. This is common in modern articles, but may shape the understanding of a passage to communicate a different message than what the original author intended.
• Often readers are not aware that the original Bible manuscripts had no chapters or verse numbers. While these seem insignificant, if often shapes the reader's understanding as it divides a message which were not originally divided.

This is why major church denominations, which can afford bible translation projects, prefer their own Bible translations which best support their own views.

How to identify the correct view

• Context is important. When one cherry-pick verses or phrases from any given text, it becomes easy to confuse the reader or even twist the original author's message. Unfortunately the only way to get around this problem is to invest time and study the text in whole.
• Consider the style of writing: If the context is a prophecy do not attempt to use it a fortunetelling opportunity to outsmart the devil but rather act on the intended message which the prophet communicated, which is often a plea to repent to prevent disaster. If the context is poetic, do not interpret it as literal instructions. If the context is an instruction or command, do not poetize it. The author often clearly indicate his intention.
• Ignore chapter and verse divisions. These were added by the bible translators for lookup purposes. When you need to understand the context, consider at least the previous and next chapter too.
• Ignore titles. These were added by the bible translators to summarize a passage based on their understanding and does not necessarily communicate the truth.
• Ignore capital letters. These were dictated by the bible translator according to their understanding. Just because something or someone was written with a capital letter does not necessarily mean the subject is God.
• Fortunately the Bible was written by different authors who often repeat previous authors' understanding. When a verse seems confusing or contradicting, find parallel passages from other parts of the Bible. I rather consider 99 verses that are in agreement than 1 controversial verse with no support.
• Often people get confused with the translation of the word "god". In English "god" either means an idol or the Almighty God. In both the Hebrew and Greek languages "god" means an important person which may also include kings, heroes or celebrities. That is why it is important to identify which god the author is referring to. A good bible translation will transliterate God's name as Yahweh or Jehovah, but often "the LORD" in capital letters is sufficient to indicate that this refers to the specific Almighty God. Be aware that some bible translations incorrectly translate God's name to "Lord" (Camelcase) which causes confusion with the Lord Jesus.
• Familiarize yourself with the ancient idioms, metaphors and symbolism.
• Try to keep your interpretation as simple as possible. Do not "spiritualize" (complicate) the Bible.
• The original Bible was not written for the English speaker of the 21st century. Read it from the cultural perspective in the author's ancient days and try to image how a Jew or a Greek person would have understood such a message, who never attended any modern day church sermons. For example:
  • In Jesus times, Paul's letters were not written yet. How were the Jews supposed to know about the "incarnation" of God?
  • The Jews had a monotheism religion. How would they understand Jesus when he made statements like "I am the son of God"?
  • In the absence of church creeds and modern Christian books or theology, how would the Jews understand John's writing about "the word of God"?
  • The Jews expected a Messiah (Christ) based on their prophecies. Did Jesus meet these criteria?
  • Why were the genealogies such a big deal to the Jews?
• I personally do not trust the following 3 books of the Bible:
  • The book of Hebrews seems out of place because it was not written by Paul and contains many errors.
  • The book of Ezekiel's prophecies failed to come true, however some would defend it as unfulfilled prophecies that may still happen in our future.
  • I have concerns about the Book of Revelation, but I have no concrete proof whether this book should be included or excluded from the Bible.
• Was the "Old" Testament really deprecated (as the author of Hebrews claim) or is it still relevant today?
• Understand the church history. There were certain deliberate modifications made to the Bible for various reasons. These modifications are publicly documented so that you not have to wonder what they were.

When common sense fail due to the lack of clear evidence, pray for guidance from God because He was after all the original author Who inspired the writers to write the Bible.

When in doubt, I personally often ask myself:

Which version give God the most glory?