NIV usage of Sovereign LORD in OT?

[thistle93]

Hi! While I primarily use ESV, I like how the the NIV often uses term "Sovereign LORD" to describe God in OT but notice none of the literal translations uses this terminology. Rather they just use LORD GOD. I know that NIV is a dynamic equivalent so this could probably account for the difference. Do you think the NIV is taking too much liberty in adding sovereign?

I am wondering where they get sovereign from
אֲדֹנָי Adonay

יְהֹוָה Yĕhovah

or are they just reemphasizes what LORD means, being that a LORD is also a Sovereign. I know some think putting "Sovereign LORD" is redundant but I think important for people who may be unchurched to know the God is sovereign.

Thoughts? Thank you!

For His Glory-
Matthew

 

[JohnGill]

You could also express God is sovereign for the unchurched by explaining what it means to call God LORD. That's much better than using a faulty translation known for substituting personal interpretation for translation. Regardless of how one may like a translation's rendering in a few places, we should judge a translation on its fidelity to the originals. The NIV is not known for such fidelity.

 

[ShagVT]

If you look at the introduction to your Bible, it will explain why they use certain terms. I don't have a print NIV handy to look it up, but every translation I have seen has something along those lines.

 

[Jack K]

The Hebrew "Adonai" is typically translated "Lord" (upper/lowercase). When paired with YHWH, which is typically translated LORD (upper/small caps), the NIV notes say that rather than use "Lord LORD" the translators decided on "Sovereign LORD," presumably because it sounds better and "Soveriegn" conveys a meaning much the same as "Lord."

Is that better than "LORD God"? It might be no worse, because when traditional translations go with "LORD God" it means "Adonai" is translated as "Lord" in most places but as "God" when paired with YHWH.

I guess you have to ask whether "God" or "Sovereign" best conveys the meaning of "Adonai" when you don't want to use "Lord" right next to "LORD." The NIV makes a non-traditional choice, but I don't see that it's any more problematical than the traditional one.

 

[baron]

According to New International Encyclopedia Of Bible Words on page 577 under the word Sovereign it says: The NIV translates adonay yahweh as "Sovereign LORD." The first word is an intensive form of "master" or "lord" and is used only of God. The second is the personal name of God, indicated in English versions by LORD. Older versions render the phrase by "LORD God." The NIV translators chose the word "sovereign" to represent in English what Hebrew readers would have understood-that the name acknowledges Israel's God as ultimate Lord.

"The word adonay is written with a small a with a backward comma in front of the a. I do not know how to type it out though."