Acts 7:20 the baby Moses was EXCEEDING FAIR, or he was WELL PLEASING TO GOD?
Acts 7:20-- "In which time Moses was born, and was EXCEEDING FAIR, and nourished up in his father's house three months."
I am continually amazed at the barrage of silly arguments raised against the authority and accuracy of the King James Bible. As for those who raise objections to the text of the King James Bible, I have yet to find one of them who actually has any Bible version they defend as being the pure, preserved, infallible words of God. Instead, "every man does that which is right in his own eyes" and they become their own final authority with a mystical bible that exists only in their own minds.
Such an example of ignorantly trying to "correct" the KJB is found in Acts 7:20. Years ago I was invited to debate the Bible Version issue on the radio. I wish I knew then what I know now, but in any event, one young man called in to say that the King James Bible was wrong when it said Moses was EXCEEDING fair in Acts 7:20.
He said it should read as do the NKJV, NASB: "At this time Moses was born, and was well pleasing TO GOD, and he was brought up in his father's house for three months." - (the NKJV), or "was lovely in the sight OF GOD" - (ESV, NASB).
Other versions that read like the NKJV, and NASB are Tyndale, the Geneva Bible, the RSV, NRSV, ESV, ISV, Young's, and the Holman Christian Standard.
However there are also many bible translations that read like the King James Bible with "was exceeding fair". Among these are the Revised Version 1881, the American Standard Version 1901, Darby 1890, the Worsley N.T. 1770, American Bible Union New Testament, Anderson N.T., Charles Thomson Translation, Living Oracles N.T. 1826, Noyes N.T. 1869, New American Bible 1970, the Bible in Basic English 1960, Webster's 1833 translation, the KJV 21st Century version 1994, Third Millennium Bible 1998, John Wesley’s translation 1755, Mace’s New Testament 1729, Goodspeed 1943, Weymouth 1913, Rotherham's Emphasized bible 1902, J.B. Phillips translation 1972 - "He was a child of remarkable beauty", the 20th Century New Testament, the Contemporary English Version 1991, the Hebrew Names Bible, the New Heart English Bible 2010, the World English Bible, The St. Joseph New American Bible 1970, Today's English Version 1992, the New Century Version of 1988 and 2005, Contemporary English Version 1995, Worldwide English N.T., Resurrection Life New Testament 2005 - “an exceedingly handsome child”, Easy to Read Version 2006, New American Bible 2010, New European Version 2010 - “and was exceeding fair”, Names of God Bible 2011, New Testament for Everyone 2011 - “he was a noble-looking child”, International Children’s Bible 2015, The Message 2018, God’s Word Translation 2020 - “he was a very beautiful child”
the Portugese Ferreira de Almeda Actualizada,-"e era mui formoso", the Portuguese O Livro of 2000 - "era uma crianca muito bonita", the Spanish Dios Habla Hoy 1996, Biblia en Lenguaje Sencillo 2000, the Spanish Tracucción en Lenguage Actual 2000 (United Bible Society), La Palabra de Dios Para Todos 2008 - "era un niño muy hermoso", the Italian La Parola e Vita 1997, - "un bambino straordinariamente bello", the French Martin 1744, the Updated Bible Version 2004 and The Message of 2002 - "a most beautiful baby".
The NIV and the TNIV are a bit unusual in that they both say Moses "was no ordinary child", but like the KJB, they do not contain the words "of God" in their translation.
There is a simple and thoroughly biblical explanation as to why the KJB and many others translated this phrase as "exceeding fair" instead of "lovely to God". The Greek reads the same here in all texts (και ην αστειος τω θεω) so it is not a textual but rather a translational issue.
Some of the meanings of the word "God" or Elohim in Hebrew and God or Theos in Greek are "mighty, very great, exceeding, or judges". ALL bible versions at times translate Elohim as "great, mighty, or exceeding".
The NIV, for example, shows the word Elohim as translated in the following manner: "God, angels, godly, idols, majestic, sacred, MIGHTY, GREAT, and VERY."
The NASB also lists "God, mighty, great, judges, and rulers."
Notice how the post-Christian Greek Septuagint version renders these verses from the Old Testament, and how they employ the word "God, or Theos".
Jonah 3:3 "Now Nineveh was and EXCEEDING great city of three days' journey" - ἡ δὲ Νινευὴ ἦν πόλις μεγάλη τῷ Θεῷ . Hebrew # 410 Elohim.
Genesis 23:6 "Hear us, my lord: thou art a MIGHTY prince among us" - βασιλεὺς παρὰ Θεοῦ σὺ εἶ ἐν ἡμῖν· Hebrew # 410 Elohim
Genesis 30:8 "And Rachel said, With GREAT wrestlings have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed." - Hebrew # 410 Elohim.
Exodus 9:28 "Intreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more MIGHTY thunderings and hail" - γενηθῆναι φωνὰς Θεοῦ καὶ χάλαζαν Hebrew # 410 Elohim.
1 Samuel 14:15 "and the earth quaked: so it was a very GREAT trembling"- Hebrew # 410 Elohim.
The King James Bible is NOT incorrect in Acts 7:20 by saying Moses was "exceeding fair". In fact, it makes more sense and is consistent with what we are told in Exodus 2:2. "And the woman conceived, and bare a son: and when she saw him that he was a goodly child, she hid him three months."
That he was a goodly child simply means that Moses was a beautiful baby, and that is exactly what we are told again in Acts 7:20. To say, as the NKJV, ESV and NASB do, that this little baby boy of only a few weeks old was "well pleasing to God" when all he could do was cry, wiggle, eat and poop his diapers is to attribute a spiritual life to him that babies simply do not have.
John Gill - “this phrase, "fair to God", may be only an Hebraism, just as Niniveh is said to be a city "great to God", i.e. exceeding great, Jonah 3:3 it being usual with the Jews to join the word God to an adjective, to express the superlative degree; and so it is rightly rendered here, "exceeding fair: and nourished up in his father's house three months"
Barnes’ Notes - “Was exceeding fair - Greek: “was fair to God”; properly rendered, “was very handsome.” The word “God” in the Greek here in accordance with the Hebrew usage, by which anything that is “very handsome, lofty, or grand” is thus designated. Thus, Nineveh is called “a great city to God” (Jonah 3:3, Greek), meaning a very great city. The expression here simply means that Moses was “very fair,” or handsome. Compare Hebrews 11:23, where he is called “a proper child”; that is, a “handsome child.” It would seem from this that Moses was preserved by his mother on account of his “beauty”; and this is hinted at in Exodus 2:2.”
Will Kinney
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