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Can Translations of the Bible Be Trusted?
"All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work." (2 Timothy 3:16-17, NKJV)
The word inspiration literally means "God-breathed" in the original Greek -- and God does not lie! (Num. 23:19; 1 Sam. 15:29; Titus 1:2; Rom. 3:3-4, NKJV). But what about the translations over the years?

Strictly speaking, only the "autographs" (the original documents penned by the Biblical authors) are inspired. Copies of the original documents are virtually inspired to the extent that they accurately reflect the original documents. 

The evidence -- bibliographical, historical, and archaeological -- indicates that that they do accurately reflect the original documents!   For example, Homer's Iliad ranks second (643 copies) to the New Testament (24,000+) in possessing the greatest amount of ancient manuscript testimony. Let's compare* them:
 

Work
When written
Earliest copy
Time span
# Copies
Iliad
900 BC
400 BC
500 years
643
New Testament
40 - 100 AD
125 AD
25 years
24,000 +

Applying textual analysis to all existing early manuscripts:
 

Work
# Lines
# Lines in question
% in question
Iliad
15,600
764
5%
New Testament
20,000
40
½%

Of the ½% New Testament variant readings, most involve nothing more than a missing letter in a word, a misspelling, or a reversal of the order of two words. Of the others, not one essential point of Christian doctrine rests upon a disputed reading. A similar comparison of Old Testament books to other ancient texts* is similarly conclusive. 

Unlike any ancient text in existence, God has definitely guided the hands of the men He entrusted to bring us His Scriptures!

Sources/ To learn more

  1. Harris, Glenn. Can I Trust the Bible
  2. *McDowell, Josh. (1972) Evidence that Demands a Verdict. Campus Crusade.
  3. Perman, Matt. Historical Evidence for the Bible 
  4. Ross, High. Fulfilled Prophecy: Evidence for the Reliability of the Bible