Bible translation hot take, sexuality
Newer translations that replace "fornication" with "sexual immorality" do their readers a disservice because it removes any mention of premarital sex being a sin and forces the reader to assume the passage is talking about other sexual sin.
Yes, #ESV, I'm looking at you.
Here's a good example:
1st Corinthians, in #ESV and then in the #NKJV:
#ESV: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+6%3A9&version=ESV
#NKVJ: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=1+Corinthians+6%3A9&version=NKJV
@realcaseyrollins Do you think that's maybe more accurate? I know Greek is *big* on synecdoche, and, if that's the source language, it's appropriate for the translator to choose a phrase that reflects the broader scope intended.
@khird
Yes; but the thing is, translating into the broader scope removes all references of formication specifically being immoral.
Maybe it'd be better to find the original word and find out its literal definition.
Naughty behaviour in a literary context
The original word is ΠΟΡΝΕΙΑ (porneia) which Wiktionary tells me can be either "prostitution" or "fornication".
But even so, that doesn't necessarily indicate that Paul *meant* fornication specifically being immoral, since he was writing in Greek. That's just the way the language was used - one might write "wine" when meaning alcoholic beverages in general, "iron" when referring to weapons in general, and so forth. So even if the word literally means "fornication" it's entirely possible he was using it with the intention that his Greek-speaking readers would take its meaning more broadly.
The translator has to make a decision to render the word's meaning or the author's meaning. If he's writing to an audience that knows these conventions in Greek, he can go with the former and let the audience infer what Paul really meant. But even among educated adults, familiarity with Greek is on the decline, so modern translations are increasingly likely to reword the phrase to preserve the intended meaning as opposed to the literal meaning.
