NIV
BalanceTranslation profile
New International Version
NIV
How it translates, how hard it is to read, where it came from, and what makes it distinctive.
Now showing Guided. How it translates, how hard it is to read, where it came from, and what makes it distinctive.
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The short version
NIV aims to balance original wording with natural English.
These sentences use the listed method, reading-grade, lineage, and notable-facts fields. They are not a ranking.
Translation approach
NIV aims to balance original wording with natural English. This guide lists this as Balance.
Reading difficulty
Moderate reading difficulty. This guide lists grade 7.
What makes it distinctive
Currently the best-selling Bible version.
How it translates
Translation approach: . NIV aims to balance original wording with natural English.
Scholars attempt to mediate between a word-for-word approach and a thought-for-thought approach. This method is sometimes called optimal equivalence.
Reading level
Moderate reading difficulty. This guide lists grade 7. Reading level does not measure accuracy.
Where it came from
This guide does not list an English Bible lineage for this translation.
First listed 1978, revised in 1984 and 2011.
Text and source listings
Old Testament: , , , Aquila, Symmachus and Theodotion, , other ancient manuscripts
New Testament:
What makes it distinctive
As listed:
A translation’s story
Why this translation exists
1
Before it
This guide does not list an earlier English Bible in this translation’s lineage field.
2
Why it was created
To provide a modern translation acceptable to many denominations. The 2011 revision brought the translation into line with contemporary biblical scholarship and shifts in English usage.
3
How it translates
Balance. Scholars attempt to mediate between a word-for-word approach and a thought-for-thought approach. This method is sometimes called optimal equivalence.
4
Where it sits
Balance · Grade 7 · First released 1978 (Modern English).
See it in action
Compare with translations that offer a useful contrast — not a ranking.
NIrV
Related English lineage
KJV
Different translation approach
ASV
Different reading grade
Sample verses
“Come, follow me,” Jesus said, “and I will send you out to fish for people.”
16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.