Direct Answer
Christians should approach Scripture with reverence, but also with humility and caution about the human layer involved in translation. According to the transcript, believing God has spoken does not remove the need to recognize that translators may unintentionally or deliberately shape what readers see on the page.
Support from Transcript
- Bercot states that “all translations are interpretations” and that “they aren’t unbiased interpretations.” - Translators “don’t start out with blank slates” but normally have some bias, whether “liberal or evangelical, Catholic or Protestant.” - He warns that some translators “read their own theology into Scripture, and it affects their translations.” - He says bias can go so far that a translator may “alter what the biblical text says in order to make it fit his preconceptions.” - Even literal translations like the “New American Standard or the King James Version” only “minimize” bias; they do not eliminate it.
Discussion Follow-ups
This should not lead to rejecting Scripture, but to careful reading, comparison of translations, and awareness that “human tradition” may reach readers even through Bible translations.