The NIV editorial board was more politically motivated than academically faithful to the ancient texts of the New Testament, in my opinion. 1 Corinthians 6:9 is a perfect case in point. The term "male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders" is not in the Greek text at all. What does exist is the phrase “μαλακοὶ οὔτε ἀρσενοκοῖται.”
Variants of the word, μαλακοὶ, are only found twice in Matthew 11:8 and once Luke 7:25 where it is speaking of clothing and is translated “soft.” Extrapolating that the term means “male prostitutes” is simply intellectually untenable.
The word ἀρσενοκοῖται, literally meaning, “man-bedders” appears only one other place in Scripture, 1 Timothy 1:10, and does not appear in any other texts that predate or are coeval with the Greek NT. Because the definite article is missing from the text, it is impossible to determine the grammatical gender of the noun, even though its declension, number and case can be inferred. Lacking knowledge of the word’s gender, its meaning is highly ambiguous. For the NIV editors to render the expression as they did has far more to do with eisegesis than academic integrity and exegesis.
It astounds me that so very few Christians read their own scriptures in Hebrew and Greek. I believe a great deal of hubris and triumphalism could be avoided. So much beauty of the original texts is missed because people rely on (often horrible) translations.
© Copyright, 2 January 2011, ez duz it.
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