It's OK to quote HTML as long as you choose "using HTML and UBBCode" in the drop-down list in the Markup section (just below where you type). It also helps if you know a little HTML so you know which tags to keep and which to discard.

are you saying the niv avoids using the term fast/fasting all through the bible, or just in those verses? i can see the importance in a couple of cases but not in others.

i thought this was kind of neat, tho. the niv explained what was meant by the "fast" while the kjv left out the meaning.

acts 27:9niv Much time had been lost, and sailing had already become dangerous because by now it was after the Fast. [ That is, the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur)] So Paul warned them,

Act 27:9kjv Now when much time was spent, and when sailing was now dangerous, because the fast was now already past, Paul admonished them,

Arnold,

You are quite right, and perhaps I am mistaken, but as I understood, not everyone has the option of selecting HTML from the menu. Certainly, if that option is available to you, you may quote it without uncomely results.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

Teresa,

The NIV does not eliminate every occurrence of the term. Far from it. However, in the vast majority of the occurrences which it includes, the term is used in a historical context, just narrating the story to us of what happened. These texts in which the term fasting has disappeared are more instructive in regards to what we should be doing. Even then, not all of such are eliminated, but some very significant ones are, and this is why I used the term "undermining" in relation to this issue.

The devil succeeds if he can mix a small amount of doubt or error with a larger amount of truth, and get people to accept the whole wad. The devil also succeeds in supplanting the credibility of the Bible as a whole if he can introduce enough error to give foothold to scoffers who see that every Bible is different, and no Bible is perfect.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

I have a hard time to see fasting as a form of worship? I see it as a tool that God has given us to predispose ourselves better to send clearer petitions to a cause or to be more receptive in hearing him.

However, Wow! I find it quite interesting that the NIV would go to an extend beyond muddying doctrines. To go as far as undermining the need to fast so we would be deprived of the spiritual blessings in times of great needs. That's incredible!

It's a work that can only be fashioned by the devil for man conscientiously couldn't have known what blessings they were taken away from the people. Right?

It made me realize that I had forgotten about fasting. For a period of time in my life, I used to fast regularly before I came in the Church. But now I hardly hear of it. Of all time, this is when we need to fast and pray especially when we are searching scriptures for truths.

Thanks Green for bringing this gem here!

Elle,

While I certainly will not claim this list is complete, I recognize the following to all be a part of "worship":

Reading God's Word -- Listening to Him
Prayer -- Speaking to Him
Singing -- Praising Him
Fasting -- Seeking Him
Obedience -- Following Him

ALL OF THE ABOVE are undermined in the modern Bible versions. I have been very busy lately, but as I have time, there will be more posts which address these other issues.

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

Happy Sabbath everyone! This post will address the Sabbath in the NIV. Once again, let me stress that not every text will reflect some of the changes I note here, but there are sufficient adjustments to undermine the truth.

Wherefore the children of Israel shall keep the sabbath, to observe the sabbath throughout their generations, for a perpetual covenant. (Exodus 31:16, KJV)	The Israelites are to observe the Sabbath, celebrating it for the generations to come as a lasting covenant. (Exodus 31:16, NIV)
The KJV properly regards the Sabbath as eternal, while the NIV use of "lasting" evokes the question "until when?" This is a fitting translation for those who choose to believe the Sabbath would be changed.
And he said unto them, This is that which the LORD hath said, To morrow is the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake that which ye will bake to day, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning. (Exodus 16:23, KJV)	He said to them, “This is what the Lord commanded: ‘Tomorrow is to be a day of rest, a holy Sabbath to the Lord. So bake what you want to bake and boil what you want to boil. Save whatever is left and keep it until morning.’ ” (Exodus 16:23, NIV)
The terms "the sabbath" and "a sabbath" are not quite the same. Watch how this crops up in the Ten Commandments.
But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: (Exodus 20:10, KJV)	but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your animals, nor the alien within your gates. (Exodus 20:10, NIV)
There is a clear distinction between "the sabbath" and "a sabbath." The Israelites kept certain days holy as "a sabbath" which were during the week and not on "the sabbath." However, the NIV muddles the issue here, and indeed, broadens this commandment to include ALL of these sabbaths--a thing which, if it were true, and if the Sabbath law had not been changed (as the NIV translators believed), we might today, by this wording, be required to keep the sabbath feasts.
Six days shall work be done: but the seventh day is the sabbath of rest, an holy convocation; ye shall do no work therein: it is the sabbath of the LORD in all your dwellings. (Leviticus 23:3, KJV)	“ ‘There are six days when you may work, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of rest, a day of sacred assembly. You are not to do any work; wherever you live, it is a Sabbath to the Lord. (Leviticus 23:3, NIV)
This contrasts "the sabbath" and "a sabbath" again.
Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. (Leviticus 23:24, KJV)	“Say to the Israelites: ‘On the first day of the seventh month you are to have a day of rest, a sacred assembly commemorated with trumpet blasts. (Leviticus 23:24, NIV)
This is speaking of one of the "other" sabbaths which, depending on the year, may or may not have been the seventh day of the week. But notice how the NIV even avoids the use of the word "sabbath?"
Also in the fifteenth day of the seventh month, when ye have gathered in the fruit of the land, ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: on the first day shall be a sabbath, and on the eighth day shall be a sabbath. (Leviticus 23:39, KJV)	“ ‘So beginning with the fifteenth day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of rest, and the eighth day also is a day of rest. (Leviticus 23:39, NIV)
Here again, the NIV drops the word "sabbath" out of the text--twice. Why?
Every sabbath he shall set it in order before the LORD continually, being taken from the children of Israel by an everlasting covenant. (Leviticus 24:8, KJV)	This bread is to be set out before the Lord regularly, Sabbath after Sabbath, on behalf of the Israelites, as a lasting covenant. (Leviticus 24:8, NIV)
Do you see any difference between "everlasting" and "lasting?" If the Sabbath is not everlasting, until when do you suppose the NIV translators thought it would last? Until the pope changed it to Sunday?
But the seventh day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, nor thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thine ox, nor thine ass, nor any of thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates; that thy manservant and thy maidservant may rest as well as thou. (Deuteronomy 5:14, KJV)	but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox, your donkey or any of your animals, nor the alien within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest, as you do. (Deuteronomy 5:14, NIV)
In this reiteration of the Ten Commandments, the NIV promotes the same change as it did in Exodus. "The sabbath" becomes "a sabbath."
If thou turn away thy foot from the sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on my holy day; and call the sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: (Isaiah 58:13, KJV)	“If you keep your feet from breaking the Sabbath and from doing as you please on my holy day, if you call the Sabbath a delight and the Lord 's holy day honorable, and if you honor it by not going your own way and not doing as you please or speaking idle words, (Isaiah 58:13, NIV)
How do you suppose your feet can break the Sabbath? The NIV translators have obviously misinterpreted here. The fact is that God's laws are represented as stones, of which the Sabbath is one. Psalm 91 tells us the angels will bear up the righteous in their hands, lest they "dash [their] foot" against a stone. That this did not mean the righteous could go cliff jumping is evident in the temptation of Christ. It is instead a promise--a promise that God will help the righteous keep His laws. The KJV rightly translates this verse and shows that we should not trample upon the Sabbath, meaning disrespect the Sabbath. The speech is figurative, and has nothing to do with literal feet.
Jerusalem remembered in the days of her affliction and of her miseries all her pleasant things that she had in the days of old, when her people fell into the hand of the enemy, and none did help her: the adversaries saw her, and did mock at her sabbaths. (Lamentations 1:7, KJV)	In the days of her affliction and wandering Jerusalem remembers all the treasures that were hers in days of old. When her people fell into enemy hands, there was no one to help her. Her enemies looked at her and laughed at her destruction.   (Lamentations 1:7, NIV)
Again, the NIV removes the word "sabbath" from the text. To see that it really should read the way the KJV has it, just look at the next example below.
And he hath violently taken away his tabernacle, as if it were of a garden: he hath destroyed his places of the assembly: the LORD hath caused the solemn feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion, and hath despised in the indignation of his anger the king and the priest. (Lamentations 2:6, KJV)	He has laid waste his dwelling like a garden; he has destroyed his place of meeting. The Lord has made Zion forget her appointed feasts and her Sabbaths; in his fierce anger he has spurned both king and priest.   (Lamentations 2:6, NIV)
Here, while the NIV has used the word "sabbaths," it has misapplied the manner in which they would be forgotten. The NIV holds that God has made the people forget the Sabbath…as a punishment! The KJV, on the other hand, rightly translates the sentence in passive form, and alludes to the destruction as being the reason the sabbaths are forgotten. In other words, NIV says God punishes the people by making them forget the Sabbath; the KJV says God's punishment is so severe that the Sabbaths will be forgotten.
And hallow my sabbaths; and they shall be a sign between me and you, that ye may know that I am the LORD your God. (Ezekiel 20:20, KJV)	Keep my Sabbaths holy, that they may be a sign between us. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God.” (Ezekiel 20:20, NIV)
There is nothing wrong with the NIV translation here. Note, however, that this is one of the few places where the NIV uses the form of "keep the sabbath." In almost every other place the reader will see "observe the sabbath" in place of "keep the sabbath." Perhaps this is no big deal, but I still prefer the concept of "keeping the law" over "observing the law."
And came down to Capernaum, a city of Galilee, and taught them on the sabbath days. (Luke 4:31, KJV)	Then he went down to Capernaum, a town in Galilee, and on the Sabbath began to teach the people. (Luke 4:31, NIV)
The NIV applies this to a single Sabbath, whereas the KJV speaks of plural Sabbaths.
And he was teaching in one of the synagogues on the sabbath. (Luke 13:10, KJV)	On a Sabbath Jesus was teaching in one of the synagogues, (Luke 13:10, NIV)
Again, there is a difference between "a sabbath" and "the sabbath."
And immediately the man was made whole, and took up his bed, and walked: and on the same day was the sabbath. (John 5:9, KJV)	At once the man was cured; he picked up his mat and walked. The day on which this took place was a Sabbath, (John 5:9, NIV)
Again we see "a sabbath" versus "the sabbath."
And therefore did the Jews persecute Jesus, and sought to slay him, because he had done these things on the sabbath day. (John 5:16, KJV)	So, because Jesus was doing these things on the Sabbath, the Jews persecuted him. (John 5:16, NIV)

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

Subtle shifts, but that is how evil works so man does not discern it as the changes are put in, then man finds himself in the abyss in the clutch of sin.

And here is the comparison on the topic of "The State of the Dead." You will see more subtle shifts here.

For in death there is no remembrance of thee: in the grave who shall give thee thanks? (Psalms 6:5, KJV)	No one remembers you when he is dead. Who praises you from the grave [fn2]? Footnote: Hebrew Sheol   (Psalms 6:5, NIV)
The KJV translation is clear that it is death which has no memory, whereas the NIV implies, or at least allows for the possibility, that those who die forget God by choice.
Consider and hear me, O LORD my God: lighten mine eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death; (Psalms 13:3, KJV)	Look on me and answer, O Lord my God. Give light to my eyes, or I will sleep in death; (Psalms 13:3, NIV)
Do dead people experience sleep and wakefulness? The NIV choice of wording allows for this doubt, whereas the KJV translation is clear that it is death itself which is called "sleep."
The dead praise not the LORD, neither any that go down into silence. (Psalms 115:17, KJV)	It is not the dead who praise the Lord, those who go down to silence; (Psalms 115:17, NIV)
Again, the NIV translation is less clear, and opens up alternate interpretations. It gives the impression that it is not speaking of the dead, but of a certain group of people who are praising the Lord, and begs the question, "Who?"
His breath goeth forth, he returneth to his earth; in that very day his thoughts perish. (Psalms 146:4, KJV)	When their spirit departs, they return to the ground; on that very day their plans come to nothing.   (Psalms 146:4, NIV)
Of course, if you died and went to heaven your plans would be changed! Also, the use of the word "spirit" here, in place of breath (which the word "spirit" means), while not technically a mistranslation, opens the door to some misinterpretations. It is crucial that the NIV does not want to admit that one's thoughts end at death.
For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten. (Ecclesiastes 9:5, KJV)	For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing; they have no further reward, and even the memory of them is forgotten. (Ecclesiastes 9:5, NIV)
It is the next verse which truly shapes the meaning of this one. Though the KJV here is more emphatic ("know not any thing" vs "know nothing"), the NIV is not incorrect. Look, however, at the rendering of the next verse…
Also their love, and their hatred, and their envy, is now perished; neither have they any more a portion for ever in any thing that is done under the sun. (Ecclesiastes 9:6, KJV)	Their love, their hate and their jealousy have long since vanished; never again will they have a part in anything that happens under the sun.   (Ecclesiastes 9:6, NIV)
The NIV does something peculiar here: "have long since vanished!" In other words, it means nothing that in death one does not have these emotions, because even before death, they had ceased. Make sense? There is a vast difference between "now" and "long since."
For he that is dead is freed from sin. (Romans 6:7, KJV)	because anyone who has died has been freed from sin. (Romans 6:7, NIV)
The NIV changes the meaning entirely by changing the verb tenses from present tense to past tense. This is in keeping with the NIV philosophy that as long as we are alive, we must continue in sin. Paul is writing here in figurative, rather than literal, speech. The NIV translators apparently missed the true meaning of the verse, and entered their own theology into it.
Now if we be dead with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him: (Romans 6:8, KJV)	Now if we died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. (Romans 6:8, NIV)
Again, the NIV changes the verb tenses as before; from present perfect to past perfect. This erases the intended meaning of "dying daily" in order to live with Christ daily, and gives us the new meaning of only being able to live with Christ following our physical death.
We are confident, I say, and willing rather to be absent from the body, and to be present with the Lord. (2 Corinthians 5:8, KJV)	We are confident, I say, and would prefer to be away from the body and at home with the Lord. (2 Corinthians 5:8, NIV)
Again, the NIV has chosen to interpret rather than to translate. Paul does not mean what the NIV implies. The NIV inference is that Paul would rather die and go to heaven. The KJV is more consistent with other texts which help us understand what Paul is actually saying. See examples below.
For though I be absent in the flesh, yet am I with you in the spirit, joying and beholding your order, and the stedfastness of your faith in Christ. (Colossians 2:5, KJV)	For though I am absent from you in body, I am present with you in spirit and delight to see how orderly you are and how firm your faith in Christ is. (Colossians 2:5, NIV)
Here Paul again refers to being "absent" physically, but present in spirit. The NIV does not translate poorly here, but it is clear that this text contrasts that of 2 Corinthians 5:8, unlike the KJV for which the two texts agree.
For I verily, as absent in body, but present in spirit, have judged already, as though I were present, concerning him that hath so done this deed, (1 Corinthians 5:3, KJV)	Even though I am not physically present, I am with you in spirit. And I have already passed judgment on the one who did this, just as if I were present. (1 Corinthians 5:3, NIV)
Again, the NIV does not translate poorly here (though I still prefer the KJV for a few minor reasons), but this shows clearly that Paul could be "absent in body" while still alive, and "present in spirit" without having gone to be "at home with the Lord" (2 Corinthians 5:8, NIV).

Blessings,

Green Cochoa.

I enabled HTML in that post of Richard's.

Very interesting posts by GC here, so keep it up.