From a reader…
QUAERITUR:
What’s your preferred English translation of the Bible? Or do you like different versions for different purposes?
No one translation does it all. Every time you translate something you lose something. You have to make a choice between multiple possible meanings. For example, in Hebrew there is an image for being patient as having a long nose. What are you going to do with that? Render it literally?
I generally use the Revised Standard Version, RSV, for my study and reading. It is pretty much the standard for scholarship. However, I also supplement the RSV with Greek and Hebrew. Of course I will also look at the Vulgate… but not the New Vulgate.
I will take a look at the Douay-Reims and, for kicks, the Knox.
The important is to read Scripture. And you can gain an indulgence for doing so.
Yes, the RSV is very good with traditional language and there is a Catholic Edition – the RSV-C