The Bible is a collection of stories, teachings, literature, and religious scriptures considered spiritual and sacred for Christians and Jews. It is a holy collection and compilation of the divine teachings of Lord Jesus.
However, the Bible has evolved and has undergone variations due to the discrepancies between different groups and Christianity followers.
Catholic Bible and the New International Version are the two few versions of the Bible.
Key Takeaways
- The Catholic Bible contains additional books based on the Latin Vulgate translation, while NIV is a Protestant version translated from the original Greek and Hebrew texts.
- The Catholic Bible emphasizes the authority of the Church, while NIV places greater emphasis on individual interpretation and application.
- The Catholic Bible is used in Catholic liturgy and rituals, while NIV is widely used in Protestant churches and personal study.
Catholic Bible vs NIV
Catholic Bible is a Holy Book of the Catholic Christians that consists of 73 books in the Old and New Testament and the Vulgate. More than hundred scholars formulated the bible. NIV Bible is the English translation of the bible initiated by Howard Long, and NIV means New International Versions.
Catholic Bible is the Holy Book of the Christians and the actual Christian Bible. It comprises 46 books of the Old and 27 books of the New Testament and the Vulgate.
Both the Septuagint and the Hebrew scriptures are included in it. More than one hundred scholars, the best in Hebrew, Greek, and Armaniac scriptures and texts, joined to formulate the original Bible.
Howard Long, a King James follower, initiated the NIV Bible’s formation. He felt the urgent need to prepare a version or translation of the Bible that reflected his thoughts.
It was translated by the committee on biblical translation, which comprised fifteen biblical scholars.
Comparison Table
| Parameters Of Comparison | Catholic Bible | NIV |
|---|---|---|
| Definition | Catholic Bible is the basic, original, and official version of the Bible accepted by the church. | NIV is the English-translated version of the Catholic Bible by Scholars under Howard Long’s leadership. |
| Number of books | A Catholic Bible consists of the 73-book canon recognized and accepted by the Catholic Church, including the deuterocanonical books. | NIV Bible has 39 books in the old testament, and the new testament has 27 books. |
| Apocrypha | Catholic Bible includes the Apocrypha. | NIV Bibles don’t include the Apocrypha. |
| Year of publications | The newest version of the Catholic Bible was published in 2007, following the initial version in 1996 by the Catholic Truth Society. | NIV Bible was published by the former as the international bible society ( Biblica ) in 1973. |
| Languages | It is prevalent in biblical languages like Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic. | It is the English-translated version of the original Bible. |
What is Catholic Bible?
Catholic Bible comprises the complete 73-book canon that the church accepts. It includes both the old testament and the new testament, which are collectively referred to as deuterocanonical.
The term deuterocanonical was coined to refer to the presence and coexistence of the Old and New Testaments. The Greek Septuagint collection is included in the old testament.
During the period of Jesus Christ, both the Hebrew scriptures and the Septuagint were in use. The apostles used Septuagint.
The new testament books do not include the Hebrew scriptures and consist only of the Septuagint. The Catholic Bible is inclusive of the Vulgate, which is the Latin church’s official translated Bible.
In the old testament, the number of books present is 46, and in the new testament, the number of books present is 27.
The Catholic Bible strictly includes only the texts and scriptures that agree with and are per the canon law. The primary factors differentiating the Catholic Bible and the other Bibles are the number of books and the order.
The Catholic Bible did not change during the Reformation and retained all its original content.
What is NIV?
Howard Long, an engineer working in Seattle under General Electric, was the first to initiate the NIV Bible formation.
Being an arduous follower and devotee of King James, he was fascinated and intrigued by King James’s thoughts and teachings. Initially, no one shared his interests and did not understand his ideas.
Later more than a hundred skilled and talented scholars were carefully picked from the different scriptures to formulate the original Bible. Then it was translated to form the NIV Bible.
The first initiative to begin the translation started in Palos Heights, Illinois, where Howard Long and his slowly acquired group of like-minded people met.
Fifteen Biblical scholars together led to the formation of the Committee of Bible Translation, a self-governing body. They were assigned the task of translating the original version of the Bible into the English language.
However, the publication was under the sponsorship of Biblica. Due to the burgeoning theories and discoveries in the biblical world and the evolving new rules in using the English language, there are many updated versions of the NIV.
The council sincerely commits to providing freshly brewed content by meeting annually to review, edit and add discoveries.
Main Differences Between Catholic Bible and NIV
- A hundred and more scholars formulated Catholic Bible. NIV Bible evolved with the ideas of Howard Long and his followers.
- The Catholic Bible consists of 73 books, including the Vulgate, the old testament, and the new testament. At the same time, the NIV contains only 66 books.
- Apocrypha is included in the Catholic Bible. It is excluded in the NIV bible.
- Catholic Bible is an original version containing Hebrew and the Septuagint scriptures. NIV Bible is an English-translated version.
- Catholic Bibles retain any changes and remain unchanged. The NIV Bible is continuously updated and edited almost every year by the committee to fulfil their motto of providing updated and accurate content. However, they may change from time to time.
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