Debates of this type involve theological concepts as well as translation techniques which are outlined in the process of textual criticism.
Following the execution of William Tyndale in 1536, there existed a complete translation of the New Testament from Greek into English for the first time, and in several editions.
Thus it is clear that there were marked problems for the English monarchy and for Canterbury, both of whom wanted a united Church of England.
This attempt was embodied by the Hampton Court Conference (1604) during which a Puritan from Oxford noted the imperfections of the current Bible versions.
Coupled with advances in the fields of textual criticism, biblical archaeology, and linguistics, this has enabled the creation of more accurate translations, whichever texts are chosen as the basis.
The problem with this form of translation is that it assumes a moderate degree of familiarity with the subject matter on the part of the reader.
Thus, even a formal equivalence translation has at least some modification of sentence structure and regard for contextual usage of words.
One of the most literal translations in English is the aptly named Young's Literal Translation: in this version, John 3:16 reads: "For God did so love the world, that His Son—the only begotten—He gave, that every one who is believing in him may not perish, but may have life age-during," which is very stilted and ungrammatical in English, although maintaining more of the tense and word order of the original Greek.
A dynamic equivalence (free) translation tries to clearly convey the thoughts and ideas of the source text.
The New International Version (NIV) attempts to strike a balance between dynamic and formal equivalence.
[4] Those who prefer formal equivalence also argue that some ambiguity of the original text is usually ironed out by the translators; some of the interpretation work is already done.
Thus, a key step in performing a translation is to establish what the original text was, typically by comparing extant copies.
The New Testament has been preserved in more manuscripts than any other ancient work, creating a challenge in handling so many different texts when performing these comparisons.
The King James Version (or Authorized Version) was based on the Textus Receptus, an eclectic Greek text prepared by Erasmus based primarily on Byzantine text Greek manuscripts, which make up the majority of existing copies of the New Testament.
The majority of New Testament textual critics now favor a text that is Alexandrian in complexion, especially after the publication of Westcott and Hort's edition.