(By Dr. Michael Brown) The New American Standard Bible (NASB) is one of the most widely used modern translations of the Bible. There is not the slightest hint that the translation is anti-Israel, let alone anti-Semitic. So, my question comes by way of interest and curiosity, not by way of indictment or accusation. Why would this fine translation introduce the word “Palestine” in its section headings? This would be similar to a history book carrying the caption, “Christopher Columbus discovers the United States.” Or, “The rule of Genghis Khan extends into the Soviet Union.”
Or, “T. E. Lawrence was famously known as ‘Lawrence of Saudi Arabia.’” All of these would be grossly anachronistic. Yet none of my examples are as anachronistic as what is consistently found in various editions of the NASB. This includes print editions (the one in front of me is printed by Cambridge University Press). It also includes various digital versions (Bible Gateway, Bible Hub, and the Laridian PocketBible, which is found in the Logos app). As a colleague (and long-time NASB reader) noted, in several places in the translation, “Palestine” appears in section headings. READ MORE
