Summary

The United Bible Societies, in their desire to respond to the demands of the different readers of the Bible, have taken seriously their requests and have initiated a new revision of the text of Reina-Valera which, without departing from the classic version, can be read and enjoyed with the same pleasure and devotion as the translation and revision of more than four centuries ago.

The project has required more than sixteen years of careful study. Multiple investigations have been done in which church leaders have confirmed the need for a revision that uses Latin American Spanish.

The Bible with the text of the Reina Valera Contemporánea (RVC) is guided by the same norms of academic quality, professionalism and respect for the Word of God that have characterized the translations which the United Bible Societies have done for the last two hundred years.

Characteristics and benefits of the Reina Valera Contemporánea revision

Use of classic and modern Spanish: The poetry and narrative portions of the text provide the ideal language for preparing sermons and talks in the church service.

Changes in the order of syntax: In the text of the Reina Valera Contemporánea revision the Spanish syntactic order has been respected, in order to make the reading more fluid and natural. This allows us to change the style of the revision on each occasion when the biblical text sounds archaic and, therefore, makes comprehension more difficult. An example of the syntactic structure of Spanish: S(ubject)-V(erb)-O(bject).

Updating of the Reina Valera text: When a word has fallen into disuse, or has been qualified as archaic and when the grammatical and numerical relationship regarding gender and number should be corrected, revisions have been made in the Reina Valera Contemporánea text.

Revision of biblical passages that are difficult to understand: Where some texts are difficult to grasp, the text of the Reina Valera Contemporánea has sought to make them easier to understand.

Revision of words and terms: There are words that merit a careful review, especially those that could suggest an erroneous path in the task of interpretation. The vocabulary used in the text provides a clear understanding of the Bible passages that might seem confusing or difficult to understand.

Updating of biblical proper names: Following the onomastic style already approved by the United Bible Societies for its translations and versions, the proper names of biblical persons have been brought up to date with current Spanish use.

Footnote references to the "critical text": In the present Twenty First Century we have the "critical text", achieved by incorporating more than 3000 Greek manuscripts which, for the most part, are much older and of better quality than those known as "Textus Receptus", used by Casiodoro de Reina as the textual basis for his translation in 1569.

An important number of texts in the RVR1960 contain words and expressions which are not found in the oldest manuscripts. In the new Reina Valera Contemporánea, there is a clear indication of which texts are not found in the oldest manuscripts, although they have not been eliminated from the Bible.

In most cases, the textual passages that are only found in the later manuscripts appear in brackets. In addition, there is an explanatory footnote.

Important questions

Will the Reina Valera Contemporánea be a substitute for the Reina-Valera 1960?

The Reina Valera Contemporánea revision makes no pretense of being a substitute for the RVR1960; rather it offers an adequate alternative for those that love the RVR1960, but prefer a more current use of the language. The Reina Valera Contemporánea will provide a new revision for a new generation of Evangelicals in the region of the Americas.

1. Based on the Reina-Valera, in light of the editions of 1569 and 1602, as well as other later revisions.
2. With agile and contemporary Spanish, used in Latin America.
3. Faithful to the oldest manuscripts of the Bible, consulting the texts of the OT (Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia) and using the Nestle-Aland NT (Critical Text), with footnotes that clarify texts from the Textus Receptus.
4. Improved punctuation and syntaxis.
5. Modern Spanish translation of biblical proper names.

Why has Jehovah been replaced with Lord (Señor)?

In the oldest Hebrew script, that lacks written vowels, the consonants YHVH compose the name with which God made himself known to Moses. Out of respect, the Jews did not pronounce the name, and when those consonants were found in the Bible text, they said Adonai (Lord).

From the end of the Middle Ages, among Christians, the consonants YHVH began to be read by introducing the vowels e, o and a, producing the Latinized form of Jehovah, from which is derived the Spanish name Jehová.

Concerning our initial comments, we should say that the precise pronunciation of the consonants YHVH (known as the tetragram) has been lost in time and today the correct pronunciation is not known.

The Reina Valera Contemporánea follows the example established by the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures, done by Jews and for Jews of the Dispersion from the third century B.C., which avoided writing the sacrosanct name of God and, in its place, used the Greek word Kyrios which, in turn, translated the Hebrew word adonai. Both words have the sense of "Lord" in Spanish. The Reina Valera Contemporánea joins most modern versions and uses the word "Señor" (Lord) to refer to God’s holy name.

Is the language of the Reina Valera Contemporánea adequate for worship and sermon preparation?

For those who love the Reina-Valera and other later versions, the Reina Valera Contemporánea will continue to have the same "taste." Every version or revision that is respected is adequate for worship and for the preparation of sermons.

Distinctive factors

• Reina Valera Contemporánea, the revision of the Bible preferred by Latin American Evangelicals.
• With the text in the Spanish with which we speak and preach in Latin America.
• Maintains the translation of the verses that we love, which we have memorized and often quote.

Positioning

Reina Valera Contemporánea, the classic Bible for today.

Target public

• Pastors and leaders
• Those responsible for programs of evangelism
• School teachers and students
• Bible school professors
• Study groups
• Youth and adults
• General public

Suggestions for use

• Sunday School
• Re-evangelization programs
• Rehabilitation programs
• General worship and Christian meetings

Promotion

• Place publicity in Christian magazines
• Place publicity on radio programs
• Purchase space in radio stations to present and announce the benefits of the Reina Valera Contemporánea
• Promotion in the catalogs of the UBS
• Distribution in press releases
• RVC Informative bulletin
• Presentation in national book fairs
• Presentation in church and ministry conventions
• Presentation in seminary and Bible school congresses
• Invite the target public individually by segments for presentation in workshops to learn the advantages, benefits and applications of the pastoral Bible
• Sales presentations and promotional programs in mass media for commercial customers
• Invite groups of customers for presentation in workshops of the benefits and applicability of the product
• Catalog sheet
• Posters and loudspeakers in shops
• Marketing in social media on the Internet

Promotional material

• Promotional campaign in magazines for four publicity pieces
• Informative tri-fold on the Reina Valera Contemporánea for mass distribution in churches and evangelical events
• Poster and recording for promotion in bookstores and retail shops
• Four banners (most common sizes) for publicity on Internet pages
• Press release: For diffusion in local and regional media
• Catalog sheet for sales presentations
• Two videos for the presentation and promotion of the Reina Valera Contemporánea
• Digital artwork to send in bulletin format by email to inform about the Reina Valera Contemporánea

Reina Valera Contemporánea © Sociedades Biblicas Unidas, 2009, 2011.

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