Translation bias
When it comes to the topic of the holy spirit in the Bible, translation bias is rampant.
- "Notice how they [translation committees] are all committed to accuracy of translation. None of them indicates that their commitment is first to a creed or tradition over and above reliable translation" —The Holy Spirit and Translation Bias.
Trinitarian leaning. The translation bias leans toward a trinitarian creed or tradition.
- "The lens of Trinitarian theology has been the interpretive model for analyzing these texts for centuries, but this doctrine evolved hundreds of years after the composition of the New Testament and has obscured the original meaning of what these authors said about the spirit." —Eric C. Schlichting, On the "Spirit" of the New Testament.
A serious student of the Bible will need a cursory knowledge of Greek grammar (at a minimum) in order to cut through this bias and be able to properly interpret what is read. Understanding the context of each passage will also be necessary.
Gender usage in New Testament Greek. The authors of the New Testament often changed the gender of articles, adjectives, and pronouns that referred to a neuter word—if that neuter word referred to a person. However,
- "Although there were many opportunities to do so, and although it was allowed by the rules of Greek grammar, New Testament writers never changed from neuter to masculine when referring to the Spirit of God. They always referred to the holy spirit as “it” or “which”, never “he” or “whom”. The Pneuma Tables provide proof of this." —John David Clark, Sr., Pneuma Study.
Thus, the only reasonable conclusions, based on an impartial assessment of the Greek words used in the books of the New Testament are:
- "Spirit of God" is not a person. The authors of the New Testament did not think of the Spirit of God as a person.
- Translation bias. Many modern translations contain intentional mistranslations of certain words found in the Greek text because the translators sought to promote their trinitarian faith.
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