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The RSV (Revised Standard Version) of the Bible is more of a thought-for-thought translation than a word-for-word or paraphrased translation. The original texts of the Bible were written in Hebrew, Greek and Aramaic. The reason there are so many different versions (i.e., translations) of the Bible is because in translating the original text into modern-day languages, translators must focus on providing one of the following: 1) A word-for-word translation which focuses on retaining the form and structure of the original text; 2) A thought-for-thought translation which focuses on the original meaning of the text; or, 3) Paraphrase the original text by retaining the original meaning of the text but in a way that is easy for people to read and understand.

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