Brother Dowell Flatt taught Greek at Freed-Hardeman University. I loved that man. He was such a precious soul. I remember him emphasizing to his Greek students to never think that knowing Greek elevated us above anyone else. He told a story about teaching against the sin of racism and quoting James 2:9, “If you show partiality, you commit sin.” Someone asked him, “Brother Flatt, what does that verse say in the Greek?” Brother Flatt, in his typical low-key fashion, answered, “In the Greek, that verse says, ‘If you show partiality, you commit sin.’”
His point was clear—good translations are good enough for someone to know what God wants them to know, for good translations are going to reflect the original language accurately for modern-day readers. Knowing Greek is a good tool (that’s why Brother Flatt was teaching Greek), but it is not necessary to know Greek to know the Bible, and those who know Greek should never elevate themselves above others. Be careful, for “Knowledge puffs up” (1 Cor. 8:1). The “little Greek” you know should always be “handled aright” (2 Tim. 2:15).
