Selah
I have been reading through the Psalms and noticed that in the NIV2011, the word Selah is removed from the text and is now just a footnote. The word Selah was part of the text in the NIV1984 and many other Bible translations and is part of the Hebrew text. I have always been taught that God's word should never be changed. Why is the word Selah removed in the NIV2011?
Be assured that no one is changing God’s word. The differences in the translations reflect the challenge translators have in rendering that Hebrew term in English. It is thought that Selah refers to a musical instruction for the singing of the psalm, but translators are not entirely sure what that instruction was. For that reason, Bible translations can put the word in the verses or list it as a “footnote.”