Lost in… Paraphrasing?

Recently, I was reading a devotional headed with a verse. I read it through, stopped, blinked, and looked at it again.

Pretty sure Jesus didn’t talk like that. MSG? TPT? What does that mean?

Recently, new versions of the Bible have been written, and they’re classified as ‘paraphrased versions.’ The name alone sets off some alarm bells, but let’s break this down. What exactly is going on with these ‘new versions’? And should they even exist?

Modernized Language

For the moment, I will withhold any possibilities for personal bias and assume that the authors of these new versions, like The Living Translation or the Message Bible, were simply trying to make the Bible easier to read by using modern language.

However — should we be trying to make the Bible easier to read?

Is it even hard?

As one raised on your standard translations, NKJV, ESV, etc, my answer would be no. Is the Bible hard to understand sometimes? Totally. But is it because of the writing or because we are fallen, falliable human beings? Do we need a dumbed-down version of the Bible?

I mean, how does this sound?

A hobbit lived in a hole in the ground. It wasn’t a gross, wet hole. It wasn’t stinky or filled with the ends of worms. And it was not a dry sandy hole either without chairs or food. It was a hobbit hole, which means it’s comfortable.

With the insertion of modern language and simplified sentence structure, gone is all the original beauty and evocative power of the text.

Another question to ask ourselves is this — with full knowledge of the fact that languages evolve and words take on different meanings over time, should we be trying to make the Bible as close as possible to modern language, or should we take the time to understand what things meant a couple hundred years ago? Hebrew/Greek/Aramaic comparisons are readily accessible to anyone with internet access or a nearby Mardel. Taking a moment to dwell on the text is not difficult — in fact, meditating on Scripture is mandated.

John Wycliffe first translated the entire Bible into English in 1382. Words had different meanings back then. Even more recently, words have changed.

Think about it — as recently as the 1960’s, ‘gay’ meant happy and not homosexual. Words change meanings — and in these recent paraphrases and some dubious translations, the modern words being chosen do not always have the same meanings as the original. When we read the Bible, we want to understand it as best we can, and often, this doesn’t mean watering it down and making it fit with our current slang. A little hard work never hurt anybody, and a dive into a study Bible or an investigation of Hebrew or Greek certainly can’t either.

There’s even this thing called the ‘GenZ Bible.’ What a farce. It rewrites the Bible using GenZ slang (which, to me, is harder to understand than the KJV, but I’m homeschooled,) literally redoing everything that God said to make it sound like it’s coming from a gangster — how is that not some form of blasphemy? Are GenZ -ers so stupid that they can’t read clear and proper English? Come on, it’s almost insulting!

Rewording Scripture

There are more red flags with some more obscure ‘translations.’ The Passion Translation, endorsed by many big names from Hillsong, Bethel, and others, was removed from Bible Gateway in 2017. Why? EXTREME paraphrasing. Completely redoing syntax, and additions NOT IN THE SOURCE MANUSCRIPTS.

Brian Simmons, the ‘translator,’ responded to this by declaring that ‘Cancel culture is alive in the church world,’ and that ‘We’re trying to discover, communicate, and release God’s heart through the words we choose,’ finally claiming that all Bible versions involve some paraphrase and that this specific one ‘unlocks the mystery of God’s heart.’

Discover, communicate, and release God’s heart? Hasn’t He already shown Himself to us sufficiently in His Word?

We don’t need new translations to ‘discover God.’ God gave us the Bible — with an extraordinary history, by the way, and record of surviving no matter what (what a coincidence, right?) — to show Himself to us.

2 Timothy 3:16-17 ESV

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.

All Scripture is breathed out by God. God is good, and perfect. I have a feeling that He doesn’t need humans to ‘discover and release’ His heart.

Other proponents of the TPT claim that it’s easier for new believers.

Was Christianity ever supposed to be easy? Do we want new believers to be deceived? Are we supposed to ‘update’ the Word of God, the living and powerful Word of God?

Now, many Bible scholars and translators try to make a distinction between ‘translations’ and ‘paraphrases.’

But should we even be paraphrasing in the first place?

Deuteronomy 4:2 ESV

You shall not add to the word that I command you, nor take from it, that you may keep the commandments of the Lord your God that I command you.

Revelation 22:18-19 ESV

I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: if anyone adds to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book, and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God will take away his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book.

I think it’s made pretty clear in the Bible that we are not to take away, add to, or distort God’s Word in any way. Consciously or not, when using ‘modern English,’ translators open up the possibility of changing the intended meaning of God’s Holy Word. And I’m talking about all paraphrases here, not just the incredibly controversial TPT — which has already been tackled by the Gospel Coalition and other scholars and big names. Read more about it here.

To demonstrate the differences in some of these versions, I’ll show you a well-known passage, John 3:16-18. Here it is in the Message translation

This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only Son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn’t go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again. Anyone who trusts in him is acquitted; anyone who refuses to trust him has long since been under the death sentence without knowing it. And why? Because of that person’s failure to believe in the one-of-a-kind Son of God when introduced to him.

And here is the King James:

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.

There’s obviously quite a difference there. ‘Whole and lasting life’ vs ‘everlasting life’? ‘Point an accusing finger’ vs ‘condemn the world’? These changes are the difference between a health-and-wealth gospel, and the wonderful truth of eternity, the difference between some finger-wagging, and eternal damnation in hell, separated from God forever.

Don’t be scared by a few “eth’s” and “hath’s.” The KJV still not difficult to understand. If you read Shakespeare in high school, this is nothing.

Here’s The Voice translation, which I’ve never even heard of — a sort of middle ground.

For God expressed His love for the world in this way: He gave His only Son so that whoever believes in Him will not face everlasting destruction, but will have everlasting life. Here’s the point. God didn’t send His Son into the world to judge it; instead, He is here to rescue a world headed toward certain destruction. No one who believes in Him has to fear condemnation, yet condemnation is already the reality for everyone who refuses to believe because they reject the name of the only Son of God.

‘Here’s the point’ isn’t exactly consistent with Greek idiom usage. But this just goes to show the wide variety of translations out there — these are all on Bible Gateway, by the way. They’re out there and they’re accepted. I’m no Bible scholar, but I have studied the English language. Using modern jargon and loosely paraphrasing the words of Scripture is the beginning of a dangerous slippery slope.

Furthermore, the distinction between ‘translation,’ and the ridiculous ‘paraphrase’ isn’t often given. My story from the other day is proof enough that it’s being used in study material — even my worldview course picked a bizarre version I’d never heard of to get in the word and point they wanted. In trying to defend having a good credit score, of all things, they used Proverbs 28:20… Brenton Translation. It reads thus.

“A man worthy of credit shall be much blessed.”

Can you see the issue here? This is clearly an example of equivocation. Reading the NIV illuminates the issue.

“A faithful person will be richly blessed, but one eager to get rich will not go unpunished.“

The word ‘credit’ does not mean today what it meant then. It’s obvious, then, that if this one verse can be thus distorted, what about the rest of the Bible?

In Conclusion

My friends, being a light to a dark world is double-faceted. One must shine ahead, of course, and guide the way, but one must also illuminate the night and dispel the shadows. Be cunning as serpents and innocent as doves. You don’t need to be a scholar to investigate and think critically. Be on your guard, and help others to be too. The Word of the Lord will endure forever, and it is whole and perfect. There is nothing that needs to be added to it or fished out of it. It is sufficient.

Be careful about translations, and when you hear something that sounds off, ask questions. Is this consistent with Scripture? Who wrote this? What was their goal? Do not let yourselves be deceived.

Simmons, when asked about his credentials, said he didn’t have any, that ‘the Lord just told me to’ and that he received visions that ‘downloaded’ new additions to the Bible into his brain.

Hmmm… sounds like the story of Joseph Smith, doesn’t it? Be wise, and carefully evaluate where your ‘translations’ are coming from. Are they from a team of Bible scholars attempting to accurately translate the original languages? Or are they random people with an agenda?

Be on your watch.

Alright, that’s all for today, folks. Ciao!

For Further Reading: I gave an extended speech on this topic — read it and access my sources here: Biblical Paraphrasing — What Is It and What’s Wrong With It?.pdf