Product Description

Heart-Racing. Thought-Provoking. Life-Changing.

If you find reading the Bible uneventful, "old hat," or downright confusing, then it's time for The Message. Join the millions of readers who have been drawn to God through Eugene Peterson's best-selling Bible paraphrase.

Translated directly from the ancient Hebrew and Greek texts into today's American idiom, The Message is designed as a reading Bible. With no distracting verse numbers or stiff, formal language, the sixty-six books of Scripture unfold like a gripping novel. Passages you've read many times before will come alive, revealing the vibrant energy and passion of God's Word.

From the mysterious Old Testament stories to the straightforward teachings of Jesus to the encouraging early church letters, reading The Message will jump-start your heart, challenge your mind, and forever change your life.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #213350 in Books
• Published on: 2002-07-15
• Original language: English
• Binding: Hardcover
• 2265 pages

From Amazon.com
Readers who have either found the Bible to be an intimidating proposition or who are so familiar with it that the words have lost their meaning will discover that Eugene Peterson's The Message: The Bible in Contemporary Language is a welcome way to read and reread one of the best-loved books of all time. It's directly translated from the Greek and Hebrew texts and is intentionally designed to be a reading Bible rather than a study Bible. Each of the 66 books has an introduction by Peterson, and there are no verse numbers to interrupt the flow of the passages.

The vibrant flavor of the text is evident from the opening verses of the book of Genesis: "First this: God created the Heavens and Earth--all you see; all you don't see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness."

There's renewed vigor in some of Jesus' most well-known words of the New Testament in John 3: "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."

Whether it's the poetry of the Psalms, the thundering tirades of the Old Testament prophets, or the ageless words of Jesus, Peterson breaths new life into timeless passages in this fresh-voiced paraphrase. --Cindy Crosby

From AudioFile
It seems odd to list an author for a translation of the Bible, but it's appropriate here. In addition to translating the Bible, Eugene Peterson includes an extensive explanation of how this translation differs from previous ones. He provides overviews of the individual books of the New Testament, which place them in historical context. At times, Peterson goes too far, including jarring anachronisms, but, for the most part, the translation is interesting and refreshing. Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for the narration. Both readers have clear voices but present far too narrow an emotional range and often strike inappropriate tones, sounding, for example, angry or petulant when the verse is about love. G.T.B. © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

J.I. Packer, author of Knowing God and professor of theology, Regent College.
"In this crowded world of Bible versions, Eugene Peterson's blend of accurate scholarship and vivid idiom make this rendering both distinctive and distinguished. The Message catches the logical flow, personal energy, and imaginative overtones of the original very well indeed. It's a landmark and a triumph. Don't miss it!"

Customer Reviews

A true Bible?
Personally I think the argument over the legitimacy of "The Message" is somewhat ridiculous. Having had the great opportunity to receive formal training at a Christian college I study texts in the original language, but I would never preach or teach from a Greek edition. Why? Because few, if any, would understand it!

Perhaps the reason so many of the church attending public are biblically illiterate is because of the over-emphasis on word for word translations. These translations are good for studying, but honestly are not easy reading. Though the biblical authors were inspired, their language was not. Language is simply a tool used to communicate ideas; the goal of Peterson's translation is to "convert the tone, the rythym, the events, the IDEAS, into the way we actually think and speak" (Introduction, emphasis added.)

Not everything in the Bible can be easily understood, and until the end of this present world there will be those God has gifted with the building up of the church who are able to offer additional assistance - but this easy to read paraphrase is certainly a good avenue for the layperson to become familiar with the Bible's content.

--> NOT FOR THE SUNDAY CHRISTIAN
I keep reading reviews that say "read with a mature Christian" or "just a paraphrase" and some even harsh reviews that doubt the integrity of a Bible that doesn't sound like the King James.

I'm a youth pastor in the Orlando area and I did a test not too long ago with a decent sized group of students. We tested their ability to comprehend and grasp the main effect of a few different Bible stories from a selection of translations.

We used the ESV, NIV, NLT and MESSAGE. Although I like the ESV Bible and have, in the past, used it as my primary translation, it failed miserably with these kids (who by the way ranged from 6-12 grade, and most being pretty academically successful). They just didn't get the point--we had to stop too many times to analyze the text and try and figure out the meaning on the grammar! On to the NIV--it faired much better, but there were many places where the NIV had my kids stumped. I actually think that part of the NIV's failure was their choice of fonts...these things were so ancient. ...the lack of "red letters" wasn't helpful. The NLT...I used to really like it actually, but the more I've read it, the more it strikes me a just a front for an old idea. What I mean (and my kids echoed this) is that yes, it is easier to understand, but it seemed to us that they still fail to catch the "love story" of God's Word. In other words, it's still very systematic and verse-oriented, yet it tries to modernize the way those very things are carried out. It's like putting a new face plate on an old phone. It looks pretty cool, but essentially, the phone is the same.

Re: the Message...I've had a love-hate relationship with the Message since I first picked up the NT when it came out a few years back. Part of my cried heresy; part of me said "cool!!" and part of me didn't know what the heck to think. However, as I presented this to my students, we found that they loved it above the others and related to it far more. They found it intriguing and mystical all the while being able to understand it much more than the other translations.

The comments before said that it was heresy or it missed the meaning altogether of so many things. Let me offer this: Jesus told stories...my guess is that people re-told those stories and just like when you play telephone, you can expect that details of these stories are going to chance ever so slightly. Sometimes the whole story (as far as the cast of characters, the details etc.) changes, but if the plot and main effect remain constant, what has happened...adaptation only. Adaptation is not a negative thing in translations; it's a very positive one. I work in an Episcopal Church--we know a thing or two about liturgy and tradition. But, I allow and encourage kids to read from the Message...it breaks tradition right? Wrong--what's the tradition--the heart of Jesus. The details of a story CAN adapt--they must or Christianity will die. The plot and main effect needs to stay the same. I'm not a liberal Episcopalian--I work in a very "conservative Diocese" and I stand for truth. BUT, within truth there is elasticity for dynamic and adaptation--so please don't call heresy. Peterson faithfully interprets this. There are idioms and stories in the Message that I don't get all the time, but i haven't found anything so far that could be called heresy. If anything I think Peterson has done what we've praised C.S. Lewis for--he's magnified God in a way we haven't seen before.

GET THIS--USE IT--USE IT AS A PRIMARY TRANSLATION IF YOU WANT TO! I OFTEN DO!

(...)

The Message- what a blessing
This book gives wonderful translation to some scriptures that you may not understand. When you read a passage in the Bible then refer to 'The Message' you get a full understanding of the scriptures meaning. Great book tried to buy another copy for a gift but they do not have any copies remaining. I was also informed the printing company is not sure if and when they will be printing more.