Person-2-Person - February, 2023

“Do not wait for leaders; do it alone, person to person.” – Mother Teresa

Late last year, I had to replace my phone. When I did, I discovered the Bible app I’d been using didn’t work and in fact was no longer available. I looked for a replacement app and discovered anew the bewildering number of available Bible versions. It seems as if there’s a version for everyone, no matter what you believe. While some were intriguing, others were simply not for me, or worse.

One such is the Updated Bible Version, abbreviated UPDV (https://www.updated.org/ if you’re curious). The UPDV is, well, an outlier. It renders John 1:1 as (emphasis added) “In the beginning was the Speech, and the Speech was with God, and the Speech was God.” I don’t know if that’s an accurate translation of the Greek word “Logos” (Λόγος) or not but personally I think it misses the point. The UPDV also includes the books 1 Maccabees and the Wisdom of Sirach, that are not traditionally part of Protestant Bibles. More concerning, though, than what it includes is what it omits: The first two chapters of Luke are gone. That means no Elizabeth (chapter 1), no Song of Mary (1:46-55), no shepherds (2:8-20), and no young Jesus in the Temple (2:41-52). Luke ends with the women discovering the empty tomb (roughly 24:8), which means no encounter on the road to Emmaus (24:13-35) or other appearances after the resurrection. John ends at 19:35, which means there’s no resurrection in that case. And Acts is missing completely, so there’s no Pentecost either.

The person who translated the UPDV, Greg Abrams, says he concluded that the missing parts of the New Testament weren’t part of the original manuscripts or—especially in the case of Acts—were simply fiction and removed them rather than allowing the reader to judge for him- or herself with the guidance of the Holy Spirit and trusted faith advisors, or simply including footnotes. But despite all this, I can’t find anything critical or negative online about the UPDV. Some other translations have been criticized for their supposed “liberal bias,” but those same critics have nothing to say about the UPDV ripping out entire books apparently willy-nilly. So since nobody else is willing to criticize it, I will: If you want a Bible with a “bias,” look no further, but if you want what generations of Christians have come to regard as “the Word of God,” keep looking.

Years ago, a lady told me, “You have to either accept all of it [the Bible] or reject all of it.” Being the contrary sort I am, I said, “Fine. I reject all of it.” Her response indicated she thought she had won some sort of victory, although getting someone to reject the whole Bible doesn’t sound like a victory I’d want to win. Honestly, I do believe there are parts of the Bible that are rather—ahem—fanciful—but I don’t reject all of it. Martin Luther called the epistle of James “an epistle of straw,” (Preface to the New Testament, 1522), so I think I’m in good company. But some questionable passages don’t mean I want to throw out everything. I happen to think those passages have something to teach us and we’re better off with them than without (2 Tim. 3:16-17).

One day in the synagogue in Capernaum, Jesus said, “‘The one who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up on the last day, because my flesh is true food and my blood is true drink.’” (John 6:54-55 Christian Standard Bible). Afterward, many of his disciples said, “‘This teaching is hard. Who can accept it?’” (vs. 60b CSB). Jesus chastised them, saying, “‘The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life. But there are some among you who don’t believe.’” (vs. 64a CSB). As a result, many left him (vs. 66). He asked the twelve main disciples, “‘You don’t want to go away too, do you?’” (vs. 67b CSB). Peter answered, “‘Lord, to whom will we go? You have the words of eternal life.’” (vs. 68b CSB).

We can’t reject everything because of some “hard teachings” or verses that don’t fit what we believe. That’s no way to win a “victory” in our spiritual life. Instead, we need to wrestle with Scripture, have meaningful discussions with others, and listen to enlightening messages like Pastor Kim’s, so that the word of God can dwell within us (Psa. 119:11, Col. 3:16). And if we believe we have found “the words of eternal life,” we need to act like it and live them before everyone we meet.

“‘You pore over the Scriptures because you think you have eternal life in them, and yet they testify about me. . . . For if you believed Moses, you would believe me, because he wrote about me. But if you don’t believe what he wrote, how will you believe my words?’” (John 5:39, 46-47 CSB.)