MetaCatholic

I must confess (or possibly boast) of only just coming across GOD’S WORD ®. I’m still not sure I’ve got over the surprise of seeing that phrase with a registered trademark sign. But it was bizarre enough to make me explore it! It seems to be an essentially American Lutheran translation, and clearly the team over at Better Bibles didn’t think too much of it when they first noticed it. Actually, I think the few bad translation points (mainly of bad English) they picked up rather understated things, especially in view of the rather grandiose claims it makes for itself:

As a result, it reads more easily, is more literally accurate, and communicates the intended meaning of the Bible more clearly and naturally than any other English translation.

Take a look at these renderings, and see if you think the claim is substantiated:

Genesis 1:6-8  Then God said, “Let there be a horizon in the middle of the water in order to separate the water.” So God made the horizon and separated the water above and below the horizon. And so it was. God named what was above the horizon sky. There was evening, then morning – a second day. (It seems to me that in seeking to minimise the culturally difficult idea of waters above the sky, this becomes hopelessly inaccurate)

Matthew 16:19  I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven. Whatever you imprison, God will imprison. And whatever you set free, God will set free.” (Firstly this is odd English: we do not normally imprison or set free “things”. Secondly it entirely misses any sense of a moral or “legislative” function implied by the language.)

Romans 1:3-4  This Good News is about his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. In his human nature he was a descendant of David. In his spiritual, holy nature he was declared the Son of God. This was shown in a powerful way when he came back to life. (This import a two natures Christology into a text that won’t bear it, and rather misses the connection between the declaration of Jesus as Son of God, and the resurrection, which merely becomes an illustration)

Romans 8:9  But if God’s Spirit lives in you, you are under the control of your spiritual nature, not your corrupt nature. Whoever doesn’t have the Spirit of Christ doesn’t belong to him. (Apart from the dubious “corrupt nature” can anyone imagine Paul saying “you are under the control of your spiritual nature” No that’s not what the text says!)

One could go on, but the claim to be “more literally accurate” is looking weak enough already. There doesn’t seem to be a consistent theological bias, so I suppose we can put it down to some sort of linguistic incompetence, which may not be inappropriate for a Bible whose three letter acronym could be GWB.