My friend Ken Berding wrote a recent blog post explaining his concerns about using The Message. As he pointed out, people often treat it as a Bible translation, when it is actually a very loose paraphrase. One of Ken鈥檚 observations is that The Message routinely adds meaning to or subtracts meaning from the original Greek and Hebrew text.

While doing detailed work in the Greek New Testament and in several English translations, I have repeatedly found this to be true. For the past several months, I have been working with a team of scholars on a Bible app (Wave Parallel Bible) that links the words in the original Greek and Hebrew to their equivalent words and phrases in nine major Bible translations, including The Message. I often am unable to link certain portions of The Message to anything in the Greek text, which means that meaning was added. At other times, ideas found in the Greek text cannot be linked to anything in The Message, which means that meaning has been lost. I have had no problems linking any other translation to the Greek text, including 鈥渄ynamic" translations such as the NIV and NLT.

Here are five places where The Message either adds to or loses significant meaning from the Greek text of the New Testament. I find other examples on a daily basis as I work on this project.

Ephesians 2:2

Greek Text

鈥淟iteral鈥 Translation

The Message

峒愇 伪峒废 蟺慰蟿蔚 蟺蔚蟻喂蔚蟺伪蟿萎蟽伪蟿蔚 魏伪蟿峤 蟿峤肝 伪峒搬慷谓伪 蟿慰峥 魏蠈蟽渭慰蠀 蟿慰蠉蟿慰蠀, 魏伪蟿峤 蟿峤肝 峒勏佅囄课较勎 蟿峥喯 峒愇疚肯呄兾毕 蟿慰峥 峒苇蟻慰蟼, 蟿慰峥 蟺谓蔚蠉渭伪蟿慰蟼 蟿慰峥 谓峥ξ 峒愇轿迪佄澄酷喀谓蟿慰蟼 峒愇 蟿慰峥栂 蠀峒蔽酷繓蟼 蟿峥喯 峒蟺蔚喂胃蔚委伪蟼路

in which you once walked, according to the way of this world, according to the ruler of the power of the air, the spirit who is now at work in the children of disobedience.

It wasn鈥檛 so long ago that you were mired in that old stagnant life of sin. You let the world, which doesn鈥檛 know the first thing about living, tell you how to live. You filled your lungs with polluted unbelief, and then exhaled disobedience.

Meaning lost: Paul tells us that before we were saved by grace (Eph 2:8-9), our conduct followed the pattern of our world and of Satan, the evil power that rules the world. The Message loses the idea of an evil demonic power in these verses.

Matthew 3:7

Greek Text

鈥淟iteral鈥 Translation

The Message

纬蔚谓谓萎渭伪蟿伪 峒愊囄刮次结慷谓, 蟿委蟼 峤懴苇未蔚喂尉蔚谓 峤懳坚繓谓 蠁蠀纬蔚峥栁 峒蟺峤 蟿峥喯 渭蔚位位慰蠉蟽畏蟼 峤蟻纬峥喯;

You brood of vipers, who directed you to flee from the coming wrath?

Brood of snakes! What do you think you鈥檙e doing slithering down here to the river? Do you think a little water on your snakeskins is going to make any difference?

Meaning lost: In Matt 3:7, John the Baptist challenges the sincerity of the Pharisees in requesting baptism and warns that they face God鈥檚 wrath. The Message communicates their lack of sincerity, but it loses the message of God鈥檚 coming wrath.

Matthew 5:11-12

Greek Text

鈥淟iteral鈥 Translation

The Message

渭伪魏维蟻喂慰委 峒愊兿勎 峤呄勎蔽 峤谓蔚喂未委蟽蠅蟽喂谓 峤懳坚径蟼 魏伪峤 未喂蠋尉蠅蟽喂谓 魏伪峤 蔚峒聪蠅蟽喂谓 蟺峋段 蟺慰谓畏蟻峤肝 魏伪胃始 峤懳坚慷谓 蠄蔚蠀未蠈渭蔚谓慰喂 峒曃轿滴何滴 峒愇嘉酷喀. 蠂伪委蟻蔚蟿蔚 魏伪峤 峒纬伪位位喂峋断兾肝, 峤呄勎 峤 渭喂蟽胃峤赶 峤懳坚慷谓 蟺慰位峤合 峒愇 蟿慰峥栂 慰峤愊佄蔽轿酷繓蟼路

You are blessed when they revile you and persecute you and falsely say every kind of evil against you for my sake. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward is great in heaven.

Not only that鈥攃ount yourselves blessed every time people put you down or throw you out or speak lies about you to discredit me. What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort and they are uncomfortable. You can be glad when that happens鈥攇ive a cheer, even!鈥攆or though they don鈥檛 like it, I do! And all heaven applauds.

Meaning lost and added: Jesus encourages persecuted disciples that they will be rewarded in heaven. The Message moves that entirely to the present: 鈥渉eaven applauds.鈥 The idea of future reward is lost. At the same time, The Message adds a phrase attempting to explain why people persecute ("What it means is that the truth is too close for comfort"); that idea is not found at all in the Greek text.

Matthew 6:20

Greek Text

鈥淟iteral鈥 Translation

The Message

峤 位蠉蠂谓慰蟼 蟿慰峥 蟽蠋渭伪蟿蠈蟼 峒愊兿勎刮 峤 峤蠁胃伪位渭蠈蟼. 峒愥桨谓 慰峤栁 峋 峤 峤蠁胃伪位渭蠈蟼 蟽慰蠀 峒佅位慰峥ο, 峤呂晃课 蟿峤 蟽峥段嘉 蟽慰蠀 蠁蠅蟿蔚喂谓峤肝 峒斚兿勎蔽孤

The lamp of the body is the eye; if therefore your eye is whole/ generous, your whole body is full of light

Your eyes are windows into your body. If you open your eyes wide in wonder and belief, your body fills up with light.

Meaning added: Jesus' saying about the whole/ generous eye probably refers to God鈥檚 blessing on those who are generous (see my explanation here; another interpretation is that it refers to sincerity). The Message adds the idea of 鈥渨onder and belief,鈥 which is not a possible interpretation of the phrase.

To be fair, in the next verse (Matt 6:21), The Message does a great job of getting across the idea that bad eye means stinginess: 鈥淚f you live squinty-eyed in greed and distrust, your body is a dank cellar.鈥

Matthew 6:27-28

Greek Text

鈥淟iteral鈥 Translation

The Message

蟿委蟼 未峤 峒愇 峤懳坚慷谓 渭蔚蚁喂渭谓峥段 未蠉谓伪蟿伪喂 蟺蟻慰蟽胃蔚峥栁轿蔽 峒愊峤 蟿峤次 峒∥晃刮何蔽 伪峤愊勎酷喀 蟺峥喯囅呂 峒曃轿; 魏伪峤 蟺蔚蟻峤 峒愇轿聪嵨嘉毕勎肯 蟿委 渭蔚蟻喂渭谓峋断勎; 魏伪蟿伪渭维胃蔚蟿蔚 蟿峤 魏蟻委谓伪 蟿慰峥 峒纬蟻慰峥 蟺峥断 伪峤愇疚轿肯呄兾刮铰 慰峤 魏慰蟺喂峥断兾刮 慰峤愇瘁讲 谓萎胃慰蠀蟽喂谓路

And which of you by worrying is able to add one cubit to his stature/life? And why do you worry about clothing? Learn from the lilies of the field, how they grow; they do not labor nor spin.

Has anyone by fussing in front of a mirror ever gotten taller鈥? Instead of looking at the fashions, walk out into the fields and look at the wildflowers. They never primp or shop, but have you ever seen color and design quite like it?

Meaning added and lost: In this section of the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus encourages his disciples not to worry about how they will pay for basic necessities such as food and clothing (6:25, 31), because they can trust God to provide. The Message removes that idea of worrying about paying for clothing and replaces it with a warning against vanity and attention to fancy clothing.

I want to stress that the author of The Message, Eugene Peterson, is highly respected. I hear only good things about him from those who know him. He produced The Message out of a desire to help the Bible come alive for readers. So this post is not meant to attack him, but rather to express my concern that The Message should not be used as if it were a translation. Most Christians will have some difficulty recognizing when meaning is being added or subtracted, and so I hesitate to recommend it. The Message may be helpful as a supplement for careful readers of Scripture who compare it to standard translations and are aware of how often it adds meaning and loses meaning.