The Message Bible

[I'm not telling]

I have been looking at new translations lately. I have been checking into the ESV which I liked. Next to it at the bookstore was The Message bible. I started reading it and could barely put it down, I thoroughly enjoyed the way it was written. I am considering buying it for my teenage boys who are less than thrilled with all things church lately and thought they might find this book easier to read and understand. Thanks for your thoughts on the matter!

[pastor's wife]

I know a LOT of ex-fundies who've been greatly moved by The Message. I've heard many testimonials of people who've been so burned by church that reading the Bible causes them troubling flash-backs and that they'd thus avoided the Bible for a long time, but had been able to read The Message. Personally I'm especially touched by the New Living Translation.

[WanderingTraveler]

Never really read a lot of The Message, but the verse I have heard quoted were right on.
I went from using the KJV to the ESV and I prefer the ESV. Much easier to understand.

[dramaturge]

I have a copy of The Message (I have an ESV and an NLT, as well). The Message really helps me when I'm feeling bogged down and really need a dose of the narrative of Scripture. I appreciate not only that it's written in a narrative style, but also that it (at least my copy) eliminates the verse numbers. This has helped me so much when reading the Bible has been a struggle for me. I can just dive in to a chapter and read it through without interruption, really helping the story to come alive for me.

[Kim G]

I know many ex-fundies who love the Message Bible. I haven't had any personal experience with it, but I love the New Living Translation!

[I'm not telling]

Thanks for the input everyone! I think I'll buy one for my son and see how he likes it! I am definitely getting one for me too!

[co_heir]

I like the Message. Often, it takes something that I've heard a thousand times before and puts it a different spin on it. God has used that many times to speak to me. I also like the NLT. It has becaome my primary Bible. We have the Mosaic Bible, which has readings that go through the church calendar. I would highly recommend it.

[Perry]

I'll have to look into it. Doing the "read the KJV through in a year" thing every year has kinda burned me out on Bible reading, and I haven't opened mine in probably two months. I want a "new" Bible that I can enjoy reading again, so I will probably look at it sometime.

[Tiarali]

I bought a copy of the Message today. I'm a bit bummed because I accidentally bought just a New Testament with Psalms and Proverbs, and I wanted to read through Job, lol. I started reading at random, and it was really engaging.

[lillypie82]

Just saw this thread and looked up The Message Bible... Not being in IFB church anymore, this may sound weird, but I have never really considered reading any version other than the KJV. When I read a verse from another version, it just feels unfamiliar to me. Of course we only read KJV growing up (and my mom would only buy KJV verse greeting cards, gift items, etc... if the verse was close enough to KJV, she would make her own edits with a Sharpie marker), so the language of it is familiar to me, it's still what I think of when I think of "THE Bible"

BUT I just read a little out of The Message, and it made me want to read more. It's definitely engaging and interesting! I love that the verse numbers are taken out, so the story just seems to flow. I have a slight fear that "poetic license" might be taken with some things - losing the true meaning for the readability - but I did read about the translator, and he said he uses the actual Greek and Hebrew Bible as his main "reading" Bible. So he has tons of experience reading the "meaning" of the words, not just translating word for word. I like that.