The Voice New Testament

The Voice was produced by Thomas Nelson together with Ecclesia Bible Society. The work is a collaboration among scholars, pastor, writers, musicians, poets, and other artists. Their goal is to help Christians experience the joy and wonder of God's revelation.

The Voice tries to retain the different writing styles particular to the various authors of the original text. As is common now, the word order in the original may be altered for readability in English. The idea is to reveal the beauty of the Scripture and allow for clear and quick understanding of the text.

The Voice is described as a “contextual equivalent” translation. The translators realize that context is the most important factor in determining the meaning of a word or passage. The Voice is a hybrid of the word-for-word and thought-for-thought translations, at times one and and some times, the other. They have tried not to use trendy language.

Regarding gender, when a text is clear in addressing a gender, that gender is retained. When the context indicates both genders were to be included (such as addressing the recipients of the letter to a church), the English is rendered that way.

Another aspect of the translation that is unique is the rendering of Christos as “God's Anointed” or something similar. They recognize that “Christ” is not a second name for Jesus but merely a transliteration of the original word. Using the meaning of “anointed” in some way more accurately reflects the meaning of the original.

Chris Seay's (president of Ecclesia Bible Society) vision is to provide a work that would capture the thought and emotion of today's people. Rather than just retelling words, there is an emphasis on meaning and experience. The desire is to help readers step into the story of Scripture.

The New Testament edition contains a variety of reading plans to help the reader grasp the story. There are also introductions to each of the individual books.

One aspect of The Voice I really like is the use of italics indicating words added to give meaning to contemporary readers that would have been understood by the original readers. These are words that are not in the Greek text but help bring out the nuance of the language.

There is material added on nearly every page that is set off by color or a line, dividing it from the Bible text. This helpful material might include cultural, historical theological, or devotional thoughts.

Passages of dialogue are written in a screenplay format. The name of the speaker is given and the dialogue is indented. Quotation marks are not used. Where needed, stage directions are given. This aspect of the work makes it very useful for dramatic reading.

Reading The Voice is a unique experience. If you have read Shakespeare out loud with friends, you will have had a similar experience. One really gets a sense of the drama while reading. I even found that a verse may be placed elsewhere to facilitate the flow of the story. (For example, Matt. 2:15 placed after verse 18.) What a clever idea! The added comments are very helpful and are clearly designated as not part of the original Biblical text.

There is more italicized (added) text than I anticipated. It really helps to establish the flow of the narrative, however. Since it is so clearly distinguished as added, I think it is great.

The screenplay technique of The Voice works best in the gospels and Revelation, where there is actual dialogue. Reading the epistles is also interesting because of the added (italicized) words. Here is an example, Ephesians 1:3. “Blessed be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus the Anointed One, who grants us every spiritual blessing in these heavenly realms where we live in the Anointed – not because of anything we have done, but because of what He has done for us.” Compare that to the translation you currently use.

I like to read a new translation from time to time as that helps me gain a fresh appreciation for the Word. I think The Voice has a unique style and I plan to return to it again and again for new insight.

Thomas Nelson product information.

Go to http://www.hearthevoice.com/ for a verse of the day, to download an Old Testament book, compare translations, videos (informative and worshipful), and much more.

I received an egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review.  The opinions expressed are y own.

1000 Days by Jonathan Falwell

This book explores how restless hearts can be satisfied in the person of Jesus. For roughly 1,000 days, He had a ministry on earth. When we understand what Jesus said and did during that time, when we become like Him, we can finally see our longing hearts fulfilled. Jonathan invites the reader along on a journey. “It's a journey to understand His teachings, model your life after His example, and follow Him in a new way.” (9) Jesus is the author of life and He knows how it should be lived.

This is not a comprehensive look at Jesus' life and ministry. Jonathan takes scenes from the 1,000 days, applying them to life. We are encouraged to call on Jesus to calm us in the midst of our turmoils. We learn the methods of Satan in Jesus' temptation: wanting it now, trusting in a plan other than God's, and taking the easy road to success.

Other lessons include possessions, hell and heaven, worship, Jesus' prayer and last words.

He has added stories from his own life, the lives of others, other Bible teachers, and literature to illustrate the lessons.

At the end of each chapter are questions for individual reflection or small group discussion. There is also a 30 page Bible Study Guide at the end of the book. The fifteen studies have opening discussion questions, Scripture passages to read, study questions, prayer items, a passage to memorize, ways to help others, and topics for further study. With these resources, this book would make a good choice for a Sunday School class or small group.

There are many online resources for this book as well. Go to www.1000days.trbc.org for videos, reading through the gospels plan, and more. Follow @ChristSays and every day you will receive a example of something Christ said that you can apply to your life.

This book is a great introductory study to the life of Christ. While Jonathan does supply some insights from the Greek, this book is not at all difficult to understand and would be good for new believers.

Jonathan Falwell is the senior pastor of Thomas Road Baptist Church and vice chancellor for spiritual affairs at Liberty University. He and his wife, Shari, have four children.

Thomas Nelson Publishers, 229 pages, hardcover.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Thomas Nelson for the purpose of this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Gone to Ground by Brandilyn Collins

What a clever idea for the story of a mystery to be told.

In the (usually) quiet southern town of Amaryllis, six women have been brutally murdered – stabbed in the neck. Three women, very much alive, are sure they know who the murderer is.

Cherrie Mae cleans houses and reads classics on her Kindle (gift from her kids). A faithful elderly black woman, she is shocked when she finds the ring of the latest murder victim – in a drawer of the mayor's desk.

Deena, ex-wife of the sheriff’s son, himself a deputy, fears her special needs brother, Stevie, is guilty. He came by her house late the night of the last murder with blood on his factory uniform. She can't get him to tell her what happened or how the blood got there.

Tully is a battered pregnant wife. The latest murdered woman, Erika, had called Tully a few days earlier. She claimed to be having an affair with Tully's husband, Mike. Erika was pregnant too and claimed Mike was going to leave Tully and go with her. When Mike found out about the conversation, he nearly choked Tully and threatened to kill Erika. He came home late the night of the murder and left smudges of blood on the door knob.

Stevie is arrested for the latest murder. Then Mike is arrested. Then the mayor. The three women try to get the evidence to match the crime...or not. They put their lives in danger.

This novel is well written as the narrative varies with the three women's viewpoints. I loved the southern dialect. It was perfectly done. Interspersed are newspaper reports of the murders and investigation by a Pulitzer Prize winner. It was a clever way to get background material into the narrative.

There is suspense throughout the book, from first to last. I usually read more than one fiction book at a time but I had to read this one from cover to cover before I turned to another one.

You can find out more about the author and her books, including a video, at the publisher's site and at the author's site.

B&H Publishing Group, 324 pages.

I received an egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Spirit Rising by Jim Cymbala

The Holy Spirit is God's agent here on earth. Why are Holy Spirit interventions so rare in our churches. Why are Christians lives dry and mechanical? Cymbala wonders if we are missing out because we are not properly acquainted with the person and work of the Holy Spirit. He has written this book so we can learn more about who the Holy Spirit is, what happens when He moves, and how we can surrender to His leading.

He explains why we need the Helper Jesus promised. He shows that the first believers expected the Spirit to do great things. We need to return to that faith.

Christianity is hopeless without the Spirit. “The indwelling of God through the Holy Spirit makes Christianity different from any other religions on earth.” (38)

The Holy Spirit convicts us of sin and lives within us. We are to be controlled by the Spirit. (Not every Christian is.)

The Spirit shows up in church. “...[O]ur Lord Jesus Christ never intended that his church operate without visitations and blessings from the living Spirit of God.” (35) The Spirit instills a hunger for the Word in the believer. While we hear a preacher through our ears and process through our mind, the Holy Spirit speaks to the heart on a spiritual level. The Spirit produces joy in the believer (different than happiness). The Spirit produces an increasing sensitivity to our sin and a desire for Christlikeness, working in the deepest part of our being. The Spirit provides the power when we have none. Cymbala writes of what will happen when we surrender to the Holly Spirit: love, fellowship with God, boldness - overcoming fear, powerful prayer, and being set apart and sent out for service.

Cymbala overheard the comment, “To be conscious of the Holy Spirit solves 90 percent of our problems.” (102) Cymbala's aim in this book is to help us do exactly that.

Spiritual courage is needed today. We need to stir up the work of the Spirit within us, he says.

He includes stories of people transformed by the Holy Spirit, in their own words. It is amazing and encouraging to read of the Spirit working through ordinary people in extraordinary ways.

“Without the Spirit,” Cymbala writes, “Christianity is reduced to head knowledge about God, empty traditions, and a social club mentality. We need to ask God to give us a fresh revelation of what his church was meant to look like.” (195) “When the Spirit works through surrendered, faith-filled people like you and me, Christ will be glorified. The church will be built up. The Word of God will be honored. The kingdom of God will be extended.” (196)

What an encouraging book! It gives a picture of what the church looks like when the Spirit is given permission to work without reservation. I highly recommend this book, especially to church leaders.

Jim Cymbala is pastor of The Brooklyn Tabernacle. You can find out more about him and the church at www.brooklyntabernacle.org.

Zondervan, 208 pages.

I received a complimentary egalley of this book from the publisher for the purpose of this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Indivisible by James Robison & Jay Richards

While the future of America may appear gloomy, the authors believe, “God is not finished with us as a country. Decline is not inevitable.” (xix)

The authors call for believers to pray for a historic outpouring of God's Spirit on His Church. Without prayer, there is no hope. But Christian must do more. To see our culture restored, “We must understand the sources of the ideas that ail us as well as their alternatives.” (3) We must think clearly, argue persuasively, apply our convictions in our personal lives, build alliances, and act strategically to influence the people and institutions that shape our culture. They are quick to point out that public witness is linked to personal holiness. “We talk about transforming culture; we should spend more energy on transforming Christians.” (13) They quote Catherine of Siena, “If you are what you should be, you will set the whole world on fire.” (14)

To help Christians think well on policy issues, they review several concepts: law, religious liberty, the authority of the church, the Constitution, war/pacifism, public debt, growth and reach of government, abortion, the importance and meaning of marriage, family (and raising children), education, influencing culture, caring for the poor (and foreign aid), private property, free market (and a lesson in economics), globalization, international trade, immigration (they have a plan), (in)equality, being fruitful (creating wealth), environmental stewardship, and resources.

They provide a great deal of background information on the topics. They write, “...if we can think clearly, we can increase our odds of making the best choices available.” (308)

Their conclusion: “Of course, the most profound cultural change will come from outward expressions of inward change – a moral and spiritual renewal of our hearts and minds, our churches, communities, and cultural institutions. Besides principles and policies, we need people and prayer.” (321)

The material presented in this book is well documented. There are some 40 pages of footnotes. The authors are conservative. Liberal Christians may not like this book. For example, “our environmental problems are not getting worse.” (289) And, “Minimum wage laws eliminate those opportunities [of low-paying, entry-level jobs], and thus favor the politically powerful and fortunate who retain jobs over the vulnerable workers who least can afford it.” (253)

Whether conservative or liberal, there is a great deal of information in this book that is food for thought and action. Reading it will help us be more informed in policy debates. It should also inspire us to prayer and action.

James Robison is the founder and president of LIFE Outreach International and the host of LIFE Today. He is the author of several books and has spoken to millions of people through evangelistic crusades since he entered ministry in 1962.

Jay Richards is a Senior Fellow at the Discovery Institute and is the author of several books. He has been the executive director of several documentaries and has appeared on Larry King Live.

FaithWords (a division of Hachette Book Group), 362 pages.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from FaithWords for the purpose of this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Illusion by Frank Peretti

Mandy and Dane Collins are well known magicians, ready to buy that farm in Idaho and retire. But Mandy is killed in an automobile crash, or is she? Flash back forty years. Teenager Mandy and her girlfriends are at the Spokane fair. Her friends go off as she decides to rest a moment. Suddenly, Mandy finds herself in the same place, but something is wrong. She has a hospital gown on and the fair has changed. Where is her father? Where is their booth? Where are her friends? What is happening? Reacting to her new and unknown circumstances, Mandy is taken in for psychiatric observation.

Mandy manages to escape the hospital. But her father's farm is gone. There is no one she knows. She manages to find her way to a friendly shelter and a gig, doing magic tricks in a restaurant for tips. She comes under the helpful eye of an attorney who manages to get her a new identity. She continues her magic – amazing tricks of levitation and controlling objects. She finally comes to the notice of the sixty year old Dane Collins. He can't believe his eyes. She looks exactly like his Mandy did, forty years ago. But his Mandy died in the car accident. What is going on?

Peretti fans have waited seven years for a new book from him. I have to say, it is not one of his best. It gets off to a slow start and has a slow middle. There is lots of action at the end, and perhaps that makes the novel worth the read.

The plot includes a combination of time and space travel, cutting edge experiments the government is very interested in. Imagine, taking a soldier back in time, just a few minutes to before he was shot, moving him to another location just before the bullet hit him.

I was a bit disappointed in that the writing was not snappy or witty. I would not call Peretti a clever wordsmith at this point in his career. It surprised me as I have read all of his novels (even his ones for teens) and this one just does not seem up to par.

And the occupation of Mandy and Dane, magicians, seems a bit odd. Their life's work is based on illusion, strange for Christians. I expected a little dialogue along the way explaining why they did what they did. Christians making a living deceiving people needs a believable reason to do so, I think. I don't remember something like that in the book.

The plot did not grab me and compel me to read on. I figured out the bad guy early on so his part in the ending did not surprise me.

In a note from the author, Peretti says this novel, on the surface, is about two illusionists who are separated by death, but not really, and their quest to find each other. The symbolism includes being lost in this weird and sinful world, the deception of the world as we reach for heaven, the comforting presence of the Holy Spirit, and our longing to be united with Jesus.

I think the reader has to work a bit to understand those themes in the book. Peretti's earlier novels have such strong Christian themes, outright spiritual warfare, I felt that aspect of his writing was toned down a great deal in this novel.

Howard Books, 499 pages.  Browse the book and watch a video at the publisher's product page.

I received a complimentary copy of this novel from Howard Books for the purpose of this review. The opinions expressed are my own.

Invitation to Biblical Interpretation by Andreas Kostenberger & Richard Patterson

Hermeneutics, clarifying the meaning of biblical texts, is a difficult task. Kostenberger and Patterson want to make that task easier for you.

“This book is trying to teach a simple method for interpreting the Bible. It involves preparation, interpretation, and application. The method for interpretation is built around the hermeneutical triad, which consists of history, literature, and theology. In essence, our core proposal is this: for any passage of Scripture, you will want to study the historical setting, the literary context, and the theological message.” (23) The biblical message is grounded in history, conveyed through literature, explored through theology and has the ultimate goal in interpretation.

The first element in the triad is history. Scripture is rooted in history. The genre and language in which God chose to reveal Himself reflect the historical context.

The second element is literature. Scripture is writing and has three components: canon, genre, and language. The passage is located in the canon, its genre is determined, and the language used is considered (outlining, word studies).

The third element is theology. This is the climax of biblical interpretation.

The authors use a sevenfold method: Preparation, History, Literature (Canon), Literature (Genre), Literature (Language), Theology, Application and Proclamation. Included, and considered vital, are the heart preparation of the interpreter and the act of application.

The authors have a conservative view, taking into account the divine authorship of the Bible and its necessary application to life.

Each chapter begins with a list of objectives and an outline. The authors end each chapter with a sample passage to which the principles discussed in that chapter are applied. Study questions follow and then a bibliography of pertinent resources.

This book is a good balance of theory and practice. It does not include tedious philosophical discussions. It would make a great textbook for colleges, seminaries, and lay study groups. The writing is clear (without technical jargon) making it particularly useful to lay people. There is a great deal of information in this book, making it a very useful single volume on hermeneutics.

Abdreas Kostenberger is Senior Professor of new Testament and Biblical Theology and Director of PhD Studies at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Richard Patterson is Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Liberty University.

There are, apparently, added resources for this book at www.kregeldigitaleditions.com, although all I found was a PowerPoint format presentation (at a cost). You are also supposed find some resources at www.biblicalfoundations.org, (Kostenberger's site), although, again, wandering around all the links on that site, I did not find them. They may be available in the future, including chapter quizzes and a syllabus shell.

Kregel Publishers, 891 pages. Publisher product information.

I received a complimentary copy of this book from Kregel for the purpose of this review.

John Newton by Jonathan Aitken

Aitken has written a very readable account of John Newton's life, from his time on the slave ships to his ministry in the Church at Olney. Although Newton encountered God on a slave ship, he stumbled in his spirituality for years. Those early years are in great contrast to his commitment to his spiritual walk in his later years.

As Aitken writes, “The first lesson that any new believer can learn from Newton is that a sinner is not transformed into a Christ-centered soul by a single conversion experience but by the long, unremitting, and courageous effort that conversion begins.” (352)

Newton had a great influence on William Wilberforce and lived long enough to see the slave trade abolished in England.

One should always have an inspiring biography at hand. Aitken's account of Newton's life is a testimony to the grace of God, encouraging the Christian reader. I highly recommend it.

Crossway, 356 pages.