Found in Translation

11/09/2024

Here are 21 translations of Malachi 2:16, the so-called "God hates divorce" verse. Note that the Book of Malachi was written before the time of Christ. Look at how that verse was interpreted for the first 2,100 years. Then the KJV made a mistake that has affected us for 385 years. Do you see it?

11/08/2024

It's here! Matthew is ready on litbible.net
We see a lot that feels meaningful and relevant for this season. What do you see that resonates with you?

The Gospel of Matthew is ready and available to read now at litbible.net/matthew !!!


(Photo by Richard Felix on Unsplash)

10/25/2024

It's happening!😀

10/09/2024

There's a new resource in town! The LIT Bible Companion is an AI chat designed to explore the Bible through the translation and commitments of the Liberation and Inclusion Translation. It has full access to the LIT Bible website and is waiting to partner with you in exploring questions and deep dives into just how liberative and inclusive the Bible can be.
You'll need a ChatGPT login to use it, but it's free and easy to sign up. Happy chatting!
(Link in the comments)

08/31/2024

Yeah, there's no such thing as "the literal meaning of the Bible." Every translator and teacher has their own biases, and while we may try to minimize them, it's impossible to get around them completely.

Here are a couple of dozen articles that deal in some way with 1 Timothy 2:12: "I am not allowing a woman to teach, nor to dominate a man ..."

08/06/2024

Another one done! Titus is now live on litbible.net

06/15/2024

This is one reason why "the Bible is clear" is so problematic...

Yes, exactly. And to remind us, the entire New Testament was written in Greek in the form where all of the letters are capitalized and there is no space between the words and no punctuation marks. There goes any claim that there is a "self evident, obvious, clear reading of scripture." ~ Roger Wolsey Author

05/30/2024

Another one done! 2 Timothy is live now on litbible.net

05/24/2024

Paul wasn't only making a passionate theological argument this whole time. It shows up in the nitty-gritty of actual cultural difference: power dynamics, deeply-held customs around food and idols and s*x and strangers. And that's how he concludes his letter to the Jesus huddle in Rome.

We take this week as an opportunity to reflect on the entire flow of Romans that leads us to his final arguments, ponder about implications for today, and give this season's parting drop-kick to the ESV to the Apostle Junia.

Paul wasn't only making a passionate theological argument this whole time. It shows up in the nitty-gritty of actual cultural difference: power dynamics, dee...

05/17/2024

Romans has been a forceful ethical argument from the outset: arguing for a life beyond supremacism, exclusion, and domination that is made possible by God in Jesus Christ. A life together of peace.

And yet Paul still desires to complete his letter with explicit ethical guidance: how to be a people of this kind of peace.

Looming over it all is Rome. What of those who hope in the Pax Romana? Who control their known world? Here we encounter some of Paul's most widely abused language, Romans 13, concerning the power of the state and those who claim to wield violence for public good. Is he endorsing their exclusive claim to violence? Doesn't this give free rein to authoritarians?

Historic translations have bent Paul's words to suggest as much. We call bu****it. With the help of historians and political scientists, let's listen deeply for why this isn't a moment of Paul losing the plot. It's deeply subversive, and even a wee bit anarchistic.

Romans has been a forceful ethical argument from the outset: arguing for a life beyond supremacism, exclusion, and domination that is made possible by God in...

05/14/2024

Translations and interpretations that make entire stretches of Romans incongruous seem to fundamentally be missing something. If your theory can't hold all the data, change the theory, not the data, right?

Can the Liberation & Inclusion Translation help us make better sense of Romans 9 through 11? Will it be part of a seamless letter? We believe it must. It must be heard within Paul's wider insistence that in Christ Jew and Gentile are woven together in one non-hierarchal holy belonging.

Along the way we'll address passages that historically are used to support predestination, God sending people to hell, and other wacky toxic s**t.

Translations and interpretations that make entire stretches of Romans incongruous seem to fundamentally be missing something. If your theory can't hold all t...