The Message brings the life-changing power of the New Testament, the vibrant passion of the Psalms, and the rich, practical wisdom of Proverbs into easy-to-read modern language that echoes the rhythm and idioms of the original Greek and Hebrew. Written in the same kind of language you'd use to talk with friends, write a letter, or discuss politics, The Message preserves the authentic, earthy flavor and the expressive character of the Bible's best-loved books.
Whether you've been reading the Bible for years or are exploring it for the first time, The Message will startle and surprise you. And it will allow you to experience firsthand the same power and directness that motivated its original readers to change the course of history so many centuries ago.
"The Bible must be readable and relevant in all times, to all peoples. Eugene Peterson's language accomplishes this and more: it makes our Holy Scripture also exciting and strong, sweet, sharp, persuasive, painful, personal, contemporary, kind, dramatic-and available to every reader of this age, this society. His love and skill are new blood in the Eternal Story."-Walter Wangerin, Jr., author of The Book of Dun Cow and Mourning into Dancing
"I thank God for The Message. In it Eugene Peterson gives a fresh and authentic voice to the Scripture. I recommend it highly."-Richard J. Foster, author of Celebration of Discipline
"Time and again I would read a verse and think, 'Oh, that's what it means.' Eugene Peterson has given us the gift of a lifetime."-Rebecca Manley Pippert, author of Out of the Saltshaker and Hope Has Its Reasons
"In this crowded world of Bible versions, Eugene Peterson's blend of accurate scholarship and vivid idiom make this rendering both distinctive and distinguished. The Message catches the logical flow, personal energy, and imaginative overtones of the original very will indeed. It's a landmark and a triumph. Don't miss it!"-J.I. Packer, author of Knowing God and professor of theology, Regent College
]]>The vibrant flavor of the text is evident from the opening verses of the book of Genesis: "First this: God created the Heavens and Earth--all you see; all you don't see. Earth was a soup of nothingness, a bottomless emptiness, an inky blackness."
There's renewed vigor in some of Jesus' most well-known words of the New Testament in John 3: "This is how much God loved the world: He gave his Son, his one and only son. And this is why: so that no one need be destroyed; by believing in him, anyone can have a whole and lasting life. God didn't go to all the trouble of sending his Son merely to point an accusing finger, telling the world how bad it was. He came to help, to put the world right again."
Whether it's the poetry of the Psalms, the thundering tirades of the Old Testament prophets, or the ageless words of Jesus, Peterson breaths new life into timeless passages in this fresh-voiced paraphrase. --Cindy Crosby
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