One of the most helpful kinds of Biblical commentary are biblical paraphrases. If you read New Living Translation or other similar translations, then you are really reading an interpretive paraphrase of the Bible. The paraphraser makes explicit his or her interpretation of the text. But this is really a commentary. It makes interpretive decisions for you.
For my devotional study of the Scripture, I will be writing paraphrases of the Bible that accord with my interpretation of the Bible. My goal is to sharpen my understanding of God’s word and help people to understand what the Bible says. Yet I am only providing a paraphrase. Read the Bible for yourself and see if my paraphrase matches the context and meaning of the passage that I translate.
I start this series with John’s Gospel. Leave a comment and tell me what you think!
The Christian Creation Account: A Retelling of Genesis 1
In the beginning was the Word,
and the word was with God.
And God was the Word.
He was in the beginning with God. (vv. 1-2)
Everything came into being
through him, and,
apart from him,
not one thing came into being. (v. 3)
In him
is life,
and this life is
the light of humanity. (v. 4)
And the light shines
in the darkness,
and the darkness
does not overtake the light (v. 5). [Read more…] about John 1:1-18 – A Paraphrase