Yet another tiresome political translation of the bible, this time the “conservative Bible.” Good grief, I am so everlastingly tired of this crap. This is every bit as stupid as the gender-inclusive version.
God is not a Republican. Or a Democrat, for that matter. He’s not a conservative or a liberal.
He’s a monarchist. He’s the all-powerful Creator of all things. He cannot be molded and shaped into something convenient for us to use to promote our agendas. He has his own agenda.
We should not (as Thomas Jefferson did) try to shape the bible according to our preconceptions, but get the most literal, accurate translation available and start shaping our thinking according to it.
And then do what it says to the best of our ability.
It’s not easy, but it is simple.
Saying that God is a monarchist would imply that he supports monarchy as a general rule, which would contradict 1 Samuel 8. Just because he wants to put Jesus in charge doesn’t make God a monarchist. Since Jesus isn’t around right now, I would say that God actually dislikes monarchies and other types of tyrannical earthly governments. God is therefore a Republican, although not a McCain-type RINO.
Regarding the Bible translation, it seems unnecessary. The Bible is conservative enough already. That’s why liberals almost never believe in it. Sure, liberals will sometimes quote a small set of verses out of context, but liberals do not read through the entire Bible with a believing heart. The conservative Bible apparently wants to take out the story about the adulteress, but that story isn’t actually liberal; it’s just that liberals interpret it without taking into account the rest of the Bible (e.g., John 18:31).
I think a better goal would be to create an evangelical Bible. Most modern translations have been polluted by legalists and/or liberals, imo. I’ve heard that the NRSV actually used not only Catholics but even Jews in the translation. Meanwhile, I’ve really lost faith lately in the NIV. For example, compare the NIV and KJV translations of Deuteronomy 30:11. The NIV also takes out the majority of clear references to the afterlife in the OT. The KJV is pretty solid, but I’ve noticed at least a couple problems with it also. I feel like I have to go look up individual verses at bible.org every time I want to know what God really said. It gets annoying. So I do think translations could be improved upon.
The better goal is not to create an evangelical bible, or a catholic one; rather, it is to reconstruct it as close to its original context as possible. We need to stop thinking that the theological filter through which we must interpret scripture somehow is permanently affixed in the 17th century. God may have meant for the gospel to reach the world but he spoke primarily through ancient people to ancient people. We’ve fooled ourselves into thinking our denominational dogma is what’s inspired when it’s in dire need of revision.
I’m not saying God supports monarchies. I’m saying he IS one, in the sense that all power and law resides in him, he is fully in charge, and we don’t get a vote or a say in the matter. No one invested him with that authority, he has it by virtue of who he is.
Amen, Laura!
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