“It is like looking at a familiar picture after it has been cleaned”.
C.S. Lewis, on J.B. Phillip’s original translation
THE TIME IS NOW AND THE NEED IS VERY URGENT. There are so many distractions plying for our attention. We long to see people genuinely excited by a personal experience of the scriptures as a uniquely living text.
J.B. Phillips’ New Testament translation unlocked the radical world-changing ancient texts of the New Testament afresh to a new generation.
From a humble letter to C.S. Lewis asking for guidance to his endorsement and subsequent publishing, he changed the lives of millions through his simple yet beautiful modern translation. As a result, he was one of the most influential Christian leaders of the twentieth century.
J.B. Phillips wrote 26 books in total, each one saturated with the wisdom and insight of a man for whom the translation of the fresh and exciting good news of Jesus was a lifelong passion.
“ Phillips gave me a Bible I could read – and I read and read. He introduced me to the world of Scripture, not just his words; he immersed me in its marvelous sentences, helped me to feel the impact of the metaphors ”.
Eugene Peterson, author of The Message.
Tributes from friends of the J.B. Phillips Society:
Early on in my walk with Jesus, I mostly read the Bible because I felt obligated and reading the Phillips translation has made me EXCITED to read the Bible! Every time, he brings the Word of God to life and I feel like I get to know Jesus on a personal, friendship level... how appropriate that the Bible could actually bring LIFE to Jesus, who is Life Himself!
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It awakened my heart and opened my eyes and heart to the reality of the living Christ!
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I was one of the many thousands of people dramatically influenced by the JB Phillips translation. I still find it one of the most understandable and straightforward versions of the New Testament that has ever been written.