Common English Bible

If you are looking for a reliable and accurate translation that is easy to read and understand this is the bible translation for you! The new Common English Bible (CEB) is very close to the ESV. This translation is not wooden but instead is very fluid and easily understood. Anyone, of any age would be able to pick it up and read it with full assurance of understanding the verse. I think that such translations help modern Christians get a better grasp of the richness and depth of the scriptures. I find, as a Sunday School teacher and youth worker, that many younger people get hung up on the archaic language and vocabulary of older translations such as the KJV. I however, do not discount the beauty and poetic flow of the KJV or its unique richness. This newer translation, though, is easier for the modern reader to pick up and understand without losing the original intent of the scriptures. This is not like the other modern "translations" that are based on a paraphrase or a translation based on the "idea" of the text nor is it loose like the newer Message bible that has been confused as an actual translation when in fact it is a loose paraphrase modern re-telling of the scriptures.


The following is a scripture and the other translations. As you can see this translation does not lose any of the meaning, depth or beauty of the original language but instead makes it more readable for the modern reader.

I Chronicles 16:8-9

(CEB) Give thanks to the LORD, call on his name; make his deeds known to all people! Sing to God, sing praises to him; dwell on his wondrous works!

(ESV) Oh give thanks to the Lord; call upon his name; make known his deeds among all peoples! Sing to him; sing praises to him; tell of all his wondrous works!

(HCSB) Give thanks to Yahweh; call on His name; proclaim His deeds among the peoples. Sing to Him; sing praise to Him; tell about all His wonderful works!

(KJV) Give thanks unto the Lord, call upon his name, make known his deeds among the people. Song unto him, sing psalms unto him, talk ye all of his wondrous works!

(NKJ) Oh, Give thanks to the Lord! Call upon His name; make known His deeds among the peoples! Sing to Him, sing palms to Him; Talk of all His wondrous works!


*** Visit my blog to participate in a give - away. Simply leave a comment here or on my blog and be entered to win a free copy of this bible. Winner to be notified on Friday, December 2, 2011 ***… (mehr)

First of all, if you haven't read the Common English Bible (CEB) translation, you're missing out. It is an enlightening use of dynamic equivalence without the theological assumptions of the NIV. I use it alongside my NRSV regularly. In this volume, Dennis Smith and other editors have collected a treasure of resources for preaching, study, and personal enrichment. I highly recommend adding this bible to your collection! The stories are a mix of ancient and contemporary resources that bring life to the text and illuminate the context.… (mehr)

I went ahead and read the whole thing, including Apocrypha. I also preached from it weekly for around a year. It is great in English read aloud, clear for public worship, well-written for private devotion. But it's just not a good translation, constantly choosing ease in English over accuracy, driving me insane when preaching and comparing it to original languages week-by-week.

As far as personal reading, I continue to recommend it alongside basically any other translation someone will actually read.… (mehr)