An Important Note About Your GOD'S WORD Bible

Most people appreciate the GOD'S WORD Bible because it is felt to be the most readable and easily understood English translation of the Holy Scriptures in existence. It is equally noteworthy, however, for its outstanding accuracy of translation. A team of full-time Bible scholars and full-time English editorial reviewers worked together in translation from the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek manuscripts, and in creation of the final English phrasing. The end result is a Bible which clearly communicates the original authors' thoughts to the modern English-speaking reader, something which ought to be (but is not always) the objective of every translation process.

Here are a few examples of textual improvements and corrections in the GOD'S WORD Translation:

• Genesis 1:14-18: explains how God put lights (plural, i.e. the sun and the moon) in the heavens to, amongst other things, mark religious festivals. The KJV uses the word seasons here instead, which communicates nothing to the modern English reader regarding appointed times for worship. Those not familiar with the Almighty's appointed times for worship should go to Leviticus 23, where it will be seen that the weekly appointed time for worship is defined as every seventh day (or cycle of the sun), and that the yearly appointed times for worship are defined as certain specified days of certain months (moon-ths, or cycles of the moon).
• Leviticus 19:27: phrases the Almighty Yahuah's (or "God's") beard commandment as "never cut the edges of your beard," instead of the KJV "neither shalt thou mar the corners of thy beard." The Hebrew word translated as edges in GOD'S WORD means margins or borders, and thus "never cut the edges of your beard" correctly communicates Yahuah's prohibition against marring or cutting the margins of the beard to create a goatee, sideburns, a moustache, or, Heaven forbid, EFFEMINACY, by utterly desolating, destroying, or removing the edges/margins/borders of the beard through a decadent (i.e. "decay-like") procedure known as "shaving." The ambiguous KJV prohibition against marring the "corners" of the beard might result in the erroneous impression that the Creator does not permit the trimming of the beard for neatness and length, an impression which could lead some to feel that Yahuah is a slightly insane ogre Who requires men to let their beards grow till they sweep the floor... very sad!
• Numbers 15:37-41: relates the command of Yahuah to the men of Israel to "wear tassels on the corners of their clothes with violet threads in each tassel" vs. the KJV "make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue." The KJV makes it difficult, if not impossible, to understand the wearing of the Jewish tallit, or prayer shawl, to be fulfillment of this commandment, and it also obscures the direct connection between the Messiah Yahuahshua's compliance with this commandment and the healing of the many sick souls who touched his garment, or, to be precise, the tassels (or Hebrew tzit tzit) on the corners of His garment (Matthew 9:20-22; 14:36 and Mark 5:39-43; 6:56).
• Exodus 20:13: "Never murder" vs. the KJV "Thou shalt not kill"; the Hebrew root word is "ratsach," which refers to the premeditated murder of a human being. Nowhere in Scripture is there a prohibition against killing; to the contrary, killing is not only permitted but is commanded and required by the Almighty Yahuah as punishment for various violations of the Torah (the teaching and instruction of Yahuah) - see Exodus 21:12, 15-16 for example. To erroneously understand this commandment as prohibiting all killing leads to many and very serious errors, including misunderstanding of the character of Yahuah Himself, Who says "I kill, and I make alive" (Deuteronomy 32:39). His Holy Torah, which is a transcript of His character, does not command and require something which is contrary to His character.
• Acts 12:4: "Passover" vs. KJV "Easter." This is one of the most blatant errors in any translation of Scripture, and was inserted into the KJV at the insistence of the anti-Jewish and anti-Torah King James himself, who overruled his translators and forced this outright, bare-faced lie into the translation which bears his name. This overt example of deception, however, is just the tip of the iceberg... the KJV is full of passages which downplay or conceal the significance of the Almighty's appointed times, especially as they relate to the history and worship of the believers after the Messiah's death and resurrection.
• Colossians 2:13, 14: explains how the Messiah is able to offer forgiveness by taking away the charges that are brought against us by the written laws God has established... by nailing the charges (i.e. the sins, or violations of Torah) to His cross, and dying to pay the price or penalty for these sins, a truth which is also clearly taught in the famous old hymns "There Was One Who Was Willing" and "When Peace Like A River." The KJV, on the other hand, tells us that the Messiah is able to offer forgiveness for our violations of the law/Torah because he nailed the "handwritten ordinances" (i.e. the law/Torah) which was "contrary to us" to His cross, thus taking it "out of the way." This diabolical mistranslation is the rough equivalent of saying... if you have a pain in your foot, just cut your foot off and the pain will go way... or, if the red trouble light lights up on your car's dash, paint it over with red paint to deal with the problem... or, if you're having an issue with speeding tickets, lobby the government to eliminate speed limit laws! No follower of the Messiah Yahuahshua, Who came to "magnify the law, and make it honorable" (Isaiah 42:21), should ever have accepted this gift from King James, particularly in light of the Messiah's own statement regarding the nature of His mission: "Don't ever think that I came to set aside Moses' Teachings or the Prophets. I didn't come to set them aside but to make them come true. I can guarantee this truth: Until the earth and the heavens disappear, neither a period nor a comma will disappear from Moses' Teachings before everything has come true. So whoever sets aside any command that seems unimportant and teaches others to do the same will be unimportant in the kingdom of heaven. But whoever does and teaches what the commands say will be called great in the kingdom of heaven. I can guarantee that unless you live a life that has God's approval and do it more faithfully than the scribes and Pharisees, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven (Matthew 5:17-20: GOD'S WORD Translation).
• Colossians 2:16: "annual holy days, New Moon Festivals, or weekly worship days" vs. KJV "holy day, or new moon, or sabbath days ("days" is in italics to show that it was added by KJV translators). This tricky KJV translation has led some, particularly the one-eyed/half blind believers in Yahuahshua who observe the weekly worship day of Yahuah but who discard the annual worship days on the trash heap of history, to feel they have Scriptural support for their position. In fact the very opposite is the case! This text unquestionably refers to annual holy days (the "feast days"), New Moon Festivals, and the weekly seventh-day Sabbath, as the GOD'S WORD Translation categorically states. Shaul (Paul) is simply using the standard and often-repeated phrasing which refers to the three categories of divinely-appointed time (yearly, monthly, weekly) which regulate the worship of Israel (see Hosea 2:11; I Chronicles 23:31; II Chronicles 2:4, 8:13, 31:3; Nehemiah 10:33; Ezekiel 45:17). Thankfully, since we now understand Colossians 2:13.14 correctly, we no longer need to feel that somehow everything mentioned in verse 16 is "nailed to the cross." In fact, nothing in verse 16 is "nailed to the cross," but Shaul rather declares that no unbeliever or unauthorized person is to sit in judgment regarding how a believer in Yahuahshua observes Torah with reference to the things mentioned in verse 16. This judgment is to be provided by the "body (of Yahuahshua)" or, in other words, His true church or assembly.

The forgoing references give you some idea of what to watch for as you begin your journey through GOD'S WORD: you will undoubtedly discover many other significant findings and revelations, and I would appreciate receiving a call from you to learn about what you've found. Be blessed!

Ron Buhler - Two-House Messianic Israelite, scribe of the Kingdom of Heaven, Bible student, pilgrim, and stranger

"Salvation is of the Yahudim (Jews)... we know what we worship." Yahuahshua ha Mashiach (Yahuchanan/John 4:22)