[codder too]

The more translations the better..

TRANSLATION is the key word here. Paraphrased versions can, and do, go way off track.

One size fits all though ?? Bad idea....

[LS]

Oh, I agree, some really suck. Our church uses "the Message" frequently, and it is horrible. Flat wrong in its "translation" some times.

[gitmo]

TRANSLATION is the key word here. Paraphrased versions can, and do, go way off track.

I agree. Paraphrased versions are comparable to commentaries. But I have found on a number of occasions getting some new insight from a paraphrase 'bible'. You just have to validate the commentators' opinions.

Surprisingly, the one that seems to clue me in on stuff I had always missed is the Picture Bible. I read it to my kids. I see stuff in there that I think diverges from the true text. But when I investigate, I see that their depiction is often a different but valid interpretation of the text.