The Clear Word

lonnienord · Dec 28, 2006

"This earth began by an act of GOD"
thus begins the next book i will read cover to cover.
It is The Clear Word. by Jack Blanco. it is a paraphrase of the Bible by a religion professor at a Seventh-day Adventist University. I will quote it frequantly and write a review when i finish it.

Have you read The Clear Word? What did you think of it?

I challenge you to read any version of the Bible cover to cover in 2007

tall73 · Dec 28, 2006

I have to tell you that I think you could pick a better one. I commend your reading the Scriptures. That is of course an unquestionably good idea. But the Clear Word is not only a paraphrase, it is a very opinionated paraphrase that draws on a foreign source (ie. Ellen White).

Endium · Dec 29, 2006

I read The Clear Word for devotion every day, and I really like it because its easy to read. However I'm starting to question whether I should continue or not, because its hard for me to remember that its still a paraphrase and not the Bible. While I haven't read it from cover to cover, I had been using it for a year now and I have seen a lot of it. The way some things are phrased changes the entire interpretation of some verses, even against what I was taught as an Adventist. If anyone wants I can give examples...

I still really enjoy reading it however.

Sophia7 · Dec 30, 2006

I don't like The Clear Word. It adds way too much to the Bible and gives only one person's interpretation of it. I don't like any other paraphrases either (like The Message although it purports to be a "translation") because they change the Bible so much while claiming to make it easier to understand or to help people's devotional lives. I read only translations, and I like to compare different versions, especially in difficult passages.

lonnienord · Jan 1, 2007

any others like to comment? I am reading and enjoying it. I plan on reading all of it and all of the Amplified Bible this year

Sophia7 · Jan 1, 2007

Your challenge is a good one, to read the whole Bible this year.

RC_NewProtestants · Jan 2, 2007

The way some things are phrased changes the entire interpretation of some verses, even against what I was taught as an Adventist. If anyone wants I can give examples...

I would love to see some of your examples. Especially where they go against your Adventist training as it always seem to me to try and insert Adventist theology into the Bible. The way he does for Daniel 8:14

Sophia7 · Jan 2, 2007

RC_NewProtestants said:
I would love to see some of your examples. Especially where they go against your Adventist training as it always seem to me to try and insert Adventist theology into the Bible. The way he does for Daniel 8:14

Yes, I agree. Daniel 8:14 in The Clear Word is an abomination. I haven't seen any examples of things that go against Adventist theology. If there were, there's no way so many of our church members would be reading from it in Sabbath School as if it were an actual Bible.

capnator · Jan 4, 2007

I don't think I've ever seen one in our church... I've got one on the bookshelf, though i've never read it much at all.

Jimlarmore · Jan 4, 2007

The amplified version is at least a translation with encapsulated amplification set within it. The clear word is NOT the Bible. If you want to use it for devotions then that is fine. As a matter of fact I think that is how this book came about. What I would recommend is that if you read a certain section of the clear word and something doesn't ring true for some reason , then you should go to the NKJV or KJV and re-read what the actual scriptures say. Even then you may not get what the original author intended. I have an interlinear Bible ( Greeen's) that also gives numbers for each word's placement in the Strong's exhaustive concordance. It's amazing how much difference you will see at times from the original language to the present translations.

God Bless
Jim Larmore

RC_NewProtestants · Jan 4, 2007

Jimlarmore said:
The amplified version is at least a translation with encapsulated amplification set within it. The clear word is NOT the Bible. If you want to use it for devotions then that is fine. As a matter of fact I think that is how this book came about.

I have always wondered about that term devotions. I guess I don't know what it means. To me if I am going to study the Bible I would want to use the Bible. If I want to read stories of miraculous missionary stories then I would read that kind of book. But I don't think they are the same things. You read the Bible to study God's wisdom as He deals with mankind and draw from that implications for your own life about God and about mankind.

I don't see devotions as spending time reading what you already believe. That seems to me to be more in line with repeating a rosary, you are are not challenging your mind you are trying to work yourself into a deeper state of belief.

So in reference to the Clear Word it seems that by repeating Adventists doctrines in the guise of a Bible the book has totally separated itself from God directed devotions. It takes the challenge of the Bible away because you can't trust that it is reflecting what the Bible actually says. It seems to only succeed in inserting SDA doctrines into the supposed Bible.

I guess it is all in how you define devotions and to what that devotion is related. If it is to God and truth the Clear Word has no chance. If the devotion is to the SDA doctrines then I suppose you could say it works because they are inserted into important text areas such as the commonly used proof text verses like Daniel 8:14 even though much of the material appears to be unaffected it may be subtly affected with a particular theological view that is Adventist. Thus it could be a devotion to Adventist Theology.

Here is the definition of Devotions from Dictionary.com :
de·vo·tion noun
1.profound dedication; consecration.
2.earnest attachment to a cause, person, etc.
3.an assignment or appropriation to any purpose, cause, etc.: the devotion of one's wealth and time to scientific advancement.
4.Often, devotions. Ecclesiastical. religious observance or worship; a form of prayer or worship for special use.

Jimlarmore · Jan 4, 2007

The types of devotions I was speaking of is the study and prayerful contemplation of God and His Love, word, etc. I agree with your assessement here. I regret that many give this book a Biblical status , however, as books go it's not trash either. I think we need to use common sense when approaching this type of thing and remember where our roots come from. Solo scriptura or a just and reasonable facsmile' thereof.

God Bless
Jim Larmore

RC_NewProtestants · Jan 4, 2007

as books go it's not trash either

As books go I can't think of any book that is really trash. That goes for cultic and even occultic material.

When dealing with a paraphrase of the Bible however you have to compare it to the originals, that is the translations. If your book is less accurate then any translation and often less accurate then any other paraphrase then it is among the bottom of the list. So by comparison within its own category it would be trash. If it was in a different category, say it was the only version of the Bible in existence then it would be a wonderful book. Though we would certainly have to question how Blanco came upon it.

This is why they try to sell it as also Devotional. Because if it is a book that has anything to do with God it can be said to be devotional

I recently went over some of this on my blog
http://cafesda.blogspot.com/2006/12/clear-word-debate.html
http://cafesda.blogspot.com/2006/12/clear-word-debate-mountain-or-molehill.html

Take a look at how the book is advertised.

Jimlarmore · Jan 4, 2007

Hi Ron,
I have read your blog on the clear word and I agree with most of what is said there. Our denomination is far from being perfect. I think the selling of books and the types of books sold in our book and Bible houses may not always receive the full endorsement of our church. Money and lots of it still has a lot to do with some things that are decided on.

Not too long ago I was on another board and read an ex-adventists claim that our hospitals allow abortions to be performed on a regular basis. Another ex-adventist told me on this same forum that his wife and an ordained pastor who was the treasuror of a state conference had an affair. His wife was fired from her job at the conference but the treasuror remained in his position after the affair was made known. I guess the point I am trying to make is that you will always be able to find things that are not what we would think is right.

To me it's not good that this book is being sold as a type of Bible because it's clearly not the Bible. Being a paraphrase it has value for understanding of some verses but then again we are accepting the semantics of a man not an inspired writer. I think the bottom line is to insist that it be labled for what it is,,,, a paraphrase of the Bible by a man,,,,period.

God Bless
Jim Larmore

Endium · Jan 5, 2007

RC_NewProtestants said:
I would love to see some of your examples. Especially where they go against your Adventist training as it always seem to me to try and insert Adventist theology into the Bible. The way he does for Daniel 8:14

I can't seem to remember the locations of all the texts I had in mind in my first post, however there is one I still remember because the wording was very different from Bible translations. In Revelation 22:20 The Clear Word reads, "Jesus says, 'When I come,I will come quickly!' Yes, come, Lord Jesus. Come Quickly!"

I never saw the "When I come" part anywhere before, not even with Ellen White, and in my opinion it greatly changes the meaning of what Jesus is saying.

RC_NewProtestants · Jan 7, 2007

Endium said:
I can't seem to remember the locations of all the texts I had in mind in my first post, however there is one I still remember because the wording was very different from Bible translations. In Revelation 22:20 The Clear Word reads, "Jesus says, 'When I come,I will come quickly!' Yes, come, Lord Jesus. Come Quickly!"

I never saw the "When I come" part anywhere before, not even with Ellen White, and in my opinion it greatly changes the meaning of what Jesus is saying.

I don't think that is much of a difference. But it is illustrative of how a paraphrase often just tries to be different. There is absolutly no reason for the "When I come" part of the phrase

frenchhoard · Jan 8, 2007

I have never read any other version but The Clear Word!

I just love it!

Sophia7 · Jan 8, 2007

frenchhoard said:
I have never read any other version but The Clear Word!

I just love it!

Apart from my criticisms of The Clear Word--whether it's good or not--it is just a paraphrase. I would strongly encourage you to read at least one real translation of the Bible. Otherwise, you are getting only one person's (with added EGW comments) commentary on the Bible, not the actual Bible.

SisterDee · Jan 9, 2007

The Clear Word is not a Bible. It is more of a commentary. Read it based on its concurrence with the holy scripture. I wouldn't tell anyone not to read it, only to make sure that it does not take the place of the Bible.

nahMish · Jan 9, 2007

the clear word is biased- versions like NIV have had multiple people check & recheck it prior to printing. the clear word doesnt: simple.
the person who wrote the clear word paraphrased it for himself and there isnt anything wrong with that- we all need to paraphrase the bible in our own private devotions to understand what that chapeter or verse is saying TO US.......but not something to quote.

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