I’m setting about writing a new translation of the Bible. I’ve found that, while there are some versions that indeed get the message across perfectly clearly in many verses, there’s not yet a version that seems to tell *every* single verse in a way that *perfectly* explains [to the reader] what is meant, and does so *without* chancing the vocabulary or grammar being confusing. This will of course always come down to a matter of interpretation between individuals, but I still like to think that there can be a “lowest common denominator” form of every verse in the Bible, letting *any* reader understand precisely what is meant, in both the letter and spirit of what’s written.

I’ve laid out five of my versions on a table and consult among them (among other resources as well) in parallel when writing this version. I have more versions, but they are more word-for-word versions, whereas I believe thought-for-thought versions will benefit a “lowest common denominator” reader more than those other versions, which can be downright confusing at times (which is something that the Bible, of all books, should *not* be).

I don’t have a literary degree (or any degree for that matter lol), but I do have quite the affinity for the English language, as well as what I would like to think is a great understand of how to make something most-simply understood (*without* losing any of its meaning). While I did try to stave off misspellings and grammar issues as I typed, it remains that there were over 15,000 words to type (in this first competed book), so there may be some literary corrections needed.

This is a one-man project, and I’m not looking for others to help me take up the particular mantle of typing each book out. This is solely due to my earlier mention of believing that I’ve been given a gift for proper simplification for the sake of easy digestion of material by others who have less-literarily-capable minds. That said though, I will post each finished book for review and editing purposes, as I believe that I alone cannot provide the perfectly-polished (or at least as much as can be) product that I wish to deliver to the masses who would benefit most from its simple, yet [hopefully] perfectly-informative, nature.

This first book is Romans, and took about two weeks to complete. I do this in my free time, but if it could somehow become a paying endeavor (solely for the sake of covering living expenses), then I would gladly switch over to doing this work full-time instead. Much of the time required in this work comes from the unique formatting of the Bible, *especially* the quoted verses within verses. Formatting was *not* fun lol.

All said though, I did the math, and if I can manage one chapter a day, then I can finish the New Testament in 260 days. I finished Romans (16 chapters) in two weeks, which was slightly better than “par.” Lacking much of a social life, I’ve plenty of time (outside of sleep and work) to devote to this work. And barring breather breaks here and there (we’re not robots), I have the will to carry this work out to completion. My only dread is when I get to the history books, as much of those can be seen as a bit of a trudge. That said, I will start with completing the New Testament first, as I believe it holds the most important message(s) in the Bible.

By the way, I started with finishing Romans first because I wanted to go ahead and dive into Paul’s description of the tenants of good and proper Christian living that are further expanded upon than just what is written in the gospels. Also, as wonderful as the gospels are, I fear the onset of a sense of loss of motivation by writing four different version of the same account in a row. I also skipped over Acts for now, as it serves as more or less of a history book for the New Testament (not that it doesn’t also contain lessons for proper living), and I was also personally looking to further my own knowledge in proper living by first getting into the tenants of said living as opposed to the travels of the one(s) teaching these tenants.

Please look over my version of Romans (link attached) and provide me with any feedback you feel can benefit this current draft.

Thank you for any helpful feedback. Hopefully I’ve begun a work that can benefit many.

https://www.dropbox.com/scl/fi/vs7m58i9dtl0dktlg3xij/The-New-Testament-Romans.docx?dl=0&rlkey=w9yad15fvpb2ucsnq17x1zxfb

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Edit: This was typed up elsewhere and copied/pasted here, with the intended italics being applied within the post (the asterisks). They did turn out as expected, but will be left as is, since I believe they still do what I had intended them to do.

Edit 2: I was not expecting such a backlash from a community of people who are to be welcoming and loving in their speech and *not* unconstructively critical. I know this is still reddit, but of all its communities, one should be able to have higher expectations from *this* community. I'm not a literary scholar or theologian, but it doesn't take any special degrees to be able to take two potentially-confusingly-worded sentences and make them more understandable. This is, in essence, what I am aiming to do in creating this new translation. I'm not *changing* The Father's holy word, but rather, making it more accessible and digestible for those who may be otherwise confused by parts of current translations. If you have nothing constructive to say, then please spend your time commenting elsewhere.

Edit 3: Before judging, as many have already done, I ask that you read my version of Romans from top to bottom, and, as requested in the post, provide any *constructive* feedback as to what may have been mistranslated from other English versions. If you feel you should still judge or attack me for taking on such a task, then do so *after* reading what I've typed.