The Clear Word Bible
The Clear Word Bible, 1994 by Jack J. Blanco. Printed and distributed
by Review and Herald Publishing Association, a Seventh-day Adventist
publishing house. The following are some of the major objections to
this Adventist 'Bible'.
- Claims to be a paraphrase Bible, when it is not.
Claiming to be a paraphrase, it's not for 'a paraphrase is not a loose
rendering of someone else's words with added commentary'. Paraphrase
does not add to or subtract from the original meaning. In this
regard the Word of God is clear:
"You shall not add to the Word which I commanded
you, nor take anything from it". (Deuteronomy 4:2)
"Every Word of God is pure. Do not add to His words,
lest He reprove you, and you be found a liar". (Proverbs
30:5-6)
"If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him
the plagues that are written in this book: and if anyone takes
away from the words of This Book…God will take away his
part from the Book of life, and from the holy city and from the
things which are written in this book." (Revelation 22:18-19)
- Adds ideas not found in Scripture. A cursory examination
of the Clear Word Bible reveals the prolific addition of many ideas
not found in Scripture. There is no way when reading it to know which
portions of it are the Bible, and which portions have been added by
the author. There are portions where as much as 25% of the words are
not found in the original language (e.g. Luke 15:11-32).
- The author replaces 'ambiguity' with 'his interpretation'.
'One is left not having to make hardly any interpretations for him
or herself. The author has done it for you.'
- Canonizes Ellen G. White. It 'intertwined so much
of Ellen White…that the general effect has been to canonize Ellen
White'. Yet she is not credited when she is used. It would
be interesting to find out what percentage of this work owes itself
to Ellen White.
- Formatted to appear like a Bible. The title 'Clear
Word Bible' "is most unfortunate. This is not a "Bible".
Several years after publication the Clear Word Bible was renamed "the
Clear Word" and though having some modifications, yet remained
largely the same as before. The format is not by paragraphs, as paraphrases
do, but verse by verse to appear like the KJV.
- Readers will mistake interpretation for the truth.
Adventist scholar Dr. Sakae Kubo say's, "I am concerned about
how our membership regard and use Blanco's Clear Word. Behind my remarks
is a history of Bibles of this sort that have a terrible bias. The
Jehovah's Witnesses' New World Translation is an obvious example--the
divinity of Christ is removed and His createdness is brought out along
with other tendential characteristics. The very obvious and serious
danger is that our own people will be confused as to what the Bible
really says. Interpretation has been so mixed in with the text that
our people will think that the interpretation is part of the Word
of God." Adventist Review, April 1995, p.15.
The introduction suggests that it is not
for public reading in churches, etc, but what we are hearing suggests
that it is already getting a fairly wide usage for that purpose,
Sabbath School lessons, church school Bible classes, etc.
(Portions of the above were excerpted from a
letter by J. David Newman, editor of Ministry magazine (1994).
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