Have you heard about the latest Bible “translation?” This one comes from the New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) camp, from the brain of one man, a human-appointed “Apostle.” It’s called “The Passion Translation,” written by Brian Simmons of Stairway Ministries.

Simmons has actually released four installments of his new translation:

• Psalms: Poetry on Fire
• Song of Solomon: Most Amazing Song of All
• Luke: To the Lovers of God
• Letters From Heaven by the Apostle Paul

Coming this fall he is releasing Proverbs, Wisdom From Above.

Let’s do a side-by-side comparison of Proverbs 8. Just for fun, I’ll use the NIV to compare what the Bible says, vs. what Simmons thinks it should say. First, the real deal:

Now here’s Simmons’ Passion version of Proverbs 8, in which he claims lots of secret are being unveiled:

More spiritual manipulation

Simmons says our standard translations of the Bible, transcribed by hundreds of scholars from the original scrolls, are just head knowledge and don’t adequately capture God’s passion. (He apparently missed the part in 2 Timothy 3:16 that says that every word is breathed-out by the Holy Spirit.) From his website:

The Passion Translation Project is a groundbreaking attempt to re-introduce the passion and fire of the Bible to the English reader. God longs to have His Word expressed in every language in a way that would unlock the ‘passion’ of His heart. The goal of this work is to trigger inside of every English speaker an overwhelming response to the truth of the Bible as it is unfiltered by religious jargon – unfolding the deep mysteries of the Scriptures in the language of love, the language of the heart. Accurate to the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts, but passionately powerful in a contemporary form.

Holly Pivec over at Spirit of Error blog points out that Simmons is manipulating Scriptures to make it appear that heretical NAR teachings and practices such as “prophetic singing,” the “transference of an anointing,” and the issuing of “apostolic decrees,” are actually supported by the Bible – which of course is false. But to the biblically illiterate, it will sound so right:

This translation is potentially one of the most disturbing developments in the NARmovement. Simmons is following in the footsteps of the major cults of Christianity who have released their own translations of the Bible, including the New World Translationused by the Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Joseph Smith Translation used by some groups of Mormons.

By creating a new NAR translation of the Bible, Simmons is shaping the way a generation of NAR followers will read and understand Scripture–and also creating a divide between those who use the NAR translation and those who don’t.

It remains to be seen how many NAR people will make the switch to this NARtranslation of the Bible. If a lot of them do switch Bibles, then The Passion Translation could truly–as its advertisements say–”impact the Church for years to come.” Source:

Hat Tip: Bart McCurdy

Related articles

• Not in my church (standupforthetruth.com)
• NAR is another name for Dominionism | Stand Up for the Truth
• The Dominion Mandate (slaughteringthesheep.wordpress.com)
• What Is The New Apostolic Reformation? (And Why Should We Be Concerned About It?)(solasisters.blogspot.com)
• C. Peter Wagner (herescope.blogspot.com)
• IHOP: International House of Political Action (herescope.blogspot.com)
• New Apostolic Reformation Heresy
• New Apostolic Reformation – Deception In The Church

A New NAR Bible (Part 1) — ‘The Passion Translation’

Beware: An NAR apostle has come out with his own NAR translation of the Bible, called “The Passion Translation.”

Apostle Brian Simmons, of Stairway Ministries, is the lone translator of this “groundbreaking” project. To date, he has released four installments of his new translation:

• Psalms: Poetry on Fire
• Song of Solomon: Most Amazing Song of All
• Luke: To the Lovers of God
• Letters From Heaven by the Apostle Paul

Next in line is Proverbs, Wisdom From Above, due out in Fall 2013.

Simmons’ translation is endorsed by influential NAR leaders including apostle Che Ahn (Harvest Rock Church in Pasadena, California, USA), prophet James Goll (Encounters Network) and apostle Katherine Ruonala (Glory City Church in Brisbane, Australia).

Simmons claims he undertook this work because he saw a need for a more emotionally passionate translation of the Bible that speaks to the heart. He believes the leading translations of the Bible speak mainly to the mind and don’t adequately capture God’s passion. He describes his translation like this:

The Passion Translation Project is a groundbreaking attempt to re-introduce the passion and fire of the Bible to the English reader. God longs to have His Word expressed in every language in a way that would unlock the ‘passion’ of His heart. The goal of this work is to trigger inside of every English speaker an overwhelming response to the truth of the Bible as it is unfiltered by religious jargon – unfolding the deep mysteries of the Scriptures in the language of love, the language of the heart. Accurate to the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts, but passionately powerful in a contemporary form.

So, what’s the problem with his “passionately powerful” translation?

Simmons has taken verses of Scripture that have nothing to do with NAR teachings or practices and reworded them so they appear to support those very teachings and practices , such as  “prophetic singing,” the “transference of an anointing,”  and the issuing of “apostolic decrees.” In other words, despite his claim to unveil the truth of the Bible “unfiltered by religious jargon,” he’s actually exploiting his audience’s ignorance of sound textual criticism to smuggle in a heterodox theology along with a good measure of NAR jargon.

The bottom line? He’s changing God’s Word–a serious offense to God. I will look at specific verses he has changed in my next post.

But, for now, I want to point out that this translation is potentially one of the most disturbing developments in the NAR movement. Simmons is following in the footsteps of the major cults of Christianity who have released their own translations of the Bible, including the New World Translationused by the Jehovah’s Witnesses and the Joseph Smith Translation used by some groups of Mormons.

By creating a new NAR translation of the Bible, Simmons is shaping the way a generation of NARfollowers will read and understand Scripture–and also creating a divide between those who use theNAR translation and those who don’t.

It remains to be seen how many NAR people will make the switch to this NAR translation of the Bible. If a lot of them do switch Bibles, then The Passion Translation could truly–as its advertisements say–”impact the Church for years to come.”

Heaven forbid.

– By Holly Pivec

Go to Part 2 Part 3 Part 4

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