Don't you get frustrated when you see yourself in scripture and it's not a good thing?

Romans 12:11-13 (King James Version)

¹¹Not slothful in business; fervent in spirit; serving the Lord;

¹²Rejoicing in hope; patient in tribulation; continuing instant in prayer;

¹³Distributing to the necessity of saints; given to hospitality.

Romans 12:11-13 (New International Version, ©2011)

¹¹ Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. ¹² Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. ¹³ Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality.

Romans 12:11-13 (The Message)

^11-13Don't burn out; keep yourselves fueled and aflame. Be alert servants of the Master, cheerfully expectant. Don't quit in hard times; pray all the harder. Help needy Christians; be inventive in hospitality.

How many times do I read a Bible verse written in the Message translation and wonder – where does it say that in the Bible??   It’s wonderful that we have the technology to then change the translation to something else to see the words in another way.  They all mean the same thing; the translations are different because it they are for a different time.  The word translation means the rendering of something into another language or into one's own from another language.  These translations were written in different times.  Each one went back to the original Greek and Hebrew to translate the Bible so that modern man could understand better. 

When I read the first two translations I say “hey – I’m not slothful and I have zeal.  When I read the Message translation I say “oh no, I do get burned out!  It’s hard sometimes for me to hang in there in hard times and sometimes helping is tough.” 

This is why I have 6 different translations of the Bible at home and why I like Biblegateway.com.   It’s good to delve deeper into the Bible and what it says.  Commentaries and footnotes are helpful if you are trying to study on your own.  I also like to attend Bible Study with a group where I am held accountable for my study and I do Bible Study on my own too. 

So the next time you read scripture, and you just aren’t sure what it’s saying, go to www.biblegateway.com and check the same passages out in another translation.  If that doesn’t help, you can look for commentaries on the passages.   These are great ways to go deeper into your faith!

May God Bless you with His Word.