Why It Will NOT be the CEB for Me

I thought I had problems with the Common English Bible using “Human One” for Son of Man. Today in our public reading I used the CEB to read from Romans 8. They call the Spirit “it.” I was floored. IT? REALLY?

11 responses to “Why It Will NOT be the CEB for Me”

  1. Thanks for the warning.

    I didn’t think this translation team could be trusted to produce a reputable translation.

    1. I have enjoyed reading the CEB, especially the Apocrypha. But there just isn’t any good reason for this.

  2. Because of the neuter Greek?
    Jeff

  3. When all other translations use “him” and historically the Spirit has been identified as equal with the Father and Son, identifying the Spirit as “it” just doesn’t flow well in public reading. It was incredibly awkward when our reader got to “it” in the passage. He actually skipped “it” and read “him” the rest of the way.

  4. […] then, I read this brief piece from Dan at Apprentice2Jesus.com. I looked it up in my copy, and you know what? Dan is […]

  5. Hey, Dan–

    Thanks for posting this; I pingbacked it on my blog.

    I did find this interesting, however:

    http://www.patheos.com/community/bibleandculture/2011/07/15/an-uncommon-approach-with-the-common-english-bible/

    If you read through the press release, you’ll find this little nugget:

    “The Common English Bible is an inclusive translation, using male and female pronouns where appropriate to indicate the meaning of the original Hebrew, Aramaic, or Greek text when referring to general human beings. Pronouns for God, Lord, Jesus, or the Holy Spirit are translated as he, his, or him.”

    So, now I wonder: was this an oversight in Romans 8?

    1. I do indeed HOPE it’s an oversight. Yet, my Nook version of Romans 8 and the online version are the same. In John, Jesus refers to the Spirit as “he.”

  6. […] then, I read this brief piece from Dan at Apprentice2Jesus.com. I looked it up in my copy, and you know what? Dan is […]

  7. […] then, I read this brief piece from Dan at Apprentice2Jesus.com. I looked it up in my copy, and you know what? Dan is […]

  8. I read the entire chapter three times and can not find your reference. If find the word it used for selfishness and for Creation, as creation is not a person this is appropriate.

    1. Romans 8:26-28 is the passage. HOWEVER, I have followed up with the CEB and they are changing it to “himself” in their 3rd printing run. I checked on Biblegateway.com just now and the reference is still “itself”, so the electronic Bible hasn’t been updated yet.

      http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Romans%208:26&version=CEB

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