Short answer is no.
But don’t take my word for it, listen to John and learn more.
There is an interesting comment on the YouTube page:
“I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. Isaiah 45:7 Please interpret”
Answer: “I make peace and create evil.” God does not “create evil.” That would be against His character and contradict the fact that He is love. Love and evil are mutually exclusive. This is the common Semitic idiom of permission, in which God (or anyone else) is said to actively do something that they were only related to in some way. In this case, God gave people free will, and also gave them laws, rules and norms that made a distinction between good and evil. Thus, when spirit beings or humans did evil of their own freewill, by the idiom God was said to have caused it. [For more on the idiom of permission, see commentary on Romans 9:18].
I’m bringing this up because this is an excellent resource for anyone who would like to study the Bible in more depth and learn what it says as a whole as opposed to hearing snippets taken out of context in traditional churches in order to promote agendas. (Gee – sounds like our political environment, too. Everyone has an agenda – don’t forget that. My agenda is to promote TRUTH).
This resource is the “Revised English Version of the Old/New Testament” and goes through the Bible, book by book, translating from the oldest versions of the Bible available. I can especially appreciate this because every translation of the Bible that comes out seems to be get further and further from the true meaning of the Bible. Remember the childhood game of telling a person a secret, and then they tell someone, then they tell someone so that by the time it gets to the last person, it’s no longer the same secret but something else entirely? I believe the modern day Bible is something like that.
Here’s an introduction from the Review English Version website:
“Introduction
The Revised English Version® (REV®) is a new Bible translation produced by Spirit & Truth Fellowship International®. The REV translation project began by using the American Standard Version (ASV) of 1901 as a base text. Work began on this translation in the year 2000, and the first edition was released and printed in 2013. It is titled the Revised English Version because it is a translation of the ancient texts into English, and yet while it has much in common with other modern English versions, it also has significant differences.
In light of the continually increasing number of biblical manuscripts that contribute to our knowledge of the original text, there is a need for newer versions of the Bible to reflect these discoveries and the advancement in textual studies of the Bible. For example, the number of Greek New Testament manuscripts that the translators of the King James Version had to work from was quite small—a couple dozen at best—compared to the more than 5,700 manuscripts we have available today, thanks to the work of archaeologists and historians. In addition, the oldest Hebrew Old Testament manuscript before the mid-twentieth century AD was from the ninth century AD. But since the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the oldest Hebrew Old Testament manuscripts now predate the birth of Jesus Christ and the writing of the New Testament.
Furthermore, with the discovery of more secular manuscripts from the biblical time period, our knowledge of the biblical vocabulary continues to develop. Also, the English language continues to change, making older terminology and expressions obsolete and confusing. For example, at the time the King James Bible was written, “by and by,” meant “immediately” but now it means “after a while” (Matt. 13:21). This is well known, and modern versions read “immediately” or an equivalent.
The REV is designed to be a more literal translation whenever the literal rendering can be accurately reflected and understood in modern English vernacular. However, there are times when the REV has departed from a strict literal translation in order to make good sense in English. Strictly literal translations can be more difficult than helpful at times because the mechanics of Greek and Hebrew differ dramatically from English. In addition to grammatical and syntactical differences, idiomatic expressions are rarely cross-lingual as well. In any translation, the objective is to communicate the meaning of the original language in the receptor language. Therefore, if a literal translation obstructs this goal, a more functionally equivalent expression is employed in the REV.
With so many other modern English versions of the Bible on the market today, the reader might wonder what differences in the REV make it worth reading compared to another popular English version. Since the beginning, the goal for translating the REV has been to produce a translation of the Bible that more closely represents biblical truth and textual accuracy than any other translation currently available. When translating from a foreign language, a person must correctly understand the meaning of the original text in order to be able to translate it correctly. Therefore, when it comes to a religious text, such as the Bible, the theology of the translator always affects the way he or she translates the Greek or Hebrew into English. In other words, the degree to which the Bible is accurately translated then is dependent upon the degree to which the translator accurately understands what the Bible means beyond attempting to identify merely an equivalent word in English. The fact is, every translation reflects the theology of the translator, sometimes more or less depending on the methods used for interpreting the Bible.
And so, producing a new translation of the Bible is always met with criticism due to the vast array of differing theologies throughout Christianity. But several reasons have eclipsed these concerns and have warranted the need for the REV. First and by far foremost, when concentrating on helping followers of the Lord Jesus Christ learn and grow in the Word of Truth, readers of the Bible are better served by reading a version that is accurate theologically instead of having to make mental corrections or skirt around verses that are translated with an alternate theology in mind. Ultimately, the goal of the REV translation is that, as much as possible, the Bible can simply be read and believed without the reader being burdened by having to cope with the inaccurate theological biases of most translators.
It is our prayer that the REV translation will be a great blessing to all readers regardless of their personal theological beliefs. We desire for it to help those who are truly seeking to understand the Bible to be able to understand it on its own terms, free from the compulsion of centuries of Christian tradition that has affected nearly every modern English version.”
I pray this is a blessing to you and I pray you take advantage of this resource. Do you have faith-based questions? Are you seeking the truth? Then perhaps this will help.
God bless you and thanks for reading.
After taking the test for myself, I’m a Reformer and a Peacemaker.
Let’s start with Reformer:
“Perfectionists, responsible, fixated on improvement
People of this personality type are essentially looking to make things better, as they think nothing is ever quite good enough. This makes them perfectionists who desire to reform and improve; idealists who strive to make order out of the omnipresent chaos.
Ones have a fine eye for detail. They are always aware of the flaws in themselves, others and the situations in which they find themselves. This triggers their need to improve, which can be beneficial for all concerned, but which can also prove to be burdensome to both the One and those who are on the receiving end of the One’s reform efforts.
The One’s inability to achieve the perfection they desire feeds their feelings of guilt for having fallen short, and fuels their incipient anger against an imperfect world. Ones, however, tend to feel guilty about their anger. Anger is a “bad” emotion, and Ones strive sincerely and wholeheartedly to be “good.” Anger is therefore vigorously repressed from consciousness, bursting forth in occasional fits of temper, but usually manifesting in one of its many less obvious permutations – impatience, frustration, annoyance and judgmental criticality. For this reason, Ones can be difficult to live with, but, on the high side, they tend to be loyal, responsible and capable partners and friends.
Ones are serious people; they tend to be highly principled, competent and uncompromising. They follow the rules and expect others to do so as well. Because they believe so thoroughly in their convictions, they are often excellent leaders who can inspire those who follow them with their own vision of excellence. Reform movements are frequently spearheaded by Ones.
Ones are often driven and ambitious, and are sometimes workaholics. But whatever their professional involvement, they are definitely active, practical people who get things done. They are natural born organizers, listmakers who finish everything on the list, the last one to leave the office, the first one to return, industrious, reliable, honest and dutiful.”
Huh.
I also tested as a Peacemaker:
“Keeping peace and harmony
People of this personality type essentially feel a need for peace and harmony. They tend to avoid conflict at all costs, whether it be internal or interpersonal. As the potential for conflict in life is virtually ubiquitous, the Nine’s desire to avoid it generally results in some degree of withdrawal from life, and many Nines are, in fact, introverted. Other Nines lead more active, social lives, but nevertheless remain to some to degree “checked out,” or not fully involved, as if to insulate themselves from threats to their peace of mind. Most Nines are fairly easy going; they adopt a strategy of “going with the flow.” They are generally reliable, sturdy, self-effacing, tolerant and likable individuals.
Nines tend to adopt an optimistic approach to life; they are, for the most part, trusting people who see the best in others; they frequently have a deep seated faith that things will somehow work out. They desire to feel connected, both to other people and to the world at large. They frequently feel most at home in nature and generally make warm and attentive parents.”
I would agree with some of this, not all.
I wouldn’t say I avoid conflict, I just don’t care enough to partake most of the time.
Of course, I found out about the Enneagram from Abbie Emmons.
Good looking people, no?
Anyway, I’m getting closer! This is more fun than I thought it would be. Next, I’m working on character profiles but these personality quizzes are really inspiring me to dig under their beautiful surfaces.
Write From Karen 