New Testament in Modern English

A highly influential modern English rendering of the New Testament, the work of the Anglican clergyman J. B. Phillips, who began translating during the Second World War with the aim of making the apostolic writings intelligible to young readers in his parish. Beginning with the epistles, issued as Letters to Young Churches, the project grew into a complete New Testament, published as The New Testament in Modern English. In scope it covers the New Testament, translated from Greek and based on the Greek NT; its philosophy is dynamic or idiomatic, and it is categorized as a fresh translation rather than a revision of an existing version. Among its distinctive features, it is freer than formal translations, yet it is a direct translation from the Greek and is not cataloged here as a paraphrase. It demonstrated to a wide readership the power of idiomatic contemporary prose.