what version of the Bible are you reading?

Corrupting Bible texts is not a new thing. This has been going on from the very beginning of church history. The Apostles were having problems with it in their days. You can see some of these addressed in the New Testament. Some of these corrupted texts have made their way into our modern Bible versions. Many of our modern versions are using past corrupted texts to "update" the texts.

Jesus said, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but My Word will not pass away." To this end, we still have God's Word in its pure form. We have the Bible in its original Hebrew and Greek texts. We also have Bible texts that have been changed from the original text to say what people wanted it to say.

Here are 12 tests you can use to see if a Bible text has been corrupted:
1. Does it pass the two or three witnesses principle? See 2 Corinthians 13:1.
2. When a New Testament text is a quote from the Old Testament, does the New Testament one agree with the Old Testament reference? This is a good check for the translation of the New Testament text.
3. Does the text agree with its context in its natural setting? It may appear as an afterthought or it may appear not to have any relevance to its context.
4. Does it bring glory to God? See 1 Corinthians 10:31.
5. Does the text agree with the general message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ or does it deny an established article of faith?
6. Does the text call you to faith and action that would bring you closer to God or does it cause you to doubt your faith in God? See Matthew 22:37-40.
7. Will it bring you into a loving relationship with God?
8. Can it be used as a perversion of the truth?
9. Does it water down the gospel message found in the Bible? There may be a note that says a passage does not belong or that it was not in the original text. If you find this in reference to a text, you should question it very carefully. Most likely the text has been corrupted.
10. Does it hinder the Christian's witness if followed wholeheartedly?
11. Does the original language agree with its contextual setting? Do not take the translator's word for it. This is a favorite tactic for people who corrupt the text.
12. When did it first appear in the manuscripts? Be careful with this. There are many corrupt texts that are passed off as the original.

It is a serious business to tamper with the original text of the Bible. To tamper with the original text is to make God say something He did not say. This is called "handling the Word of God deceitfully." See Deuteronomy 4:2 and Revelation 22:18, 19 for a warning to those who mess with the Word of God.

There is a world of difference between a translation and a paraphrase of the original text. A paraphrase tells you what the person thought the original text was conveying to us. The translation is a word for word exchange of the original. Literal translations are much more reliable than paraphrases.