Acts 17 :: Mr. Peterson, You Let Me Down Here

Acts 17 in The Message and New American Standard Translations


Most of you know that my favorite translation of the bible is Eugene Peterson's The Message.  I love it, I really do, but every once in a while, he lets me down with his translation of a text.  I am not a bible scholar, but I have spent a lot of time reading, studying and even selling bibles.  I know that if I want the most literal translation of the bible, go to the New American Standard Version; if I want the most popular translation, go to the New International Version (if you want politically correct, TNIV), if I want pretty but confusion, go to the King James Version (less pretty, less confusing - New King James).  If you want an easy to read, and fun translation, go to The Message.  Mr. Peterson was a pastor and translated the text from a pastor's perspective.  His goal was to make the text as readable as possible for the everyday person - that's us!  All that said, I have included the most "fluid" translation along with the most "wooden" translations for us to read this morning.

I typically want to post my thoughts because that's just what they are: "my thoughts."  I just want to help get conversations started surrounding the text at hand.  Today is no different, but I'm also including something that to me is extremely pointed in light of our church structure - and to me, worth noting.

Chapter 17 could easily be one of my favorite chapters in the bible.  I love the way Luke recounts the journeys of Paul.  In my mind, I feel like I work for the first-century TMZ.  I could stand up in the cubicles and report to Harvey Levin that "I saw Paul going to Lydia's house again...I saw Paul with Silas and Timothy in Berea teaching to the Jews...I saw Paul in Athens explaining that we can know God."

*Note that Paul's teaching is always centered around the scriptures and explaining to the people that why Jesus is the Messiah, why he had to die, and what his resurrection means for them.

In verse 22, Paul delivers a pivotal message for the Greeks and for us, I believe.  He starts by acknowledging their serious approach to religion, then notes that they have set up one shrine for "the god nobody knows."  There were some things in Greek mythology that were unexplainable - and for those, they covered their bases and made an offering shrine to one god to cover all misses.  Then he rocks the house.  He explains that this unknown god is the Knowable God, that He doesn't live in temples built by human hands nor does He need us to serve Him, as if He needed something.  God is near and does not play hide-and-seek with us.  We live and move in Him, and we cannot get away from Him.  This is more teaching that God does not intend for us to compartmentalize Him into our nice neat places.  He is a consuming God that invades all of our lives when we choose to follow Him.  Then we get to where I think our modern translations slip a little.  In verse 26, Paul says, "He made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find him" (NASB).

God created us to live on all the face of the earth, and he determines our appointed times and the boundaries of our habitation.  He sets our time and our place.  We think we choose where we live and where we grow up, but God has determined those so that we may seek and find Him!  Our neighbors have been determined to live next door to us at this time, so they may seek and find Him!  Our co-workers work next to us at this time in this place, so they may seek and find Him!  If we believe that God is personal, that He is near and not far, that He cares about us and has a plan for us, we cannot miss this point.  God is more active than just creating a playground big enough for us to roam around in and call it earth, playing finding games with God all day.  For the Greeks this was profound - this God was different.  This God was involved.  This God wanted to be known.  This God wanted to be found.  This God came to us!  This God now involves us in the seeking and finding for others!

How does knowing this change the way we live?  How does believing this with our action change us?  Did another part of the text get you jazzed like this one did me?

Mr. Peterson, I love you, but you lost the punch of verse 26, in my opinion.  For all that you've done for my interest and connection to the text, I will let this one slide and simply make my own little footnote.