For context on what criteria will be looked at as the Common English Bible is considered for approval as an authorized translation for the Anglican Church of Canada, please see this post. We encourage you to look at other passages as well, and to share your thoughts about how the CEB might work in liturgy in the forum.
Here are seven brief example passages, to help you get a feel for the CEB and how it differs from the NRSV translation.
Verse(s) | ||
| Genesis 2.21-25 | 21So the LORD God put the human into a deep and heavy sleep, and took one of his ribs and closed up the flesh over it. 22With the rib taken from the human, the LORD God fashioned a woman and brought her to the human being. 23 The human said,“ This one finally is bone from my bones and flesh from my flesh. She will be called a woman because from a man she was taken. ” 24This is the reason that a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife, and they become one flesh. 25The two of them were naked, the man and his wife, but they weren’t embarrassed. | 21So the Lord God caused a deep sleep to fall upon the man, and he slept; then he took one of his ribs and closed up its place with flesh. 22And the rib that the Lord God had taken from the man he made into a woman and brought her to the man. 23Then the man said, ‘This at last is bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; this one shall be called Woman, for out of Man this one was taken.’ 24Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh. 25And the man and his wife were both naked, and were not ashamed. |
| Psalm 23 | 1The LORD is my shepherd.I lack nothing. 2He lets me rest in grassy meadows; he leads me to restful waters; 3he keeps me p alive. He guides me in proper paths for the sake of his good name. 4Even when I walk through the darkest valley, fear no danger because you are with me. Your rod and your staff—they protect me. 5You set a table for me right in front of my enemies. You bathe my head in oil; my cup is so full it spills over! 6Yes, goodness and faithful love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the Lord’s house as long as I live. | 1The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 2He makes me lie down in green pastures; he leads me beside still waters; 3he restores my soul. He leads me in right paths for his name’s sake. 4Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I fear no evil; for you are with me; your rod and your staff—they comfort me. 5 You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows. 6Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord my whole life long. |
| Psalm 130 | 1I cry out to you from the depths, Lord — 2my Lord, listen to my voice! Let your ears pay close attention to my request for mercy! 3If you kept track of sins, Lord—my Lord, who would stand a chance? 4But forgiveness is with you—that’s why you are honored. 5I hope, Lord. My whole being hopes, and I wait for God’s promise. 6My whole being waits for my Lord—more than the night watch waits for morning; yes, more than the night watch waits for morning! 7Israel, wait for the Lord! Because faithful love is with the Lord; because great redemption is with our God! 8He is the one who will redeem Israel from all its sin. | 1Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord. 2Lord, hear my voice! Let your ears be attentive to the voice of my supplications! 3If you, O Lord, should mark iniquities, Lord, who could stand? 4But there is forgiveness with you, so that you may be revered. 5I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I hope; 6my soul waits for the Lord more than those who watch for the morning, more than those who watch for the morning. 7O Israel, hope in the Lord! For with the Lord there is steadfast love, and with him is great power to redeem. 8It is he who will redeem Israel from all its iniquities. |
| Isaiah 54.10 | The mountains may shift, and the hills may be shaken, but my faithful love won’t shift from you, and my covenant of peace won’t be shaken, says the Lord, the one who pities you. | For the mountains may depart and the hills be removed, but my steadfast love shall not depart from you, and my covenant of peace shall not be removed, says the Lord, who has compassion on you. |
| Matthew 6.25-34 | 25“Therefore, I say to you, don’t worry about your life, what you’ll eat or what you’ll drink, or about your body, what you’ll wear. Isn’t life more than food and the body more than clothes? 2 Look at the birds in the sky. They don’t sow seed or harvest grain or gather crops into barns. Yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Aren’t you worth much more than they are? 27Who among you by worrying can add a single moment to your life? 28And why do you worry about clothes? Notice how the lilies in the field grow. They don’t wear themselves out with work, and they don’t spin cloth. 29But I say to you that even Solomon in all of his splendor wasn’t dressed like one of these. 30If God dresses grass in the field so beautifully, even though it’s alive today and tomorrow it’s thrown into the furnace, won’t God do much more for you, you people of weak faith? 31Therefore, don’t worry and say, ‘What are we going to eat?’ or ‘What are we going to drink?’ or ‘What are we going to wear?’ 32Gentiles long for all these things. Your heavenly Father knows that you need them. 33Instead, desire first and foremost God’s kingdom and God’s righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34Therefore, stop worrying about tomorrow, because tomorrow will worry about itself. Each day has enough trouble of its own. | 25‘Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink, or about your body, what you will wear. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26Look at the birds of the air; they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not of more value than they? 27And can any of you by worrying add a single hour to your span of life? 28And why do you worry about clothing? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin, 29yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not clothed like one of these. 30But if God so clothes the grass of the field, which is alive today and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will he not much more clothe you—you of little faith? 31Therefore do not worry, saying, “What will we eat?” or “What will we drink?” or “What will we wear?” 32For it is the Gentiles who strive for all these things; and indeed your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things. 33But strive first for the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well. 34‘So do not worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow will bring worries of its own. Today’s trouble is enough for today. |
| Matthew 16.21-28 | 21From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he had to go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and legal experts, and that he had to be killed and raised on the third day. 22Then Peter took hold of Jesus and, scolding him, began to correct him: “God forbid, Lord! This won’t happen to you. ” 23But he turned to Peter and said, “Get behind me, Satan. You are a stone that could make me stumble, for you are not thinking God’s thoughts but human thoughts. ”24Then Jesus said to his disciples, “All who want to come after me must say no to themselves, take up their cross, and follow me. 25All who want to save their lives will lose them. But all who lose their lives because of me will find them. 26Why would people gain the whole world but lose their lives? What will people give in exchange for their lives? 27For the Human One is about to come with the majesty of his Father with his angels. And then he will repay each one for what that person has done. 28I assure you that some standing here won’t die before they see the Human One r coming in his kingdom. ” | 21From that time on, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and undergo great suffering at the hands of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised. 22And Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This must never happen to you.’ 23But he turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling-block to me; for you are setting your mind not on divine things but on human things.’24Then Jesus told his disciples, ‘If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and take up their cross and follow me. 25For those who want to save their life will lose it, and those who lose their life for my sake will find it. 26For what will it profit them if they gain the whole world but forfeit their life? Or what will they give in return for their life? 27‘For the Son of Man is to come with his angels in the glory of his Father, and then he will repay everyone for what has been done. 28Truly I tell you, there are some standing here who will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.’ |
| Ephesians 2.10 | Instead, we are God’s accomplishment, created in Christ Jesus to do good things. God planned for these good things to be the way that we live our lives. | For we are what he has made us, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand to be our way of life. |
