“Wherefore by their fruits ye shall know them.” —Matthew 7:20
John Bertram Phillips (1906-1982), a well-known Bible paraphraser, was a straight-up heretic.
J.B. Phillips was no Christian. His writings plainly reveal what he
believed:
- The new birth is simply a "change of outlook" (When God Was Man, p. 28).
- Devils aren't spirit creatures, they are the "storm center of the personality." (When God Was Man, p. 19).
- The Bible is not particularly inspired by God. "I should like to make it quite clear that I could not possibly hold the extreme `fundamentalist' position of so-called `verbal inspiration'" (Ring of Truth, p. 28). "...I felt bound to abandon the `God- dictated-every-word- from-cover-to-cover' attitude, and won an attitude which commends itself to my intelligence as well as my faith..." (The Price of Success, Wheaton: Harold Shaw Pub., 1984, p. 150).
- Satan does not have permanent existence. "If our critics mean that we believe in the permanent existence of Satan, the Devil or the powers of evil, they are wrong, for we do not." (Ring of Truth, p. 51).
- No such thing as miracles. "A `miracle' is, by definition, something to be wondered at, and in the past, when laws then unknown were being used, it was commonly assumed that divine intervention was the cause of the wonder. ... but I think that it is unlikely." (Ring of Truth, p. 93).
- Ascension of Christ is a parable. In other words, it didn't really occur. (Ring of Truth, p. 107).
Knowing these things, would any born-again, Jesus-loving Christian buy, read and study this man's Bible paraphrases? Would they give their helpless child who knows no better a Phillips Bible to learn about Jesus?
According to Phillips' autobiography (The Price of Success, 1984, p. 116) Billy and Ruth Graham visited him in 1952. Billy Graham supposedly thanked him for his work. I say, "No thank you."
