Through the Lord's orchestration and the multitude of his promptings and his specific calling, I started the PlowShare Mission itself in 2004. Although the Lord provided more than twenty substantial reasons that he called me to this task (in order to hold me steadfast through its hardships), I kept the simplest reasons always before me: I needed to know, for myself, what the Holy Scripture actually says -- and so shall the next generation of those being redeemed.
From the start, I purposed to build a web-based software tool that allows any interested person to study and verify the text and workmanship for themselves. But better yet, I purposed to build a tool that would help bring the English speaker to the Word of God, and not merely repackage the Word of God to the culture and bent of the English speaker.
The Lord spent 17 years preparing me to undertake this task. For 10 years, I fasted from all television and all secular radio. During this time, I listened only to the Bible on cassette, to worship music, and to Bible teachings. After 10 years and
10 deliberate journeys through the entire Bible with care, I spent the next fours years in meditation, reconciliation, and study of what I had ingested, in order that I might fully digest God's Holy Word. Then I journeyed twice more through the
entire English texts (Genesis to Revelation), then stopped, because I could not bear to continue in such manner. Some time later, I began this task. And I was required by the Lord to wait another 4 years after starting this task before I was
permitted to begin rendering the Greek text into English. I have now read the entire Old Testament 14 times and the New Testament well in excess of 50 times (including three in-depth, cover-to-cover proofreadings and one complete cover-to-cover
vocalized proofreading). [My wife says I should make mention of the countless hours spent in Bible studies at church groups and also in personal study, and the time of actually putting it into practice].
This translation is aided by the
use of the PlowShare software and other resources, and has three phases: The Hilkiah translation done by hand for accuracy of words and concepts, the Shaphan translation processed largely by computer for consistency of grammar, verb tenses, and
other error detection, and the Mickelson Clarified Translation (MCT) that combines the full work of both into a clarified, consistent, and accurate rendering of the Greek text.
The Greek text being used in PlowShare is the 1550 Stephanus Greek Text. This serves two purposes.
First, it places me at the original Greek text used for English translation, and it provides the baseline by which to critically assess modern Greek Bible texts that proclaim a greater measure of accuracy toward the original manuscripts. God willing, I intend to make a future assessment of these of texts and provide the body of Christ a straightforward report as to the nature of the differences between the current critical texts and that of Erasmus' 1550 Stephanus text. The 1550 Stephanus is the most widely attested and publicly available Greek text.
Second, the King James translation is based largely on the 1550 Stephanus, and I consider it important to show that the King James is inconsistent and misleading in its rendering of the Greek text into English. The purpose is not to discredit the King James, but rather to make known that the Greek is far more rich than any prominent English translation has been willing to convey. Due to the historic respect and praise the King James translation has received, it appears that no translator or committee is willing to deviate from this work and its diminished vocabulary. However, I find that it is of the utmost importance that we must leave the incomplete workmanship of the King James translators and return once again to unadulterated scriptures as delivered (such as we have them in Greek and Hebrew manuscripts), and render them consistently within their own given context and concepts.
I do not undertake this work for the praise of men, but I labor for a generation not yet born (2007 onward), seeing that the present generation has little to no interest in a work such as this. I can scarcely find a Christian who has read
an entire book of the Bible, let alone the entire Bible text. Yet, they will read book after book that talks about the Bible or some principal therein. Yet, my soul rejoices that I have been so privileged to enjoy the richness of God's Word so
clearly—not only in comprehension, but in conduct as well. I bless those that pursue God and His Word with a pure heart.