After class one day, one of Eugene Peterson’s seminary students showed his professor an interview in Rolling Stone magazine with Bono, lead singer of the Irish band U2. Bono had given Peterson’s translation of the Bible, The Message, a shout-out in the magazine interview. Bono remarked that Peterson’s fresh translation of Scripture “kept him sane.” Eugene’s initial reaction was classic. “Who is Bono?” he asked.
Bono and Eugene Peterson later met (you can watch a YouTube video of their meeting on Fuller Studio). Peterson (1932-2018) began his Bible translation project for a relative who had difficulty reading the Bible. He updated a few Psalms for her to read and the project grew over time. Eugene, fluent in ancient Hebrew and koine Greek, labored long and hard to translate the entire Bible using modern equivalent language and contemporary idioms. It consumed ten years of his life.
The backlash to The Message was fierce in some sectors of the church. They accused him of dumbing down and selling out, yet other notes of encouragement kept him going. The letters he appreciated most were from inmates. Several wrote, “I never knew I could read the Bible.” Bono often read Peterson’s translation of Psalm 116 during concerts as a lead-in to the song, “Where the Streets Have No Name.” The U2 song “40” paraphrases Eugene’s translation of Psalm 40, itself a prayer to God: