John Bertram Phillips

John Bertram Phillips or J. B. Phillips (16 September 1906 – 21 July 1982) was an English Bible translator, author and Anglican clergyman. He is most noted for his The New Testament in Modern English.

Early life Phillips was born in Barnes, which was then in Surrey but is now in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. He was educated at Emanuel School in London and graduated with an Honours Degree in Classics and English from Emmanuel College, Cambridge. After training for ordination at Ridley Hall, Cambridge, he was ordained a clergyman in the Church of England in 1930 (both deacon and priest in the same year).

Career During World War II, while vicar of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Lee, London (1940-44), Encouraged by their feedback, after the war Phillips continued to translate the rest of the New Testament into colloquial English.

New testament translation Portions of the New Testament were published after the war, starting with Letters to Young Churches in 1947, which received C. S. Lewis' backing.