This is a version produced in 1995 by the American Bible Society. It is written at a 5th grade reading level and is intended to serve as a “first Bible” for people who want to get into the Bible without having to battle over the language. It is much more of a “here’s what they meant” style of translation than a word for word translation. The American Bible Society also publishes the very popular GNT — Good News Translation which was first published in the mid-1970s and is similar to the CEV in reading level and translation style. The CEV appears to be an update of the GNT by taking into account certain issues important to contemporary readers, such as race and gender.