Mike Winger deletes YouVersion app over ‘The Passion Translation’ controversy, urges others to ‘use caution’
Apologist and Bible teacher Mike Winger revealed he has removed the YouVersion Bible app from his phone, citing concerns over the platform's continued inclusion of The Passion Translation, a controversial Bible paraphrase that has long drawn criticism from Evangelical scholars and apologists.
"Bye bye YouVersion," Winger wrote in a post Tuesday on X, alongside a screenshot showing the app being deleted from his iPhone home screen.
"People generally expect you to only host decent and safe Bible translations. At least that's what I expect," he added. "I'd recommend using caution if you still use the YouVersion Bible app."
The comments prompted questions from followers seeking clarification about his concerns.
When one user asked whether the issue involved “heretical translations,” Winger later elaborated, asking followers for recommendations for alternative Bible apps that do not host what he dubbed “fraudulent translations.”
“What do you suggest for a simple replacement for the YouVersion Bible app on iPhone?” he wrote. “One that doesn’t host fraudulent translations.”
When a follower recommended the Olive Tree Bible app, Winger responded that the platform also hosts The Passion Translation, one of the translations he has criticized for years.
Winger's objections to The Passion Translation are not new. The California-based Bible teacher has devoted extensive teaching and research to critiquing the translation and warned it contains additions and interpretations not supported by the original biblical languages.
In a multi-part critique released over several years, including a video released this month, Winger has repeatedly accused The Passion Translation and its lead translator, Brian Simmons, of presenting paraphrased Scripture while marketing the work as a translation.
“Top scholars from a variety of Christian backgrounds unanimously say this is not a reliable Bible translation. And they are not just against paraphrases or persecuting the work as Brian Simmons has suggested,” he wrote on X in 2023.
Winger’s comments come as a growing campaign seeks to persuade YouVersion, the world's most popular Bible app, to remove TPT from its platform.
A Change.org petition launched June 4 titled "An Appeal to YouVersion to Remove The Passion Translation" had gathered thousands of signatures within its first days. The petition was created by David Fish and gained momentum after being promoted by Winger, who also contributed to a lengthy video investigation produced by the YouTube channel Minor Prophets.
The video alleges that Simmons made misleading claims regarding his translation credentials, educational background and translation methodology.
Simmons has also come under fire for claiming that a supernatural encounter with Jesus inspired him to create a new Bible translation. In various public appearances, Simmons has described being taken to Heaven, where he said Jesus imparted special understanding of biblical languages and showed him additional biblical mysteries.
The Minor Prophets investigation challenges a number of Simmons' claims, including statements that he translated portions of Scripture for indigenous people in Panama and assertions regarding his expertise in Aramaic. The video also presents evidence alleging extensive borrowing from existing paraphrases and translations, including Eugene Peterson's The Message and Kenneth Taylor's The Living Bible.
The controversy is not without precedent. In 2022, Bible Gateway removed The Passion Translation from its platform, a move Simmons criticized at the time as an example of "cancel culture."
The Passion Translation, first published in 2017, has gained popularity in some charismatic and Pentecostal circles but has also drawn criticism from a number of Evangelical scholars, pastors and apologists who contend that it takes excessive liberties with the biblical text.
The Passion Translation website states that it's a translation that “uses Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic manuscripts to express God’s fiery heart of love to this generation, merging the emotion and life-changing truth of God’s Word.”
YouVersion, which is developed by Life.Church and reports hundreds of millions of installs worldwide, offers access to thousands of Bible versions and translations in numerous languages. Bobby Gruenewald, the founder and chief executive officer of YouVersion, told CP in 2025 that the app had passed 1 billion installs, becoming not only one of the most widely used faith-based digital tools in history.
YouVersion expects to reach 2 billion users within five years, 3 billion within three, and Gruenewald said he believes that the trajectory could accelerate beyond that.
CP reached out to YouVersion and Life Church for comment and this article will be updated when their responses are received.
Leah M. Klett is a reporter for The Christian Post. She can be reached at: leah.klett@christianpost.com
