About two years ago I bought myself a neat Christmas present. It is a Bible that contains The New King James, The English Standard Version, The New Living Translation, and The Message. I love it. My Pastor is always teaching us that it is good to read and compare different versions of the Bible and he is right. I would agree with you about The Message. I wouldn't call it a translation as such, but it does help to bring out ideas and concepts that perhaps you would not have thought of. I enjoy reading it a lot, although my main Bible is still the New Living Translation.