Are Study Bibles Really Needed?

[nanookadenord]

I've gotten to the point where I'll try to get both paper and electronic versions of the same bible, particularly if I see one or the other of them on sale. I live part of the week in one location and part in another location and it's too difficult to bring *all* the study bibles, commentaries, dictionaries, etc. I may need for that week back and forth with me.

I unfortunately cannot afford to buy both anymore as an EMT. Don't make much and $800 basically comes off the top for health insurance and child support which ends up being one paycheck out of the month and I get paid bi-weekly.

I get what I am able to when I can... lol. Hence, I got $20 free and I am going to use it.

 

[bekkilyn]

I unfortunately cannot afford to buy both anymore as an EMT. Don't make much and $800 basically comes off the top for health insurance and child support which ends up being one paycheck out of the month and I get paid bi-weekly.

I get what I am able to when I can... lol. Hence, I got $20 free and I am going to use it.

I wonder if YouVersion has sales on their bibles from time to time. Might be able to get even more out of that $20 if they do!

 

[nanookadenord]

I wonder if YouVersion has sales on their bibles from time to time. Might be able to get even more out of that $20 if they do!

YouVersion is free actually. I haven't seen anything that you have to pay for. However, I like Logos for many of their options, especially switching between one device to another and leaving where you left off. I also like the ability to customize a reading plan. If I want it to be 3 years, I can set it up to be three years. Also, in Logos the reading plan that you set-up also adds in the apocrypha if those books are in the bible that you are using. Haven't seen that in YouVersion, not even with a Catholic bible within their bible list.

 

[tampasteve]

I unfortunately cannot afford to buy both anymore as an EMT. Don't make much and $800 basically comes off the top for health insurance and child support which ends up being one paycheck out of the month and I get paid bi-weekly.

I get what I am able to when I can... lol. Hence, I got $20 free and I am going to use it.

I sent you a PM, might be able to help out with a hard copy.

 

[bekkilyn]

YouVersion is free actually. I haven't seen anything that you have to pay for. However, I like Logos for many of their options, especially switching between one device to another and leaving where you left off. I also like the ability to customize a reading plan. If I want it to be 3 years, I can set it up to be three years. Also, in Logos the reading plan that you set-up also adds in the apocrypha if those books are in the bible that you are using. Haven't seen that in YouVersion, not even with a Catholic bible within their bible list.

Oops, I meant Logos! (I think someone must have mentioned YouVersion in another post and it stuck in my mind.)

 

[nanookadenord]

Oops, I meant Logos! (I think someone must have mentioned YouVersion in another post and it stuck in my mind.)

No worries! There are sales, but I only have till the 31st of this month to use it.

I'm leaning towards both a NIV and CEB bible or just the NIV Study Bible as linked previously. I'm just not liking the look of the CEB in digital format. Print copy looks nice though!

 

[bekkilyn]

No worries! There are sales, but I only have till the 31st of this month to use it.

I'm leaning towards both a NIV and CEB bible or just the NIV Study Bible as linked previously. I'm just not liking the look of the CEB in digital format. Print copy looks nice though!

I think I only have a basic CEB in digital format, so not sure how the study version looks. Some of the study e-versions have truly awful formatting. I have this one and I can't remember offhand which one it is, but they left out all the links to the introductions, which means other links can't be accessed unless you go through a link to one of the footnotes and either page backwards or forwards to get to where you want to go. It's horrendous!

 

[nanookadenord]

I think I only have a basic CEB in digital format, so not sure how the study version looks. Some of the study e-versions have truly awful formatting. I have this one and I can't remember offhand which one it is, but they left out all the links to the introductions, which means other links can't be accessed unless you go through a link to one of the footnotes and either page backwards or forwards to get to where you want to go. It's horrendous!

Logos only has the basic version in digital, and that is what I was commenting on.

Because the NIV Zondervan Study Bible has been updated, I cannot find it online to see what it might look like.

 

[dqhall]

No worries! There are sales, but I only have till the 31st of this month to use it.

I'm leaning towards both a NIV and CEB bible or just the NIV Study Bible as linked previously. I'm just not liking the look of the CEB in digital format. Print copy looks nice though!

The NIV people examined the Dead Sea Scrolls to correct some OT text that differed in the Septuagint and Moscow Codex. NIV is online at biblegateway.com . If you are good at typing search strings, Google may be used to explore pages of commentary and description.

 

[bcbsr]

I have the free Logos 7 app and for my birthday on the 1st of October they game me $20 to use within their store. So, I have been looking through their store at things that I can use the $20 for.

I have been looking at adding more bibles to my collection within the app. I have several already. I am not into commentaries or anything like that. I have also been looking at study bibles, but not really sure about them.

Are they really needed? I tend to just like to read my bible.

More people need to study the Bible rather than read Study Bibles

 

[JM]

I have the free Logos 7 app and for my birthday on the 1st of October they game me $20 to use within their store. So, I have been looking through their store at things that I can use the $20 for.

I have been looking at adding more bibles to my collection within the app. I have several already. I am not into commentaries or anything like that. I have also been looking at study bibles, but not really sure about them.

Are they really needed? I tend to just like to read my bible.

No, not needed. I recommend a good reference Bible instead.

Your in the Lord,

jm

 

[nanookadenord]

More people need to study the Bible rather than read Study Bibles

A study Bible can surely help with Bible study, no?

 

[nanookadenord]

No, not needed. I recommend a good reference Bible instead.

Your in the Lord,

jm

The only reference bible that Logos has is the Scofield reference bible. Not really the bible I am looking for.

 

[ashleyn90]

The only reference bible that Logos has is the Scofield reference bible. Not really the bible I am looking for.

Just find what works for you, what you can understand, and what you like!

 

[JM]

The only reference bible that Logos has is the Scofield reference bible. Not really the bible I am looking for.

Yikes!

 

[Daftendirekt]

You definitely don't need one, although depending on what you're in the mood for they can be nice. For instance, I typically don't read the commentary in my Reformation Study Bible unless I feel I need more clarification.

 

[bcbsr]

A study Bible can surely help with Bible study, no?

I found actually no, though it may be counter-intuitive. What happens is laziness. It's like trying to get in shape by paying someone else to exercise for you. Much better if a person were to take a Bible and develop their own commentary rather than read commentaries to study the Bible.

 

[GingerBeer]

I have the free Logos 7 app and for my birthday on the 1st of October they game me $20 to use within their store. So, I have been looking through their store at things that I can use the $20 for.

I have been looking at adding more bibles to my collection within the app. I have several already. I am not into commentaries or anything like that. I have also been looking at study bibles, but not really sure about them.

Are they really needed? I tend to just like to read my bible.

Study bibles reflect the opinions of the denomination, individual, or committee that creates them. They are no more reliable than any other form of commentary. They are not as good as a detailed commentary because they are, of necessity, very brief compared to book by book commentary.

 

[nanookadenord]

I found actually no, though it may be counter-intuitive. What happens is laziness. It's like trying to get in shape by paying someone else to exercise for you. Much better if a person were to take a Bible and develop their own commentary rather than read commentaries to study the Bible.

I ended up going with the NIV Zondervan Study Bible in Logos. The way it's set up is that I can have it just the NIV bible text or the text and in another window the study notes.

 

[GingerBeer]

Ah, you did say that, I apologize!

Here is a pretty decent one on Logos:
NIV Zondervan Study Bible (NIVZSB)

I have the hard back version and find it pretty good. It is from a Reformed perspective, but overall I agree with most of the notes.

The NIV is so fundamentally flawed that even a very good set of interpretive notes cannot offset its faults.