Confused...Bible's are they different???

[tatdool]

I'm not christian as such, but i was baptised as a baby, and given a bible. It's very small and has very small writing. The thing is my step dad has a bible which was given to him from his grandmother, it is at least 10 times bigger than mine, yet the writing is only slightly bigger. As neither of them are particularly religious or have ever read the bible they don't know. Is there a difference? Will the bigger version have more stories in it? I'm so confused I thought there was just one bible which had all the same stories in it and that was it.

 

[Just Me Garry]

Well there is only one God and he has made his truth known to mankind. I believe there is only one true bible--The King James Version. While some may disagree with me, and that is fine, I would reccommend you get a King James Version. There are a lot of transalations (and that is just what they are of the Bible).

It is not the size of the Bible that matters but the contents of such. I have a hard time with these so called new translations as they distort the real truth of the Word Of God.

Just get you a King James Version and start reading in the book Of John in the New Testament. It will help you understand the message of the Bible.

 

[LiberatedChick]

It's likely that both your bible and your dads bible are the same. Some bibles contain a few extra sections (called books)...these are called the Apocrypha. There are also different translations of the bible...they all contain the same stories just the wording is different.

Personally, I disagree with the above posters assertion that the KJV is the one true bible. The best bible is the one that gets read...if you find the bible you have hard to understand, or hard to read without a headache due to the small type...get another one and read, read, read

Check out a site such as www.biblegateway.com there you can compare the different translations. Probably, best to start off reading one or all of the Gospels (i.e. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John) rather than starting to read from front cover to back cover.

 

[Treasurer]

Some bibles are nicer today too. They have maps and pictures, concordances and dictionaries. Some have added benefits like where to find things like stories of the bible (example: david and goliath 1 Samuel 17) Mine I have had since a child and gives brief summaries of all the books of the bible (very nice). Also gives timeline charts, mine even talks a bit about what the bible is and how it came to be- like with the printing press and stuff. (Mine is a KJV, and a kids bible, but really the only kiddy thing about it is the pictures they give ya).

I also have a really neat bible now that has both the KJV and NLT side by side. It is really cool for comparisions.

I really dont know for sure why some bibles are bigger than others with the same type print. It may have to do with the paper. Or maybe the size of the print. I know the older bibles have used the thinner paper (not sure what it is called). But I can tell the difference in the texture of my KJV bible and the texture of my new bible. The paper is thinner, and more delicate.

Anyways, you should be able to look in the front of your bibles and see what they are. In the front of mine, where it is written The Holy Bible it says: containing the Old and New Testaments, translated out of the original tongues; with the former translations diligently compared and revised- conformable to the edition of 1611, commonly known as the authorized or KJV. (Self-pronounceing Edition). So you should be able to see exactly what yours is. And what it contains in it. (Because on the very next page it tells you the books it contains. Mine says Old Testiment and then lists the books, and New Testiment and then lists the books).

Hope this helps.

God Bless

 

[beehoney]

Maybe yours appears to have less in it because it is a New Testament. I was only given a "Big Bible" when I was 10 years old. Look at it closely and if it says New Testament, maybe it's time to get yourself a "Big Bible."

 

[LiberatedChick]

Maybe yours appears to have less in it because it is a New Testament. I was only given a "Big Bible" when I was 10 years old. Look at it closely and if it says New Testament, maybe it's time to get yourself a "Big Bible."

Yeah, that's true. Certainly, my first bible was just the New Testament.

 

[Dicy mind]

Hi tatdool.
Sounds like you have the "new testament". It contains writings after Jesus and probably spalms too from the "old testament". The "old testament" has writings before Jesus and is very important as well since it's the word of God. And these two put to gether make the Bible.

 

[ghs1994]

You want to try and get a good study bible, one that will help you understand God's Word clearly. I would stay away from the "dynamic" versions. They are easier to read, but much is forfeited for the sake readability. Try to stick with a good study version of either the KJV or NKJV or the NASB. These will help you better understand the original intent of the authors and not the context of what some translators believe they meant. The three I listed are your basic "Word for Word" translations. The study bible will help you keep from getting discouraged because for a new believer reading the KJV, it can be very difficult to understand because that is not they way we talk anymore and even some of the words in the orginal have been outdated and are no longer in the Webster's dictionary.

I won't get into a discussion on translations, that's only my opinion to help you get on your way.

 

[tatdool]

Thanks for all your replies.

By the way my bible has both new and old testaments.

God Bless
xxxx

 

[Talulah]

Check the thickness of the paper. If both have old and new testatments and there is still a huge size difference, it could be due to the type of paper used.

 

[fishstix]

I'm not christian as such, but i was baptised as a baby, and given a bible. It's very small and has very small writing. The thing is my step dad has a bible which was given to him from his grandmother, it is at least 10 times bigger than mine, yet the writing is only slightly bigger. As neither of them are particularly religious or have ever read the bible they don't know. Is there a difference? Will the bigger version have more stories in it? I'm so confused I thought there was just one bible which had all the same stories in it and that was it.

There are indeed different Bibles out there. But that doesn't mean that only one of them is good and the rest are bad. There are some Bibles that contain a few more 'books' than others. It depends on which Old Testament manuscripts were used for translating them (the original Bible was not written in English, but was written in Hebrew and Greek). If you aren't sure what Bible is best for you, I would suggest asking your priest or pastor what he would recommend. If you don't go to church, you could try going to a Christian bookstore and asking them which Bible they would suggest for you.

 

[Godslilgurlalways]

The only differenes that bible have is one old and one new testmant or you can get one with both, The size depends on he author of the book some of the words are bigger/smaller to how well a person can usually see. Those bibles usually contain the new testmant when you are bapitzed.If your bible start with Genisis (the starting of the new testmant) and even with relvation(end part of the bible you have both) If you book either doesn't start or finish (one of the two) than it's a new or old. Some times in he bibles some are smaller by the way it's worded. If you have both the old and new and he does too than there aren't any differences if you need more help just pm me and I will walk you through it while holding your bible okayGod Bless

 

[Bethshaya]

Dont forget, how many pages it has (and how thick it is) can also depend on how big the type is (which you said was close to the same), how many columns each page has (is it single column or double), wide or thin margins, and if there are any pictures, graphs and maps in it.

It is likely you both have the same type of bible. They all have the same stories, just worded in different ways. Some written in old english, some in modern english...and some in different languages altogether.

 

[hannabl]

I think that its a good idea to own different translations, since different translations foucuses (gr?) on different things.... and the translators are influenced by their view on Christianity when they interpret the original texts...

I believe there is only one true bible--The King James Version.

And here i am in Sweden, with mostly Swedish translations... how am I gonna get the one true Bible? My english version is not KJV, hm.... guess I'll have to share the same fait as the other millions all over the world that haven't discovered the one true translation

Sorry... not trying to offend, we all have our favourites among the different translations (I myself like "Folkbibeln" and Bo Giertz' translation of the NT)

 

[Nazaroo]

The best bible is the one that gets read...

This actually made me laugh...It caught me by surprise.
Of course! Just as I was wondering how to answer that question too!

Peace!