Help Me Select a Good Bible for My Boyfriend

[Ave Maria]

Hi everyone. I need some help in selecting a good Bible for my boyfriend. My budget is about $25. I want one that is easy to read and understand and one that is not too literally translated but not too paraphrased either. I'm thinking the NIV would be a good translation but what Bible specifically should I pick? I'd like a study Bible if I can find one within my budget. Thanks everyone!

 

[JHM]

Bye Now

 

[Ave Maria]

Depends on what you want I suppose. In my collection, My Oxford NRSV contains a complete set of the recognized apocrypha including one book rarely seen that contains currently pertinent prophesy. My Doubleday Jerusalem is the most accurate translation, My Cambridge RSV is probably the best combination of linguistic beauty, and accuracy, my NIV is the most readable in terms of modern language, and my Darby, (Kingston Bible Trust), catches all of the others offbase by correctly translating one important passage which all of the others have wrong. On the other hand, for serious study, it is wise to have a King James. This is because Strong's concordance is keyed to the King James, and though I have by no means seen all concordances, by far the best of those I have seen is Strong's.

Thank you for this advice JHM. I appreciate it. I am pretty sure that I am looking for an NIV. I just don't know what kind of NIV I want.

 

[Yyharssargyhaell]

New International Version is certainly the way to go. I have one, I forget the name of it, but it wasn't too expensive. When I can find it I'll post up the name.

Y.

 

[Ave Maria]

New International Version is certainly the way to go. I have one, I forget the name of it, but it wasn't too expensive. When I can find it I'll post up the name.

Y.

Okay thank you. I would appreciate that.

 

[DeanM]

I'm pretty sure that the Mormons will send you a free bible, though I'm not sure what version they have.

I just steal them from hotels (kidding)

I believe Zondervan has a nice NIV for a good price. That's where I just got my study bible from.

 

[Yyharssargyhaell]

I'm pretty sure that the Mormons will send you a free bible, though I'm not sure what version they have.

I just steal them from hotels (kidding)

I believe Zondervan has a nice NIV for a good price. That's where I just got my study bible from.

Hehe "Thou shalt not steal..." Huh, isn't that the damnedest thing? *said as I walk out of the hotel with my new Bible* "Good thing I don't steal."

I'm sorry, but I am unable to find my Bible. If I happen across it I will PM you the name.

I recommend an NIV. Go to a book store or Christian store or some such place and get your hands on an NIV with footnotes and additions in the back on prayer and such. Most NIV's I have seen come with these things. They comment on talking to the Lord as you would talk to your father on the phone, instead of talking to God like He's some aloof, mystical Being far away in the sky. Those kinds of things are important.

Y.

 

[Ave Maria]

I'm pretty sure that the Mormons will send you a free bible, though I'm not sure what version they have.

I just steal them from hotels (kidding)

I believe Zondervan has a nice NIV for a good price. That's where I just got my study bible from.

Yeah I really don't want a Bible from the Mormons. I prefer to have a Bible from a mainstream denomination.

 

[Ave Maria]

Hehe "Thou shalt not steal..." Huh, isn't that the damnedest thing? *said as I walk out of the hotel with my new Bible* "Good thing I don't steal."

I'm sorry, but I am unable to find my Bible. If I happen across it I will PM you the name.

I recommend an NIV. Go to a book store or Christian store or some such place and get your hands on an NIV with footnotes and additions in the back on prayer and such. Most NIV's I have seen come with these things. They comment on talking to the Lord as you would talk to your father on the phone, instead of talking to God like He's some aloof, mystical Being far away in the sky. Those kinds of things are important.

Y.

Thank you for this advice. I will do as you say.

 

[Yyharssargyhaell]

Thank you for this advice. I will do as you say.

No problem. Good luck and God Bless!

Y.

 

[Sketcher]

I like the NIV. You can get a basic one for around 8 bucks. I like study Bibles myself; one day I happened to come upon a sale at Family Christian Stores and I was able to get the NIV Study Bible - which ordinarily costs $60 - for around $25 give or take. So check the bargain bins, definitely. Also, see if you can find a parallel Bible. These Bibles have different translations side by side. If you can find one that has the KJV and the NIV or the NLT that would be great. You'd have a good, modern translation side-by-side with the KJV which would be another good Bible for study. There are a lot of good study resources that rely on the KJV - Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, Vine's Expository Dictionary of the New Testament, and the commentaries by Matthew Henry, John Wesley, and John Gill. So if you can find a good parallel Bible for less than an NIV Study Bible, pick that up.

 

[Ave Maria]

I like the NIV. You can get a basic one for around 8 bucks. I like study Bibles myself; one day I happened to come upon a sale at Family Christian Stores and I was able to get the NIV Study Bible - which ordinarily costs $60 - for around $25 give or take. So check the bargain bins, definitely. Also, see if you can find a parallel Bible. These Bibles have different translations side by side. If you can find one that has the KJV and the NIV or the NLT that would be great. You'd have a good, modern translation side-by-side with the KJV which would be another good Bible for study. There are a lot of good study resources that rely on the KJV - Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, Vine's Expository Dictionary of the New Testament, and the commentaries by Matthew Henry, John Wesley, and John Gill. So if you can find a good parallel Bible for less than an NIV Study Bible, pick that up.

Thank you for the advice. However, right now I think I am more or less looking for a basic Bible for him to read.

 

[Zecryphon]

Hi everyone. I need some help in selecting a good Bible for my boyfriend. My budget is about $25. I want one that is easy to read and understand and one that is not too literally translated but not too paraphrased either. I'm thinking the NIV would be a good translation but what Bible specifically should I pick? I'd like a study Bible if I can find one within my budget. Thanks everyone!

Is your boyfriend saved or a seeker? If he's a seeker get The Journey by Zondervan. It's available in softcover, is NIV and should fit into your $25 price range. It is packed with explanations that help the seeker understand the scriptures and how they apply to every day life. If he's already saved, I'd say the choice is yours. He's your boyfriend, what's he into? Find a Bible that suits his interests. There's a plethora of them out there.

 

[Ave Maria]

Is your boyfriend saved or a seeker? If he's a seeker get The Journey by Zondervan. It's available in softcover, is NIV and should fit into your $25 price range. It is packed with explanations that help the seeker understand the scriptures and how they apply to every day life. If he's already saved, I'd say the choice is yours. He's your boyfriend, what's he into? Find a Bible that suits his interests. There's a plethora of them out there.

Thank you for this recommendation! I checked it out and its available from www.christianbook.com for only $10 so I will definitely be buying The Journey Bible as I am not sure if David is saved or if he is seeking or what. He says he has accepted Jesus into his life as his Lord and Savior but he's a non-practicing Catholic so I think this bible would be a good idea. Thank you so much for this recommendation! I will get it for him for Christmas as one of his presents.

Meanwhile, I ordered a free TNIV online at:

http://www.tniv.info/form/

I will give him this free Bible when I receive it in the mail. If you're interested in receiving a free Today's New International Version, just go to the link above and fill out the form and they'll mail you one totally free.

 

[Zecryphon]

Thank you for this recommendation! I checked it out and its available from www.christianbook.com for only $10 so I will definitely be buying The Journey Bible as I am not sure if David is saved or if he is seeking or what. He says he has accepted Jesus into his life as his Lord and Savior but he's a non-practicing Catholic so I think this bible would be a good idea. Thank you so much for this recommendation! I will get it for him for Christmas as one of his presents.

Meanwhile, I ordered a free TNIV online at:

http://www.tniv.info/form/

I will give him this free Bible when I receive it in the mail. If you're interested in receiving a free Today's New International Version, just go to the link above and fill out the form and they'll mail you one totally free.

Wow! I'm so glad I could be of help on this one. The Journey is the first Bible I ever bought when I started looking into Christianity again. I've had many Bibles since then, but this is the one I reccomend most often to people who may be seeking. The Evidence Bible is another one I probably should have reccomended but it might be out of yoru price range. I don't know what it retails for in softcover. You can check it out at. www.livingwaters.com I have no interest in the TNIV, I hear there are quite a few problems with it. I'm an NIV/ESV person. I use the NIV because that's what my church reads from, but I prefer the ESV and feel that's what the LCMS is going to adopt in the near future as their official translation.

 

[Ave Maria]

Wow! I'm so glad I could be of help on this one. The Journey is the first Bible I ever bought when I started looking into Christianity again. I've had many Bibles since then, but this is the one I reccomend most often to people who may be seeking. The Evidence Bible is another one I probably should have reccomended but it might be out of yoru price range. I don't know what it retails for in softcover. You can check it out at. www.livingwaters.com I have no interest in the TNIV, I hear there are quite a few problems with it. I'm an NIV/ESV person. I use the NIV because that's what my church reads from, but I prefer the ESV and feel that's what the LCMS is going to adopt in the near future as their official translation.

Well, I guess that all depends on what you'd call problems when it comes to the TNIV. Many conservatives are against it because it uses gender neutral language where the context shows that man means person kind or whatever. Personally, I like the idea of gender neutral or should I say gender accurate language in the Bible.

Anyway, thank you for the recommendation on the Evidence Bible. I will check it out.

 

[Ave Maria]

Well, I checked out the Evidence Bible and it is definitely out of my price range. It is more than double what I want to pay. That and it uses the KJV but an altered version called the easy reading version. I prefer a mainstream translation such as the NIV or TNIV.

 

[Zecryphon]

Well, I checked out the Evidence Bible and it is definitely out of my price range. It is more than double what I want to pay. That and it uses the KJV but an altered version called the easy reading version. I prefer a mainstream translation such as the NIV or TNIV.

What is called the "easy reading version of the KJV" in the Evidence Bible is really just the 21st Century KJV. You can read that translation for free at:

www.biblegateway.com

It seems pretty mianstream to me. But the NIV is probably the best one for new Bible readers as it's pretty middle of the road. It's a not too literal and not too much of a paraphrase. There's a reason why it's the # 2 selling tranlsation.

 

[Ave Maria]

What is called the "easy reading version of the KJV" in the Evidence Bible is really just the 21st Century KJV. You can read that translation for free at:

www.biblegateway.com

It seems pretty mianstream to me. But the NIV is probably the best one for new Bible readers as it's pretty middle of the road. It's a not too literal and not too much of a paraphrase. There's a reason why it's the # 2 selling tranlsation.

Ah okay cool. What is the #1 selling translation?

 

[Zecryphon]

Ah okay cool. What is the #1 selling translation?

The King James Version. Of course it's had a hell of a headstart! LOL