Study Bible?

[Joy4Him]

I'm wondering if anyone uses a study bible as their main text. Is it a good idea or is a plain text bible better?

 

[americanvet]

I do not. The main reason is I like thin Bibles that are comfortable to hold. I think it is all personal taste.

 

[St_Worm2]

A study Bible is a great idea if by "main text" you mean the one you carry church and Bible studies, etc., plus read and study out of at home. There is normally extra room in the margins to write notes, and the commentary, notes, cross-references, maps, concordance, etc. are always helpful. My favorite is the MacArthur Study Bible because of its excellent, extensive and relevant commentary.

Today however, I have moved to an iPad, since that makes it possible to take my entire Logos Bible software library with me (which includes, among many, many other things, the MacArthur Study Bible commentary). It is truly a portable study 'center' packed into the dimensions of an ultra-thin Bible ..

--David

 

[REPHAIAHPEDAHEL]

Are you talking about a soft or hard copy study bible?

 

[Joy4Him]

A study Bible is a great idea if by "main text" you mean the one you carry church and Bible studies, etc., plus read and study out of at home.

--David

Yes, that's exactly what I meant. I've been drooling over the ESV study bible that has a gorgeous cover and well if I actually spent the money on it I'd hate for it to live on a bookshelf.

 

[Joy4Him]

Are you talking about a soft or hard copy study bible?

I'm not sure I understand what you are asking.

 

[cyberlizard]

I'm wondering if anyone uses a study bible as their main text. Is it a good idea or is a plain text bible better?

i don't even own a study bible. if i were to buy one it would be an ESV, but I am not in a rush. I prefer the good old fashioned grunt of reading widely and owning as many seminal texts as I can get.


Steve

 

[St_Worm2]

Yes, that's exactly what I meant. I've been drooling over the ESV study bible that has a gorgeous cover and well if I actually spent the money on it I'd hate for it to live on a bookshelf.

I forgot about the ESV Study Bible. I don't own the ESV Study Bible itself, but I recently acquired the commentary part of it in Logos software and refer to it often when studying a passage. If I was buying a Study Bible today, I would find it hard to choose between the MacArthur and the ESV as far as the quality/quantity of the study notes and tools are concerned, so if the ESV is your choice, I'm sure you will love it!

--David

 

[Unix]

I don't have any Study Bible. The closest thing I have is a New American Bible Revised Edition (Roman Catholic). It has notes on a few pages after each book of the Bible, so it's not actual footnotes. It doesn't have maps or a weights & measures page. It has large print but not wide margins.
I have a cheap OK Bible with valuable notes, but those notes are few: UPDV Updated Bible Version - Home Page Versions 2.15 and 2.16 in one as printed matter. It can be downloaded from that site for free to Logos (compile the Personal Book). The margins in it are somewhat wide.
Then I have an 8-translation parallel NT as paperback. It has a bit of space between the translations, to write in. It has pretty few notes. Funny thing is that I went to the local Christian bookstore a couple of days ago and they still had it, copyright 1985, as hardcover. The most recent Bible version in it is from 1973, the oldest is KJV, and the second oldest is from 1952 or something (RSV).

I have Logos and Accordance, and although they do offer study Bibles I don't have any. Most of my books are in Logos (logos.com), in Accordance (accordancebible.com) I actually have fewer than my print library. I don't use any free Bible study softwares. Well, Logos can be used for free although then it's limited. One limitation is that if You buy a study Bible You need to (buy) a Bible version too, buying a Study Bible in a Bible study software only means You've paid for notes, not the Bible text, and any Bible version can be used (although specific ones are recommended/supposed to be used for particular Study Bibles).

In case You desire any Logos base-package, please contact John Ramsey and tell that

referred You! John's contact information is:
360-685-2309 Direct Line
1-800-875-6467 Ext. 2309
john.ramsey át logos d0t com

I really recommend real commentaries. These are usually one book of the Bible per volume. Here is a thread to discuss those: http://www.christianforums.com/t7541241/ ... please keep posting there if You have any question or a review to submit!

On of the commentaries I have, has very wide margins: Hermeneia. It's a decent set. I have the whole set in Logos except two volumes (one of which is a part of Psalms, the other which is parts of 1 Enoch), and one of the volumes as printed matter too (Mt 8-20).

When it comes to Bible versions, I would recommend the Revised English Bible for any study purposes, for most parts of the Bible.

 

[Allectus]

I do not have a study Bible. However, if given the chance I would probably purchase a nice leather bound ESV, either full or personal study size.

As it is, I'm doing the Prof. Grant Horner Bible learning system. It requires reading ten chapters a day, one in each of the major sections within the Bible. As a result, one is saturated with scripture. Yesterday alone I was exposed to Bible characters I hadn't even remembered existed.

Developing an comprehensive familiarity with scripture is much more important than picking apart specific words, etymology, and in depth historical context, as Bible notes often do.

It's like studying the pancreas without understanding the human body. Purchasing and making use of a study Bible depends on where you are in terms of study.

wow sorry for the long post...

 

[peterlindner]

When Moses came down from the mountain, the people asked for a study bible.

 

[Allectus]

When Moses came down from the mountain, the people asked for a study bible.

lol

 

[Joy4Him]

As it is, I'm doing the Prof. Grant Horner Bible learning system.

Never heard of this before, do you have more info you can give me? Sounds like something I would be interested doing.

 

[Joy4Him]

When Moses came down from the mountain, the people asked for a study bible.

I get your point.

 

[EGordo]

I use one from swordbible.org(Word of God Study Bible). It has God's words in red(Old Testament and New) and cross references from the different books. It also tells the meaning of archaic words and shows the original words used from Greek or Hebrew e.g. agape, Elohim, and the meanings of other names like Michael. Plus its in very large print. Easy to read. I think the Holy Spirit led me to buying this book at the bookstore. I had just recently converted and needed a new bible. I love it.

 

[peterlindner]

bible.cc is a tremendous resource.
hebcal and Day Counter - How many days and/or weeks are there between two dates is another pair for those that believe the times can be known.