What good is the ESV Reader's Bible?

[GregSG]

I'm not saying that in any sort of derisive way, I honestly want to know. My wife gave me the complete set for a gift. I wanted to just read a modern English Bible to get an idea of where things are in the Bible.

But the format that's used has no chapter or verse numbers. So if something I read really stands out, how am I supposed to refer to it later? I can't even cross reference a passage without spending a lot of time trying to find it in another version. Neither can I use it in any reading plan because all the reading plans I've seen use chapter and verse numbers.

If somebody can explain to me what benefit I can get from simply reading the Bible like a novel w/o any reference points, I'm all ears.

 

[Hammster]

You get to read it as it was intended. For instance, Paul’s letters weren’t broken up into sections.

 

[Sam91]

I have the ESV readers large print bible and mine has numbered verses.

I think it is great for reading whole chapters and books. You can always use a different bible for study.

I like to read the Epistles and other books as a whole as well as just studying a bit by bit. It is harder to take verses out of context when you read it like that.

EDIT: Um it seems I have the ESV single column legacy edition and know nothing of your plight. Sorry.

 

[GregSG]

In answer to my prayer, I found a reading plan specifically for the ESV Reader's Bible 6-volume set. It has a link to download the plan in PDF :
Reading Plans

The reading plan is in chronological order, starting with the OT, but that can be easily modified to suit your own preference. Reading in chronological order may be a downside, because most suggestions regarding reading plans I've come across say that people who start reading the entire Bible in chronological order starting with the OT drop out and never finish the reading plan.

 

[straykat]

I don't use it, but I like paragraph bibles. I use a KJV one, but it has verses and chapters.

That said, I've never been very good at citing verses, without a computer. I kind of learned a lot of scripture in isolation when I became a Christian in my teens (wasn't raised this way), and just mimicked what I saw the writers in the New Testament said. Heh. They merely stated the scriptures. I can do that a lot and know all of the "areas" I'm citing. But if someone pushes me for specifics, I'll oblige them and use a computer these days.

Sorry if that seems a bit offtopic. I would suggest trying it for awhile. As another form of memorization at least.

 

[GregSG]

I don't use it, but I like paragraph bibles. I use a KJV one, but it has verses and chapters.

Where did you find a KJV in paragraph format? I use a NET loose-leaf Bible for study because I like the paragraph format it uses, plus the fact that it's loose-leaf (and free).

 

[straykat]

Where did you find a KJV in paragraph format? I use a NET loose-leaf Bible for study because I like the paragraph format it uses, plus the fact that it's loose-leaf.

It's the New Cambridge Paragraph Bible.. you can get it at Christianbook.com or Amazon (or whatever store of your choice, I'm sure). The leather is pretty expensive (a bit over $100) since it's a Cambridge, but it's the best bible I've ever owned. They also make a cheaper hardcover version. You can also get it with or without the KJV Apocrypha, which is also unique as far as KJV editions go. Another unique feature is it was a part of a project by Cambridge (and the editor David Norton) to accurately track down the correct printing choices the KJV translators intended, which have been messed up a bit over the centuries.

 

[ac28]

The ESV is in error because:
1- In 2 Timothy 2:15, it translates the last part of the compound Greek word, orthotomeo, as the wimpy, milky word, "handling", where the absolute true meaning is "CUT" or divide or separate or dissect. The ESV (and the ASV, ISV, NASB, and NIV) totally wrecks this verse which is, outside of those verses involving Deity and our Salvation, the most important verse in the entire Bible.
2- It contains the word, 'hell"
3- In Matthew 23:43 , it has the comma before the word Today, instead of after, where it should be

These horrible modern Bible publishers probably thought they would sell more Bibles if they didn't tell the reader to (1) cut up God's word or (2) that those less pious than they are won't be tortured forever or that, (3) when a person dies, they don't go immediately to Heaven.

So, they decided to keep these lies in their Bibles.

 

[Hammster]

The ESV is in error because:
1- In 2 Timothy 2:15, it translates the last part of the compound Greek word, orthotomeo, as the wimpy, milky word, "handling", where the absolute true meaning is "CUT" or divide or separate or dissect. The ESV (and the ASV, ISV, NASB, and NIV) totally wrecks this verse which is, outside of those verses involving Deity and our Salvation, the most important verse in the entire Bible.
2- It contains the word, 'hell"
3- In Matthew 23:43 , it has the comma before the word Today, instead of after, where it should be

These horrible modern Bible publishers probably thought they would sell more Bibles if they didn't tell the reader to (1) cut up God's word or (2) that those less pious than they are won't be tortured forever or that, (3) when a person dies, they don't go immediately to Heaven.

So, they decided to keep these lies in their Bibles.

This is off topic for the thread.

 

[ac28]

This is off topic for the thread.

Why? I thought the topic was, "What good is the ESV study Bible?" Assuming the ESV study bible has the same text as the regular ESV, I can't see how there would be any good in it, whatsoever. I think the ESV is one of the worst Bibles out there, and I was just voicing my opinion, through examples, so others wouldn't waste their money. I'm sorry you don't agree.

Is your turkey quote from Herb on WKRP in Cincinnati?

 

[Hammster]

Why? I thought the topic was, "What good is the ESV study Bible?" Assuming the ESV study bible has the same text as the regular ESV, I can't see how there would be any good in it, whatsoever. I think the ESV is one of the worst Bibles out there, and I was just voicing my opinion, through examples, so others wouldn't waste their money. I'm sorry you don't agree.

Is your turkey quote from Herb on WKRP in Cincinnati?

That’s not the topic.

And the quote is from Mr. Carlson.

 

[GregSG]

Why? I thought the topic was, "What good is the ESV study Bible?"

No, the topic is "What good is the ESV READER'S Bible, not the STUDY Bible. I was asking about the 6-volume set that has no chapter, verse, topic, or cross-reference markings, and is intended for reading only. I should have made a more clear title for the thread, for that I ask your forgiveness.

I mostly study the Word for personal edification and spiritual growth. So it may be just me, in that I have difficulty just "reading" the Bible like a novel, there has to be a practical side to it. Reading a Bible with chapter and verse headings would at least help in finding my way around and also with recall w/o having to look in the index.

With that said, even with the reading program I mentioned earlier, I'm still finding myself using another Bible to look up where I am when I come across something I want more clarification on, which is time consuming, and I have to be careful to manage my time in the Word efficiently because I only have a limited amount in the mornings.

I too, have come across some of the controversies about the ESV, particularly Gen 3:16, which shocked me, but rightly that should be another thread. I intended the subject for this one about reading the ESV 6-volume no-verses-or-chapters set only. The 6-volume set was a gift from my wife, I would hate for it to go to waste.

 

[hopperace]

I'm not saying that in any sort of derisive way, I honestly want to know. My wife gave me the complete set for a gift. I wanted to just read a modern English Bible to get an idea of where things are in the Bible.

But the format that's used has no chapter or verse numbers. So if something I read really stands out, how am I supposed to refer to it later? I can't even cross reference a passage without spending a lot of time trying to find it in another version. Neither can I use it in any reading plan because all the reading plans I've seen use chapter and verse numbers.

If somebody can explain to me what benefit I can get from simply reading the Bible like a novel w/o any reference points, I'm all ears.

God bless you, I have the same um... difficulty when well-meaning family and friends try to cater to my theological tastes in literature. I'm not ungrateful, but I usually have a much better idea of what I'll actually best appreciate and use. It's a worthy gift though. Trust me (maybe) when I say every Christian would benefit from reading the whole Bible cover-to-cover in a sort of style as a novel, and quickly too, just as one would do with a regular book. It gives one a great sense of consistency and perspective throughout. It's another way to read the Scriptures apart from detailed study of them. Or, as you seem to be doing with a reading through the Bible program - For a while I did this with a different translation each year, since it facilitates a better English understanding of the original language texts.

That's the primary beauty and usefulness of this edition. And it's been a popular format for millennials, maybe centered around the first release of The Way (Living Bible), The Narrated Bible, and The Message, among others.

One also benefits from the lack of verse numbering, which was always an artificial, flawed, though beneficial construct. One might want to reference this article, for example.

Just picture yourself reading by the fireside on a cool Winter's evening with a cup of rich dark chocolate cocoa, decaffeinated coffee, or whatever some religious groups allow you to drink, occasionally smiling at the wife with her knitting and nodding your head.

 

[GregSG]

I have the same um... difficulty when well-meaning family and friends try to cater to my theological tastes in literature

It was actually my fault, I asked for it for a Christmas present and didn't do much research on it. Thank you very much for the article link! I've bookmarked it for later.

 

[Sam91]

Reading your comments I think you are going about it wrong and causing stress.

You could continue your old methods and add in reading yor reader version for pleasure rather than in the morning when you could be reading and praying the way you used to.

The reader might be more fruitful to read before bed, or half an hour to an hour on a Saturday or Sunday.

 

[GregSG]

I have to admit, I can be dumb as a box of rocks sometimes (just ask my wife). I should have known from previous experience that when you go to read a new book, look through it to see what it contains in the front and back pages, such as table of contents, indexes, footnotes or a concordance. I did not do that in this case, I just went straight to the text. I just discovered that the ESV Reader's Bible 6-volume set has a Table of Contents in the front (duh!), and a list of the chapters and the pages they start on in the back in each volume. Problem solved.