ESV

I don't believe this is the first time someone has published a version of the bible without distracting verse or chapter numbers and without "helpful" headings that further break up the text. I am not a believer, but I wanted to try to read the bible, and I can attest from my reading of Genesis that what was previously a chore is now a pleasure. I'll post a book-by-book review if possible, but no overall view until I finish.

Genesis ***1/2
With its two versions of creation and two versions of show more the number of animals on Noah's ark, much of Genesis reads like a first draft. When it tells the story of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph, it reads much more smoothly, and in any case the interest of the narrative takes over. And what a narrative it is--Cain's killing of Abel sets the tone for a series of murders, rapes, and truly pornographic goings on. Not only is polygamy in place, but having more than one wife still isn't enough. Jacob has two wives, but he also has multiple children with their servant girl! It is very difficult to see how someone could turn a story that could have come from Harold Robbins into a religion (Judaism) that has lasted for at least three millennia. Nevertheless, the story is both interesting and entertaining, and I'm eager to go on to the succeeding books of the Pentateuch.

Exodus show less

The short version: Intentionally translated to reject inclusive language, even in places where the Greek or Hebrew uses inclusive language.

Have you ever been reading the Bible and thought, "wow, this is not nearly enough sexism"? If so, this translation is for you! If not, no.

The long version:...no, really. The translators are so committed to their quest to eliminate inclusive language that they intentionally mistranslate words in order to make it clear that women are just not important.

It's show more not subtle, either. This is stuff you learn in like week 2 of Greek, just a couple of days after you have got the alphabet down. In New Testament Greek, words can be translated differently depending on their context. For example, a word can refer only to men, or it can include women. Some cases are ambiguous, but some really are not.

For example, Paul writes of the "adelphoi", often going so far as to explicitly name some of the men and women in the group. This is what we would call a clue if we were back in Greek 101. Paul has told you, right there, that he intends to include women.

Nope, say the ESV translators. Paul definitely means to talk to the brothers only. If he wanted to talk to the women, he would use a term which includes them, like...adelphoi!

...oh, wait. Well, it's not like English even has a word which can clearly and unambiguous refer to a mixed-gender group. Sorry, Paul, we'll just be forced to make it sound like you're a misogynist jerk until someone invents the word "siblings".

Look, Paul was not a feminist! But he did know how to talk to women using the correct Greek forms, without pretending like he meant to just talk to the men. And he would be way more sarcastic than I am about this stuff. show less

First sentence: In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth.

Start date: November 29, 2025
End date: May 2, 2026

I loved, loved, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED, LOVED this Bible. It is the BEST of both worlds. It offers devotionals AND study notes. It also features articles, maps, timelines, illustrations, profiles cross references, glossary. It was just the right balance too. There are plenty of features that make this a true study Bible. YET it isn't as overwhelming as the ESV Study Bible. show more The devotions are present--obviously. But they are not carrying all the weight either. The translation is the English Standard Version. (This is the 2016 text edition).

It is double column, words of Christ in black.

As I mentioned, I love this one!!! I loved the substance of this one. It was SOLID. It is probably the best Women's Bible I've ever owned, ever read. I can't think of a better. show less

The edition I have is the “reader’s bible” without marked verses or chapters to disrupt comprehension of the text. It only arrived yesterday and when I opened it at random to start reading the first two books I landed on (one verse, one prose) read like a dream, flying by and completely engaging me in what each said. I absolutely love this verse free edition that presents the contents as authentic literature and I can’t recommend it highly enough. I wish other translations were show more published in this format as well, but I’m ecstatic to have found this one. Hooray! show less