Two Major Areas to Consider
As we think about picking a Bible, there are two major areas one must consider. First, the translation used in the text of a Bible, and second, the packaging.
First, the translation. This is one of the major focuses of Cultivating Faith and will be covered, Lord willing, in many posts over many years. When we talk about the translations or versions of the Bible, we are really speaking of a specific translation of the Bible such as the ESV, KJV, or NIV. This would be the text that is translated from the original language into English and would include any accompanying textual and translation notes. The text of the translation is what we think of as just the chapters and verses of the Bible.
Second, the packaging of a Bible is the focus of this series of posts. By packaging I mean all that is added to assist in reading, understanding, and applying of the text: the notes, maps, reference system, and or helps. The packaging would also include the aesthetics of the Bible: the cover material and color, font size, color, and style, or the size of the bible itself. The terms Bible edition or Bible type will be more commonly used than packaging.
Before we continue our exploration of Bible packaging in the posts to come, let pause to make a clear distinction. It must be firmly established that the foundation is the inspired Word of God (2 Tim 3:16), the biblical text, not the notes, articles, introductions, the section headings, or any of the vast number of help added to the Bible. Even the chapter and verse numbering system were added in the thirteenth century and sixteenth century, respectively, after the autographs (originals) were written. Only the biblical text is the inspired, inerrant, infallible Word of God.
Everything else is man’s attempts to help us understand and apply God’s Word. Many times, the helps are just that, very helpful but in some cases, they may also be wrong or slanted in a theological direction not intended by the original Author. The notes on a passage are not the final word on a passage, God is the final word on His Word! The Bible is given to us by the providential work of God to preserve Scripture through the unsurpassed, historical efforts of copyist, archeologists, museum curators, and translators. Once again it is the text alone that is the foundation for which we build our faith.
The areas of inspiration, inerrancy, infallibility, the canon of Scripture, the authority and sufficiency of scripture, and other related topics are beyond the scope of this series of posts but in the near future, other series will be added which will cover these. So be on the lookout for those posts.
Keep in mind this is a short overview. There is a plethora of YouTubers and bloggers who specialize in the various Bible packages such as Beau Tate’s channel or The Bible Buying Guide.
Do a google search. Check them out! They are fun, interesting and well worth your time.
Until the next time we see you here at CultivatingFaith.org, God Bless! #CultivatingFaithOrg
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