Best Bibles in English

[MoreCoffee]

My preferences are as follows - the order does not necessarily imply lower numbers are superior to higher ones or vice versa.

1. New Catholic Bible (Liturgically accurate, using the Jerusalem Bible as its foundation with "Yahweh" replaced by "the LORD" and using the Grail Psalter for the psalms, this translation matches the liturgical readings in the Mass)
2. Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (Generally a good translation with some improvements made by the editors for the Catholic Edition, it has some antiquated words especially in the language of prayer and in the psalms)
3. Revised Standard Version - Second Catholic Edition (A revision of the RSV Catholic Edition with modern words and some other alterations to help readers uncomfortable with antiquated words in English)
4. Douay Rheims Bible (This bible is good in many ways but antiquated English words and an occasional Latin-esque vocabulary make it more difficult than need be the case)
5. New Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (quite good with gender neutral translations in some places where the gender neutrality may (or may not) be a good choice)
6. New American Bible (good on the whole but with too much gender neutrality and some clangers in verses like Genesis 1:1-2)
7. New Jerusalem Bible (good but has more gender neutrality that I like to see)
8. King James Version with Apocrypha (good on the whole but too antiquated and has some near incomprehensible wordings; for example, O ye Corinthians, our mouth is open unto you, our heart is enlarged. Ye are not straitened in us, but ye are straitened in your own bowels. Now for a recompence in the same, (I speak as unto my children,) be ye also enlarged. [2 Corinthians 6:11-13])
9. Good News Bible Catholic Edition (fairly good and the Catholic Edition that I have does not have gender neutral alterations)
10. Contemporary English Version (this one is like the Good News Bible but with some striking changes and kind of interesting as a bedside read, my copy has single column format and is limited to 66 books but a Catholic Edition is available)

 

[tango]

The original KJV has some real corkers, where comprehensibility is concerned, like this:

Heb 7:18 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof.

I'm not a fan of The Message but it's version is somewhat easier to understand:

Heb 7:18 The former way of doing things, a system of commandments that never worked out the way it was supposed to, was set aside;

 

[MoreCoffee]

The original KJV has some real corkers, where comprehensibility is concerned, like this:

Heb 7:18 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof.

I'm not a fan of The Message but it's version is somewhat easier to understand:

Heb 7:18 The former way of doing things, a system of commandments that never worked out the way it was supposed to, was set aside;

The KJV is quite odd at times.

 

[Rens]

NKJV
I didn't even recognize that text from Hebrews 7. It must stay a bit understandable.

 

[psalms 91]

The KJV is quite odd at times.

That is not KJV unless it is the 1612 edition

 

[Ackbach]

I like the ESV myself.

 

[Lamb]

That is not KJV unless it is the 1612 edition

That's what is listed on biblegateway though. I like that site because you can compare different versions.

NASB is pretty good. I have an ESV that I like.

 

[MoreCoffee]

That is not KJV unless it is the 1612 edition

Do you think that the 1611 edition is better?

 

[MoreCoffee]

I like the ESV myself.

I have an ESV - a nice Oxford leather bound edition but it is a Scofield Study Bible, I do not like the notes so my preference is for the RSV second Catholic Edition.

 

[Josiah]

My study tome uses the ESV entitled, "The Lutheran Study Bible" (Concordia Publishing House). It has great notes and helps. It's ESV. I understand scholars like that translation but being a layperson, I would not be certain.

But in Bible studies, it's easy now to not depend on translations..... LOTS of programs have the Hebrew and Greek, with easy tools to understand the original meanings, etc. And it's very easy to just google a word and up comes LOTS of helpful (and not so helpful, lol) stuff. When I'm studying (or leading a study), I lean on the Hebrew and Greek - not any translation.

My own Lutheran pastor notes how easy it now is. He knows both Hebrew and Greek virtually fluently (as I'm sure does your pastor) - in fact, at our Sunday study, he NEVER has a translation at all, he never uses any. When he reads a section, he's looking at his Hebrew or Greek - and doing a quick (and often pretty loose) translation as we follow along in our various translation (usually ESV or NIV, the two Lutherans seem to most often use). He notes the years and work it took him to learn these languages (he can also handle Latin and German, btw) and that now with all the Bible programs, it's not very necessary.


- Josiah


BTW. our Sunday study right now is the Apocrypha (1 and 2 Maccs right now). I bought the Lutheran Study Bible that has these books. I've never studied these before (certainly not in my Catholic years).... very interesting.




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[MoreCoffee]

Catholic studies of the holy scriptures from the USA are usually based on the NAB. My parish has used The Littlerock material as well as some from Mr Cavins' group. The NAB is okay on the whole and the commentaries we use in conjunction with it are very informative.

 

[Josiah]

My study tome uses the ESV entitled, "The Lutheran Study Bible" (Concordia Publishing House). It has great notes and helps. It's ESV. I understand scholars like that translation but being a layperson, I would not be certain.

But in Bible studies, it's easy now to not depend on translations..... LOTS of programs have the Hebrew and Greek, with easy tools to understand the original meanings, etc. And it's very easy to just google a word and up comes LOTS of helpful (and not so helpful, lol) stuff. When I'm studying (or leading a study), I lean on the Hebrew and Greek - not any translation.

My own Lutheran pastor notes how easy it now is. He knows both Hebrew and Greek virtually fluently (as I'm sure does your pastor) - in fact, at our Sunday study, he NEVER has a translation at all, he never uses any. When he reads a section, he's looking at his Hebrew or Greek - and doing a quick (and often pretty loose) translation as we follow along in our various translation (usually ESV or NIV, the two Lutherans seem to most often use). He notes the years and work it took him to learn these languages (he can also handle Latin and German, btw) and that now with all the Bible programs, it's not very necessary.


- Josiah


BTW. our Sunday study right now is the Apocrypha (1 and 2 Maccs right now). I bought the Lutheran Study Bible that has these books. I've never studied these before (certainly not in my Catholic years).... very interesting.




.

Additionally.....


Lutherans AVOID denomination Bibles. Yes, for 400 years, nearly all Lutherans used Luther's translation (often translated from German to Danish or English or whatever) but that ended about 100 years ago as Lutherans desired something more ecumenical, more objective. The only "Lutheran" translation of the 20th century was one by a prof at the LCMS Seminary in St. Louis (Beck) but ironically Lutherans largely rejected it as "biased" (Biased to LUTHERAN but still biased). It's important that the translation be accurate, not spinned so as to suggest a certain denominational leaning.

Again, with it being so easy to study going to the Greek and Hebrew, there's no reason to rely much on any translation....



- Josiah

 

[MoreCoffee]

Aren't denominational bibles things like the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures created by some tiny group to service their perceived needs and to back their doctrine?

 

[Ackbach]

Aren't denominational bibles are things like the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures created by some tiny group to service their perceived needs and to back their doctrine?

Yes, the Jehovah's Witnesses created that "version" of the "Bible" to serve their own heretical ends. Only it doesn't do the job very well. For example, their famous translation of John 1:1: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god." doesn't counterbalance their (correct) translation of John 1:3, which is "All things came into existence through him, and apart from him not even one thing came into existence." So the divinity of Christ that they stole from John 1:1 they give back in John 1:3!

 

[MoreCoffee]

Yes, the Jehovah's Witnesses created that "version" of the "Bible" to serve their own heretical ends. Only it doesn't do the job very well. For example, their famous translation of John 1:1: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was a god." doesn't counterbalance their (correct) translation of John 1:3, which is "All things came into existence through him, and apart from him not even one thing came into existence." So the divinity of Christ that they stole from John 1:1 they give back in John 1:3!

I've seen online references to things like The Restored Name Version which I take it is the creation of some group that wants to see Yahweh and Yeshua in their printed bibles. And I saw a printed edition of The Scriptures that was created by some tiny group in South Africa with Jewish links of some sort. These versions did the same kinds of things one sees in The New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures - things like altering their English translation so that it does not reflect what is written in the Greek new testament they do it to make it fit their theology.

 

[Josiah]

Aren't denominational bibles things like the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures created by some tiny group to service their perceived needs and to back their doctrine?

There are many Bibles translated of, for and by Catholics.... they are denominational - just like the New World Translation, they are sectarian.

Most Protestants shy away from such, although for YEARS the KJV was popular in the USA and it's an Anglican Bible - although designed to be acceptable to Catholics, Lutherans and Calvinists and so went to great lengths to try to NOT be denominational. But of course, it has largely fallen from use. And as I noted, for nearly 4 centuries, Luther's Translation was popular among Lutherans (his German work translated into many other languages) but that too has fallen from use. The only major denomination known to me to still largely use denominational translations is the RC one. You listed some in your op.


- Josiah

 

[MoreCoffee]

There are many Bibles translated of, for and by Catholics.... they are denominational ...

Catholic editions (such as the RSV CE, GNB CE, NRSV CE, CEV CE) are Protestant bibles with the complete 73 book canon rather than the 66 books common among protestants today. You're comments are in error.

 

[Josiah]

Just a few of the unique denominational bibles of the individual RCC in English, which like The New World Translation of the JWs, is strictly a denominational bible:

The Confraternity Bible (many editions)
The American Bible (many editions)
The Jerusalem Bible
The Douay-Rheims (many editions - the fave of Catholic fundamentalists)
The Ignatius Bible
Oh, I could go on and on and on...... editions like the New World Bible of the JW Denomination, absolutely sectarian.
And it should be noted that even the RSV - CATHOLIC DENOMINATION EDITION - is different, there are several changes to the NT to make it seem more Roman Catholic, it's NOT the SAME RSV (just with the Apocrypha inserted).


Most Protestants now shy away from sectarian Bibles.

 

[MoreCoffee]

[MENTION=13]Josiah[/MENTION],

NAB, JB, NJB, are Catholic funded translations in which protestant scholars played a role either as consultants or translators.

The Ignatius Bible is the RSV Catholic edition from 1966. It's a Protestant translation.

Douay Rheims Bible is a Catholic Translation from the late 16th and early 17th century.

Your claims are in error [MENTION=13]Josiah[/MENTION].

I've never heard of The American Bible. There is a New American Bible

PS: The Confraternity Bible was the basis for the NAB. It was not complete when the Curia published a papal encyclical on bible translation which urged Catholic scholars to translate from Hebrew & Greek sources rather than from the Vulgate. The Confraternity Bible was based on the Vulgate. The NAB is based on Hebrew & Greek sources.

 

[Josiah]

NAB, JB, NJB, are Catholic
The Ignatius Bible is Catholic
Douay Rheims Bible is Catholic
New American Bible

The Confraternity Bible was the basis for the NAB.

The American Bible (in all its many variations) also is Catholic.
The Confraterinty Bible is also Catholic.
The Jerusalem Bible is also Catholic.

And of course, MANY more Catholic Denomination Bibles could be mentioned. Sectarian, DENOMINATIONAL Bibles.


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