Bible Study Tools and Links

How to choose the right Bible.

If you’ve had trouble choosing the right Bible for yourself or for a gift, it’s no wonder. There are over 4000 different Bibles to choose from.

Why so many, and what's the difference?

Niche Bibles

It all started about 15 years ago with The Student Bible from Zondervan. It included features along side the Scripture text that made the Bible easier for students to read and enjoy. Its incredible success—over 4 million copies sold—inspired Zondervan to ask, “How can we make the Bible more accessible to other groups? Soon there were Bibles for children, for early teens, for couples, for new Christians, for women, and for men.

Bible translations

The proliferation of Bible translations contributes to the variety. The original Bible text was written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Although none of the original manuscripts still exist, we do have many ancient copies. Scholars translate the oldest copies into English. There are three basic approaches to translation: literal, thought-for-thought, and paraphrase.

Literal

The most literal translation is the New American Standard Bible (NASB). Translators took each word in the original language and matched it to the closest English equivalent. This type of translation can be harder to understand, but it is great for serious Bible study.

Thought-for-thought

Scholars translate each thought in the original text into its English equivalent. One of the earliest and most successful translations in this category is the Good News Translation (GNT). The translators focused on making the meaning of the Bible clear to the average reader.

Some Bible translations, like the New International Version (NIV), blend these first two approaches. NIV translators focused on accuracy and clarity. If the literal translation was clear, they used it. If not, they translated thought-for-thought. The result is a more accurate picture of what the original writers had in mind in a Bible that's easy to understand and suitable for serious study. That combination has made the NIV the bestselling Bible translation by a margin of 2:1.

The NIV has a companion translation for kids called the New International Reader’s Version (NIrV). It's written at a third grade reading level and available in a number of colorful, kid-friendly editions.

Paraphrase

Finally, there is the paraphrase approach to translation. The Living Bible and The Message are popular examples. Paraphrases are enjoyable to read, but they can’t be used for Bible study because they go beyond the original text to scholars' opinion. Paraphrase Bibles are helpful for new Bible readers or for devotional reading.

Steps for choosing a Bible:

Answering a few questions can help you find the right Bible.

Who will read the Bible?

Bibles are available for different ages. There are Bible storybooks for the very young and Bibles for each age segment up to adult. There are also Bibles for different spiritual stages. If you are returning to faith or unfamiliar with the Bible, there is The Journey Bible or The Quest Study Bible. If you are a mature Christian, consider The NIV Study Bible.

How will the Bible be used?

If you will use it for devotional reading, there are Bibles with inspiring daily readings throughout the text. If you want to study the Bible, there are editions that will help you understand the meaning of the text and how it applies to your life. A good study Bible (like The NIV Study Bible) contains a virtual library of Bible reference books all bound into its pages.

Which translation do you prefer?

If you are unfamiliar with the Bible, you will enjoy a thought-for-thought translation like the GNT. If you plan word-by-word study, you’ll appreciate the literal translation of the NASB. Most people choose the NIV because it is the best blend of accuracy and clarity. The King James Version (KJV) is the second best-selling translation.

Which binding will best meet your needs?

Genuine leather will last a lifetime. Bonded leather is less expensive and lasts about 10 years. Imitation leather is a vinyl material coated and embossed to look like leather. The least expensive option is a paperback or hardcover binding. Some choose one of these and purchase a Bible cover to protect it.

How much do you want to spend on a Bible?

Bibles range in price from about $10 to $100. The difference depends primarily on the amount of additional material and the binding style.