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Recommended Bible Translations:
NAB: New American Bible -- most commonly used Catholic version (used for Liturgy in the American Church). There is now a Revised Version as well.
JB: Jerusalem Bible -- also Catholic -- actually a transliteration (Original language to French to English). I do not think that it is in print any longer but I am sure that some copies are still available.
(NOTE: A 'Catholic' Bible mainly contains the extra books called Deuterocanonical or Apocryphal which are not recognized by many Protestant churches or the Jewish community as divinely inspired. Catholic Bibles include these 'extra' books because they are recognized by the Roman Catholic Church as inspired, genuine and a part of the Canon of Scriptures.)
RSV and NRSV:
The
Revised Standard Version and The New Revised Standard Version. The RSV is an excellent translation and comes in both Protestant and Catholic versions – ( called "Oxford Edition" or "CE"). The extra books (Deuterocanonical) are also published in a separate volume. The NRSV is not as good a translation as the RSV but the OT is easier to read.
NIV: New International Version -- one of the most popular Protestant translations in use today.
NASV: New American Standard Version -- usually referred to as 'American Standard' -- to distinguish it from the NAB.
NKJV--New King James Version -- an improvement over the archaic King James Version
All of the above with the exception of the NAB and JB can be purchased from different publishers which offer a variety of Bible helps. These are referred to as study Bibles. Some of these are: Life Application (available in different versions), Harper Study Bible (I think also available in different versions) There is also the Thompson Chain Reference Bible -- also in different versions -- and can be expensive. All editions of the NAB and JB have extensive references, notes, maps, charts, etc.
If you were to buy one I would suggest that you look into some type of study Bible (with notes, charts, maps, references and such. There is a great variety available.)
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Not Recommended as
Primary study Bibles:
The Modern Language: This is also one of the newer translations but, according to some authorities, lacks some accuracy.
Today's English
Version: One of the publishers of this is the
Good News Bible. This also comes in a Catholic version that includes the Deuterocanonicals/ Apocrypha Books. This also appears to be lacking some accuracy. (This might be the same as the Modern Language but I am not certain.)
TLB: The Living Bible:
This is a paraphrase and can be easily read-- especially for children and
those new to the Scriptures. Because of its wording, though, key spiritual
truths can be either missing or misleading. (I do not know if there are other 'paraphrase' editions such as these available at this time but I am sure there will be new translations coming out in the future.)
The following are some reference helps:
Dictionary --A Bible dictionary is an asset for study. There are both Catholic and others available.
Maps and Time Charts: This helps get a perspective on places and times -- for both Old and New Testament times.
Concordance: This is a volume that contains cross-referencing. It lists all the words used in the Bible and where they can be found. Many of these are keyed to specific translations. This is one of the most helpful tools to use in serious study.
Commentary: There are a great variety of these. The best known Catholic (very expensive and very technical) is the
Jerome Biblical Commentary. There are many commentaries on individual books as well as on the whole Bible. These are not inspired (as the Bible is considered to be inspired) and are the studies and opinions of men and women.
Topical Bible: Called
Nave's Topical Bible, this book contains verses from the Bible sorted according to topics. |
