This is kind of traumatic.
You live in your Bible and it’s full of notes, bookmarks, highlights, moments of “a-ha!” in the margin—and to start over is super tough.
I can think of several good reasons to do it:
Your old Bible is so well used (like my mom’s) that it’s falling apart.
You want a different translation.
You use a new Bible each year and let the Bible be a kind of faith journal for each year.
You want a Bible with some study notes or other helps, or some different features than what you have.
Your favorite passages are so marked up you need a new Bible to continue study.
But here’s the main reason for me: I can’t read the small print.
Not the fine print. No, the small all-over print.
I used to joke about my dad’s super-huge giant print Bible but the joke is on me.
Bible study at church has become the Dance of the Eyeglasses. Remove them to read, put them on to see who might be speaking, remove them to read, put them on to make eye contact with people in the room. Remove them to read. Panic when you can’t remember where you put them down.
Reading the Bible in church service is about two inches away from it being a face mask. So, I made the hard decision to accept reality and get a new Bible.
There are a lot of Bibles out there. Translations, usage, audience, cover, hobby—when I bought my two-tone brown Bible years ago, there weren’t a ton of options. I settled on a black-cover Thompson Chain Reference Bible, on sale, large-ish bold print.1
When it arrived, I realized my mistake.
I mean, it’s a great Bible. Getting a Bible isn’t a mistake. But this Bible…it’s huge. My old Bible immediately seemed like a travel Bible in comparison.
“You could share the Bible with people and if they refused to listen, beat them,” my friend said, hefting the Bible up and down to get a sense for whether or not it needed its own zip code or not.
Of course, it was too big for my Bible holder, the handy zip-up bag with pens and highlighters that I take to church and Bible study. I literally had to get a kind of reusable grocery bag to lug it to church this past Sunday.
I walked in with my new Bible, realizing I could have also just carried in one of my bookshelves and still have comparable bulk, wondering if everyone in the church saw how large it was. I opened my new Bible and laid it on my lap while sitting in the pew, marveling that, for the first time in my life, I was wishing that my lap was larger. It was as big as a banquet table, capable of seeing 12 or more.
I’m talking about the Bible, not my lap.
I could definitely read it much easier. I didn’t even have to bend my head in closer, sitting up right instead of genuflecting and placing my nose an inch above the page.
But it was so large.
I was going to have to readjust after fifteen years of one-handed ease-of-use convenience.
“I feel like I may have overdone it,” I said to my friend. “Instead of this huge print, I could probably have gone for something a bit smaller, somewhere in between what I had and this.”
Admittedly, I’m aware of the trajectory I’m on. Things ain’t getting better with the old eyes.
Might as well just own that reality and settle in for another fifteen years of impressive strength training every time I pick up the word. I’ve heard that, in the ancient days, swords were quite heavy.
Here I am, Lord. Help me with the heavy lifting in every possible way.
Regarding Bible translations, I don’t scold, reprimand, cajole, or force other believers to be apologetic about the translation they use. I’ve experienced that enough myself. I was hesitant to tell people I got a new Bible, if you can believe it, because the first question is: what translation did you get. The only exception, for me, is The Passion “Translation” because of the man who created it, the lies around it, and the dangerous additions to it which are far more than just a paraphrase. You can learn more about that here. Even then, I want to not attack, and just hear the person share what they read in it, and then gently suggest looking up the passage in a parallel Bible and continuing the discussion that way.
At most, I might differentiate between translation and paraphrase if conversation allows, but note that I, too, enjoy reading The Message paraphrase (as Eugene Peterson referred to it, saying it shouldn’t be a study Bible) as my bedtime reading.
After Charlie Kirk’s death, many people who had zero understanding of the Bible and Jesus went to social media to talk about their newfound attempts at seeking Jesus. I dreaded the result, frankly, because I know how Christians are on social media, particularly those (sorry, but Calvinists, I’m looking at you) who sometimes take such pride in their theology that they use it like a weapon. Case in point are the screenshots below. I wish these were the only example, but there were many. I knew as soon as she posted a photo of her new NLT Bible that the hordes would attack. I literally felt sick when I saw her joy at her new NLT Bible, knowing it was about to be robbed.
I would never tell a brand new, never-opened-a-Bible believer to read an ESV or especially NASB. KJV, either. We’re dealing with a society that struggles with reading and comprehension. I have zero problem with NLT, NIV, CSB, or so on for a new believer or someone still considering the faith. If you want into the Word, I want you in the Word.
In the replies to her post, just know I would never hit such a person with a chart like that! What are we thinking, Christians?! Most believers probably have no idea what they’re looking at. And it’s not important to salvation, this fight over translations.
Please note that the Mormons successfully love-bombed her while the blasted Christians were nasty about which translation she had selected. Nice work for the devil.
I have no idea what happened to this young woman. I hope she is still reading her Bible and hasn’t ordered The Book of Mormon but who knows.
While it is valuable to know the story around the translation, and any concerns or contributing factors that effect the way difficult passages are translated, for someone starting just get them in the Word that they can understand.
For the study group class I’m teaching, I made this chart. CSB through NLT would be the range I’d have no problem with if you’re new to the Bible or faith. As you grow, you may naturally be interested in other translations, and that is great.
Not gonna lie, but the NASB is my least favorite version. I like the NIV and I’ll still see you in Heaven.
I really like the chart, Julie. I used the NASB for a decade or two, but have shifted to the NIV over the past ten+ years. There's a huge range of translations/paraphrases in use in our Bible study class (80+ people, so it's bound to happen), and to our credit, I've never heard a single word challenging (i.e. "judging") folks for their choices. Such a shame that any seeker is made to feel "less than" for simply wanting to find Jesus.
I, too, will refrain from lying: NASB is my default translation. But I also like the NIV.
Just curious — why is NASB at the bottom of your list? I like it because it has the flavor of something written earlier than last week (or last century, for that matter).
See you in Heaven. I’ll be the bald one. Which may not suffice to identify me, come to think of it.