The Macarthur Student Bible

Rating:
Summary: An unhappy medium
Review: I can't say that this one is worth buying. The notes in this Bible are very helpful and informative, but much of the spirit and poetry of the Biblical texts is lost in the modernized language. So I guess you could say it gets 5 stars for the commentary, and 1 star for the actual Bible part. It really all depends on what you're looking for, and how much you're willing to sacrifice linguistically.

Rating:
Summary: A fantastic study Bible
Review: My daughter is eleven-years-old, and learning more and more about God. We are reading Little Pilgrim's Progress by Helen Taylor together, and I realized that it is now time for her to have her own Bible. A beloved aunt of mine gave me my first Bible, a bare bones KJV, and I treasure it to this day. But, over the years I was sometimes envious of others' wonderful study Bibles. So, I decided that the Bible I give my daughter would be the best study Bible I can find, one that she can use for her entire life. Well, this is it!

This Bible is the New King James Version, plus a whole lot more. It begins with an introduction to the Bible, chapters on how we got the Bible, how to study the Bible, and a preface to the NKJV. The Old and New Testaments each have a highly informative introduction, and each book of the Bible begins with an introduction that covers Author and Date, Background and Setting, Historical and Theological Themes, and an outline of the book. As if that weren't enough, the book is crammed full of notes, sidebars and references. Plus, the finale of this Bible is a topical index (even better than a concordance in my opinion), and eight color maps!

Whoo! As I hope the above description tells you, this is a fantastic study Bible. It has everything a studious Christian of any age could want. As I hope that my daughter will use this book for many years to come, I went with the hardbound edition. The binding appears good to me, and I think that it is well worth the extra few dollars.

I am very happy with this purchase, and I highly recommend this Bible to everyone!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent for All Ages
Review: The word "Student" in the title may lead people to think this is a study Bible for youngsters. Not so! A young person of college age or even high-school age would love it, but so will people in their sixties (cest moi)! It is the one study Bible that is not loaded with 85 percent commentary and 15 percent Bible. It tells you just what you want to know and lets you get on with your reading. The informative longer notes appear only occasionally, and they are complete on one page. The short notes appear in shaded areas and are very valuable. For example, the short note with Luke 22:44 explains Christ's sweating great drops of blood with an excellent explanation of the medical phenomenon known as "hematidrosis." The absence of red-letter type is a relief--too many Bibles now are printed with the red-letter feature. One no longer has a choice, and the red ink is often badly applied or more pink than red and hard to read. MacArthur's Student Bible is easy to live with--very legible large type, but not overlarge, and plenty of white space. The introductions to each book of the Bible are very well done too. This is a gem!

Rating:
Summary: Excellent for All Ages
Review: The word "Student" in the title may lead people to think this is a study Bible for youngsters. Not so! A young person of college age or even high-school age would love it, but so will people in their sixties (cest moi)! It is the one study Bible that is not loaded with 85 percent commentary and 15 percent Bible. It tells you just what you want to know and lets you get on with your reading. The informative longer notes appear only occasionally, and they are complete on one page. The short notes appear in shaded areas and are very valuable. For example, the short note with Luke 22:44 explains Christ's sweating great drops of blood with an excellent explanation of the medical phenomenon known as "hematidrosis." The absence of red-letter type is a relief--too many Bibles now are printed with the red-letter feature. One no longer has a choice, and the red ink is often badly applied or more pink than red and hard to read. MacArthur's Student Bible is easy to live with--very legible large type, but not overlarge, and plenty of white space. The introductions to each book of the Bible are very well done too. This is a gem!