Rating: 
Summary: Good...but could have been better...
Review: This Bible paralleled a timeline of spiritual change for me. My wife got it for me for Christmas 1999. At that time we were Evangelical Lutheran Church in America; now we are Lutheran Church - Missouri Synod.There are many good points about this Bible. The in-text study notes are very well arranged. The maps and concordance are excellent. The articles on Bible study are well-written. It is indeed set up to be "accessible". Caveats: The NRSV is a good translation, but let down by awkward, forced "gender-neutrality". Not a good thing. I think most female readers don't explicitly look for this. It would have been so much better had the translators gone with what the Greek and Hebrew actually said, instead of being "politically correct". Also, the study notes and book introductions are very much worded according to the "historical-critical" method of Bible interpretation. The Old Testament is treated strictly as a Jewish work, with almost no links noted to the New Testament. However, this was also the first time I have read the Apocrypha in any detail and I found the notes very well-explained. Overall, good, but could have been better. If you are a member of a "mainline" denomination (whatever that means in this day and age) and have never really read the Bible, it would be a good introduction. However, if you are more theologically conservative, you will find problems. My choice is still the NIV Concordia Self-Study Bible.
Rating: 
Summary: Dive in and Learn
Review: This is the first Bible I've ever purchased for myself, after careful deliberation between many different versions. I found the Access Bible the best balance between pure, dry scholarship and completely evangelical footnotes that I don't feel comfortable with. The Access Bible has helpful full-color maps, a small concordance in the back, and an index. What I find most helpful, however, are the notes sprinkled throughout the text that help me gain insight into the way people thought and behaved in the time that Scripture was written. I recommend this Bible for any thoughtful believer who wishes to approach this most amazing and influential book with both spirit and mind fully engaged.
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