Best Bible for the Kindle?
December 23, 2019 10:52 AM Subscribe
I'd like to read the Bible on my Kindle. This could be an annotated version, or just the straight up Bible. I don;t know anything about it, so do mention all kinds of Bibles. I wanna read all the weird stories, the glorious stuff, the terrible stuff, the digressions, the revelations, the Hebrew Bible, the pre-Jesus stuff, the whatnots, the what-have-yous.
So please do recommend.
There are so many different options that the best answers will depend on your reasons for wanting to read the Bible.
What complicates the answer is that "The Bible" is not a single document. From a (simplified) Christian perspective, you can divide the Bible into the canonical Bible, which are the parts that most denominations agree should be included, and the biblical apocrypha, which are disputed.
If your interest is in learning about the Bible as a historical and religious document, then I would suggest a well-regarded, academic, annotated version that includes the apocrypha. Something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/New-Oxford-Annotated-Bible-Apocrypha/dp/0195289609
I say specifically "academic" because these will be less biased toward a particular religious point of view and typically are more comprehensive.
You will not find a single "book" that includes everything you want, especially if you want to incorporate different religious traditions. But this is where I would personally start.
I don't want to say much about the Hebrew Bible, because that isn't part of my cultural background, but I would caution you against lumping it in with the Christian Bible, despite the overlap - primarily because the religious context is so different. I think that unless you're Jewish, it would be a good idea to treat that as a separate part of your learning project, so you can incorporate learning about that context too.
posted by Kutsuwamushi at 11:38 AM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]
What complicates the answer is that "The Bible" is not a single document. From a (simplified) Christian perspective, you can divide the Bible into the canonical Bible, which are the parts that most denominations agree should be included, and the biblical apocrypha, which are disputed.
If your interest is in learning about the Bible as a historical and religious document, then I would suggest a well-regarded, academic, annotated version that includes the apocrypha. Something like this:
https://www.amazon.com/New-Oxford-Annotated-Bible-Apocrypha/dp/0195289609
I say specifically "academic" because these will be less biased toward a particular religious point of view and typically are more comprehensive.
You will not find a single "book" that includes everything you want, especially if you want to incorporate different religious traditions. But this is where I would personally start.
I don't want to say much about the Hebrew Bible, because that isn't part of my cultural background, but I would caution you against lumping it in with the Christian Bible, despite the overlap - primarily because the religious context is so different. I think that unless you're Jewish, it would be a good idea to treat that as a separate part of your learning project, so you can incorporate learning about that context too.
posted by Kutsuwamushi at 11:38 AM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]
Whatever version you choose, stick with one that's reliable, one that accurately translates from the original languages. Some versions deliberately mistranslate in order to advance the translator's particular agenda. A Bible with study notes will help with the harder passages (and there are lots of them). Having used dozens of different Bibles over the years, I can strongly recommend the Christian Standard Study Bible, NIV Study Bible, and the ESV Study Bible. The King James Version is an excellent translation but its Elizabethan English is a little hard to understand nowadays.
posted by davcoo at 11:40 AM on December 23, 2019 [2 favorites]
posted by davcoo at 11:40 AM on December 23, 2019 [2 favorites]
Many Christian groups in the US prefer "word for word" translation rather than "thought for thought" translation. In other words, if there was a figure of speech in use at the time, they don't want it translated with a modern equivalent; they want the specific words from the original document. This is an issue that is frequently debated in translation circles generally. The issue with "word for word" translation is that it can lose aspects of the author's intention. Imagine translating "Writing this Metafilter comment is killing me!" into a language where "killing" is only used in the literal sense, and you can see where this can become an issue.
The King James Bible was translated in the early 1600s and is up there with Shakespeare for "most phrases introduced into the English language." It is a version that many smaller Christian sects consider to be authoritative. They champion this version because they feel newer translations rely on original Greek documents that intentionally corrupted Jesus's teachings. This translation of the Bible was done at a time when there was a great deal of controversy in England over which translation the Church should use. The translation that was acceptable to Puritans questioned the divine right of kings, which King James wasn't too keen on. Therefore, he funded a new version that would both be broadly acceptable and would not question his right to the throne. In addition to a version that subtly supported the King who was funding them, the translators at times chose poetry over accuracy. They were also hampered because the documents they used for their translation were in a type of Greek they did not fully understand. That having been said, this was formative for both the spread of Protestantism and the evolution of the English language.
The New International Version is in more modern language and is the most popular Bible translation in the U.S. It is the version that is used by most evangelical groups. It has been argued that the translation was constructed to fit a specific Evangelical point of view. One of the reasons this is preferred by evangelical groups is it explicitly says Mary was a virgin rather than a young woman (accurate translation of that phrase is a contentious topic). If you plan to have a discussion with Evangelicals about the Bible, this is the version they'll be pulling from.
The New Revised Standard Version, which you can find published by Oxford Press, is the one most used by scholars. It's got a lot of footnotes, maps, and all kinds of other materials to add context. It is a thought-for-thought, not word-for-word translation. If you want a version that is going to place what you are reading in context, this will be the most useful version for you. Also includes bonus apocrypha! content! However, it is not recommended by the Catholic Church or many Protestant sects due to its inclusive language.
The Oxford Catholic Bible Study Edition has lots of notes, glossaries and contains context as to how the Bible is used in the Catholic faith. (The Catholic Bible has 73 books, the Protestant Bible has 66 books.)
There are literally hundreds of other translations, but any of these four will be good to get you started. I hope the above has given you context that will help you select the one that suits your needs.
posted by rednikki at 11:51 AM on December 23, 2019 [19 favorites]
The King James Bible was translated in the early 1600s and is up there with Shakespeare for "most phrases introduced into the English language." It is a version that many smaller Christian sects consider to be authoritative. They champion this version because they feel newer translations rely on original Greek documents that intentionally corrupted Jesus's teachings. This translation of the Bible was done at a time when there was a great deal of controversy in England over which translation the Church should use. The translation that was acceptable to Puritans questioned the divine right of kings, which King James wasn't too keen on. Therefore, he funded a new version that would both be broadly acceptable and would not question his right to the throne. In addition to a version that subtly supported the King who was funding them, the translators at times chose poetry over accuracy. They were also hampered because the documents they used for their translation were in a type of Greek they did not fully understand. That having been said, this was formative for both the spread of Protestantism and the evolution of the English language.
The New International Version is in more modern language and is the most popular Bible translation in the U.S. It is the version that is used by most evangelical groups. It has been argued that the translation was constructed to fit a specific Evangelical point of view. One of the reasons this is preferred by evangelical groups is it explicitly says Mary was a virgin rather than a young woman (accurate translation of that phrase is a contentious topic). If you plan to have a discussion with Evangelicals about the Bible, this is the version they'll be pulling from.
The New Revised Standard Version, which you can find published by Oxford Press, is the one most used by scholars. It's got a lot of footnotes, maps, and all kinds of other materials to add context. It is a thought-for-thought, not word-for-word translation. If you want a version that is going to place what you are reading in context, this will be the most useful version for you. Also includes bonus apocrypha! content! However, it is not recommended by the Catholic Church or many Protestant sects due to its inclusive language.
The Oxford Catholic Bible Study Edition has lots of notes, glossaries and contains context as to how the Bible is used in the Catholic faith. (The Catholic Bible has 73 books, the Protestant Bible has 66 books.)
There are literally hundreds of other translations, but any of these four will be good to get you started. I hope the above has given you context that will help you select the one that suits your needs.
posted by rednikki at 11:51 AM on December 23, 2019 [19 favorites]
I don;t know anything about it, so do mention all kinds of Bibles.
Others have covered more literal translations above. If you are interested in the Bible as a poetic text rather than academic, and think you might struggle through the translations above, give The Message a try. I read King James in college, tried to read the New International Version but kept dropping it, but read The Message basically cover to cover. Now I go back to NIV as my standard Bible and feel like I can understand it much better.
Again, from a poetic perspective, you might like to watch some of the Bible Project videos as a guide if this is a solo endeavour. Enjoy — whatever your reasons for picking up the Bible, I hope you find what you’re looking for.
posted by third word on a random page at 1:10 PM on December 23, 2019
Others have covered more literal translations above. If you are interested in the Bible as a poetic text rather than academic, and think you might struggle through the translations above, give The Message a try. I read King James in college, tried to read the New International Version but kept dropping it, but read The Message basically cover to cover. Now I go back to NIV as my standard Bible and feel like I can understand it much better.
Again, from a poetic perspective, you might like to watch some of the Bible Project videos as a guide if this is a solo endeavour. Enjoy — whatever your reasons for picking up the Bible, I hope you find what you’re looking for.
posted by third word on a random page at 1:10 PM on December 23, 2019
Just download the YouVersion Bible App and you can choose many different translations - I would recommend the NIV, it's generally easy to understand. If you want Olde English choose the King James Version; If you'd like a more contemporary translation try The Message or The Passion translation.
I use a actual NIV study bible that has lots of footnotes and explanations when things don't make sense or I don't understand the context (Jesus uses a lot of farming examples that I, as a modern office worker, sure as heck don't understand).
posted by latch24 at 1:16 PM on December 23, 2019
I use a actual NIV study bible that has lots of footnotes and explanations when things don't make sense or I don't understand the context (Jesus uses a lot of farming examples that I, as a modern office worker, sure as heck don't understand).
posted by latch24 at 1:16 PM on December 23, 2019
I'm favoring the New Jerusalem translation these days, but used the Oxford Study Bible mentioned above for quite a few years. I was given a beautiful Douay-Rheims bible many years ago and still go back to it when I want that sort of language. The Douay text is in the public domain and can be gotten from Project Gutenberg for free (as can the KJV, I imagine).
If I may make an additional recommendation - Reading the Old Testament, by Lawrence Boadt, may prove useful as you make your way through the OT, which, as has already been mentioned above, a collection of writing from a variety of genres describing events spanning millennia.
posted by jquinby at 1:40 PM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]
If I may make an additional recommendation - Reading the Old Testament, by Lawrence Boadt, may prove useful as you make your way through the OT, which, as has already been mentioned above, a collection of writing from a variety of genres describing events spanning millennia.
posted by jquinby at 1:40 PM on December 23, 2019 [1 favorite]
I have the New Oxford Annotated Bible with Apocrypha on kindle and like it. As rednikki says above, it's probably the most scholarly version that's readily accessible. My ex got me the print version on a recommendation from John Shelby Spong.
posted by slkinsey at 6:04 AM on December 24, 2019
posted by slkinsey at 6:04 AM on December 24, 2019
If you want to read the Hebrew Bible from a Jewish translation, I recommend the Jewish Publication Society Tanakh: The Holy Scriptures.
posted by grouse at 6:35 AM on December 24, 2019 [3 favorites]
posted by grouse at 6:35 AM on December 24, 2019 [3 favorites]
When I teach the Bible in history courses, I generally use the New American Bible for Catholics. Although it was obviously produced for a particular branch of Christianity, it's a scholarly translation, and its introductory material gives a good overview of the history of the work's composition. The annotations draw the reader's attention to difficult or tendentious passages: for example, they note that the Johannine Comma, the only explicit mention in the New Testament of the Trinity, is not found in the oldest manuscripts of I John.
The 2011 revision is available as a Kindle book.
posted by brianogilvie at 9:39 AM on December 24, 2019
The 2011 revision is available as a Kindle book.
posted by brianogilvie at 9:39 AM on December 24, 2019
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posted by blnkfrnk at 11:37 AM on December 23, 2019