I left my religion a few months ago because I felt like the religion itself was getting in the way of my spiritual growth. I want to see if I can gain a better spiritual knowledge of God without the biased, conforming attitudes of religion.
I wanted to buy a bible to help me learn about God and get closer to Him, but because there are so many different versions--as well as religions--I wasn't sure which to buy.
So I bought the New Jerusalem Bible. It says it's supposed to be the most thoroughly translated, and unbiased, version around.
My question is, is this bible recommendable for someone who wants to read and study the scriptures as one way to get closer to God, gain spiritual knowledge, and find inner peace?
2007-10-18 18:43:57 · 5 answers · asked by goalissoul 2 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
Harmony is harmony; disharmony is the only sin against God. So, study your heart and then Read the red-letters in the Bible, Jesus' actual teachings. All other verses reflect the agenda of the particular author. I am suspicious of all other Bible verses. ----------- Your heart will lead you to Jesus' theme.
2007-10-22 09:20:07 · answer #1 · answered by D Uncle 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I recommend the New English Translation. I am a graduate seminary student and I would not say the New Jerusalem is the best.
With the NET you get thousands of translation notes to tell you what the issues are with particular words or sections and why they made the choices they did.
You can access it for free online at the following link:
http://net.bible.org/bible.php
Some great things about this online tool. When you enter a Bible passage, click on the verse number for a side by side comparison with several other versions even Greek in the NT and Hebrew and LXX in the Old.
Plus there are study articles on every book at the top and many other tools to be found.
It is truly awesome.
Enjoy!
2007-10-18 18:57:13 · answer #2 · answered by δοῦλος Χριστοῦ Ἰησοῦ 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The New Jerusalem Bible is a good translation. The issue is whether or not you will read it.
The best bible to buy is the one that you will study every day.
Getting into the habit of reading the Bible every day is hard. Other than sitting down and "forcing"yourself to read one chapter a day,I have no suggestions.
A good Study Bible will make it easier to both study the Bible every day, and understand obscure passages. Amongst the things to look for in a study Bible are:
* Included concordance;
* Dictionary;
* Cross-References;
* Maps;
* Commentary/notes on passages;
I like the _Life Application Study Bible_,which comes in several different translations.
Other books that help with understanding what is written are:
* Nave's Topical Bible;
* Unger's Bible Dictionary;
* Halley's Bible Handbook;
* Pictorial Bible Encyclopedia;
* Strong's Exhaustive Concordance;
* Cruden's Concordance;
* The Wycliffe Bible Commentary;
* Matthew Henry's Commentary;less.
* Thompson Chain Reference;
* Scofield Reference Notes;
Alternatively, you can either download free Bible Study Software, or buy a commercial package.
Free packages include:
* e-Sword: http://www.e-sword.net (Windows, Ubuntu Christian Edition)
* The Sword Project:
This is a cross-platform API. The following software is created and dsitributed by this project:
** BibleTime: http://www.bibletime.info/ (Unix, Linux)
** GnomeSword: http://gnomesword.sourceforge.net/ (Linux,Unix)
** BibleDesktop: http://www.crosswire.org/bibledesktop/download.html
Mac OS X, Windows, Linux, Unix, BSD)
** The Sword Project for Windows:
http://crosswire.org/sword/software/biblecs/ (Windows)
Both of the above (e-Sword,The Sword Project) have a number of Bibles, Dictionaries, Commentaries, and other Bible Study Tools available for gratis.
Commercial Bible Study Programs include:
* Logos : http://www.logos.com (Windows) $149.95 - $1379.955. This software is aimed at professional clergy, divinity students, and theology students.
* Accordance: http://www.accordancebible.com/ (Macintosh) $79 - $1999. This is the only usable Bible Study Software for the Macintosh. That said, it is much better than most Windows Bible Study Programs.
* BibleWorks: http://www.bibleworks.com/ (Windows) $349 Designed for Original Biblical Language study.
* Gramcord: http://www.gramcord.org/ (Windows) $95 - $235. Linguistic and exegetical tools for research objectives not addressed by the for-profit commercial publishing sector.
There are other commercial Bible Study programs. For the most part the free ones are better than the low end (US$500 or less) commercial products. The minor advantage the low end commercial Bible Study Programs have, is the possibility of one or two "modern" translations of the Bible,that aren't available for the gratis programs.
Oh, and none of the free/gratis programs provide comprehensive support for an Anglican or Orthodox Christian Bible.
2007-10-19 01:36:38 · answer #3 · answered by jblake80856 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Try www.biblegateway.com before you buy.
My favorite is NIV, so there are others.
The Authorised (King James) Version is there.
2007-10-18 18:48:44 · answer #4 · answered by J. 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Can I have the book of Enoc back in?
2007-10-18 18:49:12 · answer #5 · answered by Freethinking Liberal 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋