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Customer Reviews
I was given a copy of the Harper Collins Study Bible many years ago as a gift. I had several versions, and my friend thought he was giving me one more (I like to examine the differences in translations to find deeper meanings in the texts, or misinterpretations based on faulty or incomplete translation). Alas, he was disappointed when I informed him that this was not a distinctively Harper Collins translation; it is in fact a study version of the New Revised Standard Version, one of the dominant translations at use in church and scholarship today. The New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) is an updating of the respected and established Revised Standard Version, which still has life as the preferred text of many senior scholars.
The Harper Collins Study Bible was compiled under the direction of the Society of Biblical Literature (SBL) who, with the American Academy of Religion (AAR) is one of the most respected academic bodies in the field today. The AAR/SBL annual conferences are attended by thousands, including in the book vendor area a large contingent from Harper-Collins publishing. Wayne Meeks, a noted and respected scholar (primarily of New Testament and early Christian era studies) was the senior editor for this edition.
Generously annotated throughout, practically every other verse has a footnote. Variants in source texts and translations are highlighted, as are competing traditions of interpretation of the text (and yes, taking the text literally is still an interpretation, and a tradition of interpretation, for which there must be justification in the interpretive framework). Brief essays establishing context, historical background, textual difficulties and transmission history appear at the beginning of each book. This book contains the apocryphal books which some Bibles exclude; these are included and their status explained for those who are unfamiliar with these texts.
Various maps, charts, tables, and indexes aid the student, scholar or general reader in making way through the text. If I were to have only one copy of the NRSV, this would be it--if I were permitted to have only two Bibles, this would be the second next to my King James Version. Fortunately, I have no such restriction and thus use this beside the Jerusalem/New Jerusalem text, the Schocken versions that are currently being released, the New Interpreters series which is also currently being released, the Tanakh, a publication of the Jewish Publication Society, and various other versions. The Harper Collins Study Bible, however, is the central key around which my study of all other versions revolves.
Peruse it sometime in the library or bookstore, and see, if you have any interest in Biblical studies at all, if this does not become an essential tool for you, too.
The introductions to the books are written to enable quite involved study of the scripture which really appeals to me, the introductions as well as set the scene for every book in the Bible also explain the Culture of the times when the books were written.
The few negative things that I would mention is the Harper Collins Study Bible is written in American English, which is no massive problem as the Scripture is that of the NRSV.
The introductions take a while to get your head around (It did me) they are quite in-depth and wordy. There is also the noticeable lack of a marker ribbon, which can make it a bit time consuming to find a passage, but can be sorted with a book mark.
I always remove the Dust jacket from Bibles as they always slip when I am reading and get tatty very quickly, this Bible is the perfect size to fit Large Bible Covers so there is no problem keeping it clean. The typeset is quite small but is easy to read as it is broken in to paragraphs with sub-headings.
Sometimes in the introduction texts you will see that the author of the essay will refer to something like the Gospel of Thomas (New Testament Apocrypha) which interested me enough to start searching on the web for the reference text)
I would recommend this Bible to those who want to get deeper into the text of the Bible, but wouldn't buy it as someones first Bible.
To Sum up
I highly reccommend this Bible, would make a fantastic Confirmation present or for anyone wanting to get beyond the first layer of the scripture.
For a first Bible I would recommend the Kingsway Life Application Study Bible.
Was trying for ages to figure out the difference as I wanted to get the most complete Bible I could and was seeing that the student version had less pages, which one would not expect. Hope this helps others in their purchasing.
The version listed here has been significantly changed. The layout is cramped at best. The margins are minuscule leaving little to no room for personal comments or notes within the text. Which seems kind of ridiculous for a student bible not having room for the student to make notes in. They have additionally changed the font in this text making it even more difficult to read. It is to narrow now and plays havoc on the eyes.
The maps are horrible! Instead of drawn maps they have been rendered by digital maps that have been pixelated horribly! I am all for digital maps but don't do it in such away that when you look at it everything is blurry and you can't see anything. The maps as they are just seem to take up space. This could have been good had they taken sometime and made good maps. But no we are stuck with horrible maps.
And the space between the columns have been significantly reduced. To the point it is easy to miss the ending of one and continue reading into the other.
The text itself and notes are absolutely wonderful. The quality and production of this text is horrific. So all I can say is buyer beware.
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