I won’t be doing a review of this, only commenting on how it looks.

I mentioned a while back how to get a free copy, which is no longer available.

I like the typeface a lot. It’s kind of a modified serif that’s closer to sans-serif than most. This is my second favorite that I’ve seen behind TNIV’s Thinline which is pretty much sans-serif. Most people like serif (like Times New Roman) for some strange reason so I’m in the minority there as I usually seem to be. It’s fairly large, a little large for me which is probably perfect for most people. The typeface is the same as in the PDF files, as mentioned below, as in this edition of the Bible.

This is like a medium sized paperback book with good paper, not thin “Bible paper”, and very black print (no red letter either!).

The text goes way out to the far edges of the page so there really isn’t any room for notes and it may be a little tough to read the inside margins.

I was happy to see it come with a bookmark. I love bookmarks and collect them.

Also, it has two color maps. What would a Bible be without maps?

This edition of the CEB Common English Bible New Testament is $5 and can be found at Amazon.com but I would strongly advise waiting for the whole Bible. There’s too much good stuff on who God is in the other part.

At first I thought they stole my splash image but I guess it’s a little different. Kidding. Besides, mine is coffee, which you can see below.

They have a nice web site where you can look up passages of the Bible, compare editions and translations, read PDF files of Genesis, Matthew and Luke among other things.

Common English Bible Web Site

Click for a larger one

Saw this retweet by Bryan Lilly on Twitter:

RT @jaredcwilson: Seeing the cross in Esther 7:10. Blows me away. The gallows Satan meant for our defeat is his own defeat.

I just read Esther and this went right over my head. Feel kinda dumb. I need to keep my eyes more open and also have help in seeing these kinds of things. It’s amazing how this is all over the Old Testament.

“Almost every time I study one of the books of the Bible I think it has become one of my favorites.”

Colossians is pretty special for me though, in addition to the Gospels, and Hebrews, and Ecclesiastes, and Revelation, and the prison letters and Proverbs. Next maybe Genesis? I like Titus and Philemon a lot too.

(For a while I’m going to try to post at least 6x a week. I can at least post a quote.)

Thank God he comforts his own differently than his enemies. Praise God he sent his Son to die and rise again so that when we believe, we will receive the Holy Spirit and be comforted directly by God–never sarcastically as shown below which would almost be humorous if it wasn’t so tragic and horrific.

Another OT example of how much God hates sin and will punish it but also the lengths He’ll go to show his people how much he loves them and is fiercely on their side.

Ezekiel 32:31
When Pharaoh and his entire army arrive, he will take comfort that he is not alone in having his hordes killed, says the Sovereign LORD.

Ezekiel 33:11
As surely as I live, says the Sovereign LORD, I take no pleasure in the death of wicked people. I only want them to turn from their wicked ways so they can live. Turn! Turn from your wickedness, O people of Israel! Why should you die?

2 Corinthians 5:20b
We speak for Christ when we plead, “Come back to God!”

2 Corinthians 1:3-5
All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort. 4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us. 5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.

Last night I was reading a verse and thinking how bad it would be if taken out of context and obeyed, which is what we do with all kinds of verses, some of them OK, some not.

Jeremiah 44:25
This is what the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, the God of Israel, says: ‘You and your wives have said, “We will keep our promises to burn incense and pour out liquid offerings to the Queen of Heaven,” and you have proved by your actions that you meant it. So go ahead and carry out your promises and vows to her!’

Then today I read a post by Jason called Why Literal Interpretation of the Bible Can Be Bad which you can read if you want to be consternated.

Also see:
Quoting Scripture Out Of Context

I read Genesis in January and I’m finally blogging just a couple of thoughts about it.

In the beginning (sound familiar) there is day with light, night with darkness, morning, day etc. “[E]vening passed and morning came, marking the second day.” Later in the Old Testament He tells us to keep the Sabbath day holy.

I never before noticed that it repeats “produce the kinds of plants and trees from which they came” twice, “each producing offspring of the same kind” and “God made all sorts of wild animals, livestock, and small animals, each able to produce offspring of the same kind”.

He also repeats, “And that is what happened.”

I see some emphaticness here of some sort. Just an observation of what I read, no real conclusion here other than He made specific things happen each day and things that produce the same thing that they are. Worms don’t produce humans etc.

By far the most important thing is God’s sovereignty. Women would say that God closed up their wombs. Then God would say to some that He will open them. People knew God had control over everything and that He is the Sovereign Lord.

I don’t think that they used this language even though He supposedly wasn’t exercising that much control and then humored them anyway by saying things like He would open up a woman’s womb when it was really just chance.

I notice a contrast between this and how most of us think and talk today about God and how much control He has over everything. Colossians 1:15-17 is reality but I don’t think most of us really ponder, understand and believe that enough. It’s a challenge for myself.

(I reserve the right to make up words. Also anyone who happens to say that the Bible isn’t a science book will have their comment deleted. I already know that.)

Also see:
Reading the Old Testament

Ezekiel 18:23 
Do you think that I like to see wicked people die? says the Sovereign LORD. Of course not! I want them to turn from their wicked ways and live.

2 Samuel 14:14
All of us must die eventually. Our lives are like water spilled out on the ground, which cannot be gathered up again. But God does not just sweep life away; instead, he devises ways to bring us back when we have been separated from him.

2 Peter 3:9
The Lord isn’t really being slow about his promise, as some people think. No, he is being patient for your sake. He does not want anyone to be destroyed, but wants everyone to repent.

Since I’ve been posting so little I’m going to resort to commenting on other people’s posts. Or at least this one. For those who may be somewhat new to translations/versions of the Bible, Rick Mansfield wrote a very detailed and helpful Top Ten Bible Versions: Revisited (2010) which has links to reviews he did of most of these translations in 2006.

In case you’d like to know what I like (not that it matters), it’s very similar to him.

His list:
1. Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
2. New Living Translation (NLT)
3. NET Bible (New English Translation)
4. New Revised Standard Version (NRSV)
5. New American Standard Bible (NASB)
6. Good News Translation (AKA Today’s English Version; GNT/TEV)
7. The Message
8. New Jerusalem Bible (NJB)
9. Revised English Bible (REB)
10. Today’s New International Version (TNIV)

HONORABLE MENTIONS

The King James Version, English Standard Version, The Modern Language Bible, God’s Word.

——

My top 9:

His 1 and 2 are my primary and secondary.

I like the NET but some of it reads a little strange for me and I don’t like replacing fear (of God) with respect and awe, although I always use it for comparison. I love the concept of the fear of God. It would go to about eight for me even though it’s fine I’m sure.

NRSV is my #3 and was my main translation for three years prior to switching to the HCSB and NLT combo last year.

I still like the NASB also. I’ll take that over the ESV.

I also like the GNB (GNT on his list–I like to use the older GNB designation, Good News Bible, so that it doesn’t get confused with the Greek New Testament). Gordon Fee seems to like this translation as his go-to dynamic version in some of his commentaries.

I would put The Message at #9 for comparison purposes only. If you look real hard you’ll find a good verse or two.

Then I would have TNIV at #6 (NIV was my main translation for over two decades–maybe I’m tired of it) and REB at #7 (its predecessor, the NEB, was F.F. Bruce’s go-to dynamic translation from what I saw) which is a great literary translation. That makes nine.

But I mainly wanted to point out Rick Mansfield’s post and the links he has to his prior reviews in case anyone new to this kind of thing wants to go look it up.

Of course he was!

Ezekiel 14:14
Even if Noah, Daniel, and Job were there, their righteousness would save no one but themselves, says the Sovereign LORD.

I realize that Ezekiel is filled with dream-like imagery, but this message from the Lord (and the rest of the section) certainly confirms to me that they were real individuals. Not that I needed any more convincing.

I wrote a post called Professor Horner’s Bible Reading Plan. Tim Challies just wrote an encouraging post titled Ten Chapters Per Day if you’re interested in reading more about it.

I was planning on starting this next year but I think I would like to start it when my Greek learning has slowed down and I’m mainly reading Greek along with something to help me through it and when I’m done concentrating on the OT for now. I’m thinking second half of next year to 2012.

Jeremiah 48:10
Cursed are those who refuse to do the LORD’s work,
who hold back their swords from shedding blood!

(This speaks about the Lord, His sovereignty, His hatred of sin, etc. not what we’re supposedly supposed to do in this day and age, just so people don’t get the wrong idea.)

Spend at least 5-10 minutes, five if you have an incredibly difficult time with this, and meditate on Ephesians 3:16-21. Or not even all the way to :21. I know it will be good for you.

I found some interesting resources on Habakkuk after following up on a quote found in Ryken’s Bible Handbook:

God doesn’t always change the circumstances, but He can change us to meet the circumstances. That’s what it means to live by faith.

–Warren Wiersbe, Conclusion to his outline of Chapter 3

You can find these outlines in HTML format at these links:
Habakkuk 1-2:4
Habakkuk 2:5-3:19

The outline is very colorful–literally. Much of Habakkuk is applied to our present day world and New Testament references are noted. There is quite a bit about Reformed theology throughout.

Another resource I happened to find is by Dr. Thomas L. Constable of Dallas Theological Seminary.
Notes on Habakkuk – 2010 Edition

I like this quote he includes which part of why Habakkuk is so interesting.

Habakkuk is a unique book. Unlike other prophets who declared God’s message to people this prophet dialogued with God about people. Most Old Testament prophets proclaimed divine judgment. Habakkuk pleaded for divine judgment. In contrast with the typical indictment, this little book records an intriguing interchange between a perplexed prophet and his Maker.

–Ronald J. Blue, “Habakkuk.” In The Bible Knowledge Commentary: Old Testament p. 1505

And of course there is John Hobbin’s blog Ancient Hebrew Poetry which starts out here:
The Book of Habakkuk: An Introduction
I think you can find the rest via Google.

I love it when Scripture explains Scripture. Whether it’s Paul or the other NT writers expositing the Old Testament, one idea completed in another part of Scripture, a verse explaining what went right before it, etc.

I read a version of the latter–Isaiah 5:7 explaining what goes before it in the first six verses. I feel like it’s a bonus.

Isaiah 5:1-7
Now I will sing for the one I love a song about his vineyard on a rich and fertile hill.
2 He plowed the land, cleared its stones, and planted it with the best vines. In the middle he built a watchtower and carved a winepress in the nearby rocks. Then he waited for a harvest of sweet grapes, but the grapes that grew were bitter.
3 Now, you people of Jerusalem and Judah, you judge between me and my vineyard.
4 What more could I have done for my vineyard that I have not already done? When I expected sweet grapes, why did my vineyard give me bitter grapes?
5 Now let me tell you what I will do to my vineyard: I will tear down its hedges and let it be destroyed. I will break down its walls and let the animals trample it.
6 I will make it a wild place where the vines are not pruned and the ground is not hoed, a place overgrown with briers and thorns. I will command the clouds to drop no rain on it.
7 The nation of Israel is the vineyard of the LORD of Heaven’s Armies. The people of Judah are his pleasant garden. He expected a crop of justice, but instead he found oppression. He expected to find righteousness, but instead he heard cries of violence.

Comments welcome.

Ecclesiastes 6:9 
Enjoy what you have rather than desiring what you don’t have. Just dreaming about nice things is meaningless–like chasing the wind.

Isaiah 22:5
Oh, what a day of crushing defeat! What a day of confusion and terror brought by the Lord, the LORD of Heaven’s Armies, upon the Valley of Vision! The walls of Jerusalem have been broken, and cries of death echo from the mountainsides.

Isaiah 22:11
Between the city walls, you build a reservoir for water from the old pool. But you never ask for help from the One who did all this. You never considered the One who planned this long ago.

People of Judah are killed by famine and disease. The same One who caused it can bring them out of it, but they never thought to ask for His help. Those people never learn do they! And we can’t say we’re a whole lot different, forgetting to go to the Lord right away until we’ve trained ourselves with the help and strength of the Holy Spirit.

I really don’t understand Open Theism when reading verses like these.

Genesis 50:20
You intended to harm me, but God intended it all for good. He brought me to this position so I could save the lives of many people.

2 Kings 19:25
But have you not heard? I decided this long ago. Long ago I planned it, and now I am making it happen. I planned for you to crush fortified cities into heaps of rubble.

Psalm 40:5
O LORD my God, you have performed many wonders for us. Your plans for us are too numerous to list. You have no equal. If I tried to recite all your wonderful deeds, I would never come to the end of them.

Isaiah 25:1
O LORD, I will honor and praise your name, for you are my God. You do such wonderful things! You planned them long ago, and now you have accomplished them.

Galatians 1:4
Jesus gave his life for our sins, just as God our Father planned, in order to rescue us from this evil world in which we live.

I’m very upset with myself for not blogging as I read through the Old Testament. Nancy, a commenter here, writes a blog called Day by Day and blogged as she read through the whole Bible! (Take a look at her blog. She has written some great comments here lately.)

So I’m going to jump in and post short things in all the wrong order and probably not spend a lot of time on it. But I want to write down some things that strike me as I read so I can look back on it.

Last night I was reading Psalms 135 and 136 and noticed that people praised God for slaughtering people. That isn’t very nice is it!? He slaughtered kings and the firstborn of Egypt. That’s what lengths he goes to defend and protect His people and that’s how much He hates evil.

Psalm 136:10
Give thanks to him who killed the firstborn of Egypt.
His faithful love endures forever.

Wouldn’t that make a nice plaque? (I’m still going to make one of those with a photo.)

Instead of wringing my hands over this I praise God that He’s a God of justice and we will be praising God as He is glorified in the end by completely defeating evil forever.

I had an MRI this week. I’m claustrophobic in tight spaces. I have a routine where I back into the room and never look at the machine. Then when I’m in it I keep my eyes closed and either pray or go over memorized Scripture (one of the many, many uses for this). When there was a long scan and the guy wasn’t talking (!) I meditated on Psalm 23. I put myself in the scene as a sheep with Jesus guiding me/us. I thought about going from the green pastures to beside the quiet waters and then I saw He is with us in the dark valley. I’ve never really thought about the sheep being in the dark valley with Him and for some reason that made a difference. I usually disconnect the sheep at that point.

Then I went through Psalm 20, Psalm 19:7-14 and the Beatitudes. I got stuck on something and started getting pretty anxious but got that straightened out.

I don’t know why I don’t spend more time meditating on Scripture. I guess that’s why I like reading about it, because in a way it’s like having someone else do it for you. But we need it to be personal with us and the Holy Spirit.

Then I got the news from the surgeon. He said that my lower back has degenerated in the last year and a half since I had my ‘minor’ surgery. He can see what’s pressing on the nerves and why I now have pain on both sides where I previously had it on one. He said I really need a double fusion from L4 to S1. Nothing else has helped and this is the only chance to partially “fix” it. I’m very upset about this. The recovery process is so much longer than the one I went through last year. My wife will have to do even more for me. What if it doesn’t work? Will it aggravate my chronic fatigue and mental health stuff? There’s a decent chance it will help but I don’t seem to think about that very much.

It’s so hard to totally give it up and abandon myself. I’m completely ‘with the program’ and then I slip and get anxious, then get with it again…

If you could pray even just once I’d appreciate it. I still have a lot of questions for the doctor, thinking about getting a second/third opinion, when to have it done etc.

How great it is to be one of God’s children through this. People go through much more major things than this and it’s just meaningless.

I need to practice meditating on Scripture as another weapon in the arsenal to be prepared for troubles.

To Joshua:
Joshua 1:8-9
Study this Book of Instruction continually. Meditate on it day and night so you will be sure to obey everything written in it. Only then will you prosper and succeed in all you do. 9 This is my command– be strong and courageous! Do not be afraid or discouraged. For the LORD your God is with you wherever you go.”

Psalm 119:27
Help me understand the meaning of your commandments, and I will meditate on your wonderful deeds.

Proverbs 16:4
The LORD has made everything for his own purposes,
even the wicked for a day of disaster.

Proverbs 8:27-31
I [wisdom] was there when He established the heavens,
when He laid out the horizon on the surface of the ocean,
28 when He placed the skies above,
when the fountains of the ocean gushed forth,
29 when He set a limit for the sea
so that the waters would not violate His command,
when He laid out the foundations of the earth.
30 I was a skilled craftsman always rejoicing before Him.
31 I was rejoicing in His inhabited world,
delighting in the human race.

Here is a blog I found by Eric Carpenter recommended by David Black Online. I like his style. Here are some posts on evolution.