Bibles – Michelle Lesley

The Word on Wednesdays

June 16, 2021June 15, 2021 Michelle Lesley

Hi ladies! I hope you’ve been enjoying The Word on Wednesday Bible study lessons and resources, and that you’re looking forward to our new study as much as I am.

I’ve been taking a break on Wednesdays getting ready for our new study. I hope you’ll enjoy it and that it will edify you as you seek to grow in Christ and His Word. (The picture above does not mean we will be studying James. :0)

Some may find the book of the Bible we’ll be studying to be an exciting challenge (a challenge I know you’re up for!), so I wanted to give you a heads up to start thinking about reference materials. You don’t have to buy or use any of these materials, but you may find them handy as you study.

If you have been considering investing in a good study Bible, this would a great time to do so, not just for our next study but to use for years to come. I personally use and highly recommend the MacArthur Study Bible (the ESV and NASB are good translations), and, although I haven’t tried it out myself, I understand the ESV Study Bible is also very good. (You might want to shop around for the best price. These are both available on Amazon and probably other retail sites as well.) If free is more in keeping with your budget, the Faithlife Study Bible app is phenomenal. It not only has very good and copious study notes, it also has maps, Bible dictionaries, articles, videos, pictures, and more. In fact I would recommend you download it as a supplementary resource even if you decide to get one of the aforementioned study Bibles – it’s that good.

If you have a good set of Old Testament commentaries, you may find those to be useful in our study. There are also a number of sites that offer free, online commentaries, Bible dictionaries, encyclopedias, and other study resources (most of these are available as apps):

Bible Gateway Blue Letter Bible Bible Hub

Bible Study Tools StudyLight.org

And finally, you can always find great articles, sermons, devotions and other materials to aid your understanding of various topics and passages of Scripture at Grace to You and Ligonier.

I hope you’ll find these resources helpful as we begin our new study.

What is your favorite
study Bible, commentary, or other Bible study resource?
Share with others in the comments below!

Mailbag

The Mailbag: What is KJV-Onlyism, and Is It Biblical?

July 3, 2017March 11, 2023 Michelle Lesley

I’m a fairly new Christian and still trying to get my footing in many areas of basic theology, including which Bible translation is best to use. A friend of mine is a “KJV-Onlyist” and has been very critical when I’ve explored other translations. I’ve tried using the KJV, but I find it very hard to understand. Is it wrong or unbiblical to use a modern English translation such as the ESV? If not, how can I explain this to my friend?

Welcome to the family of Christ! Having been raised in church and saved at an early age myself, I can only imagine how overwhelming it must be to assimilate into a totally new culture and begin trying to understand so many different aspects of the Christian life all at once.

A little background information for readers who are not familiar with some of the terminology in your question: KJV stands for King James Version, the 1611 English translation of the Bible that contains all the “thee’s” and “thou’s”. It’s the translation most familiar to the English speaking world. ESV stands for English Standard Version, a modern American English translation of the Bible first published in 2001.

In a nutshell, “KJV-Onlyists” generally believe that the KJV is the only acceptable translation for use by Christian individuals and churches. Many believe this because they mistakenly think that the translation itself is inspired by God in the 2 Timothy 3:16-17 sense. (The correct understanding of inspiration is that the original autographs – the actual words Moses, David, Paul, James, etc. wrote – are what were inspired by God.)

As with most belief systems, KJV-Onlyism is a spectrum of beliefs. On one end of the spectrum are KJVO’s who hold that you’re not saved or that you’re promoting false doctrine if you use any translation other than the KJV (Ironically, this extreme belief is itself false doctrine, or actual heresy if use of the KJV is in any way tied to salvation. Even the King James Version of the Bible does not teach this.). On the other end of the spectrum are what I, personally, would call KJVP’s (preferred). These are KJVO’s who strongly prefer KJV. This is the “official” version they use in their churches and want their church members to use, but they do not tie its use to salvation or disparage those who use other accurate translations. This stance is merely a preference of a particular church or individual, and is not false doctrine. And, of course, there are varied beliefs between the two ends of the spectrum.

The KJV is a perfectly great translation to use if it’s what you prefer. Christians have used it for hundreds of years and have grown in their relationship with Christ just fine. However, it can be confusing for speakers of modern English. Additionally, while it is still an acceptably accurate translation, several modern translations are technically more accurate due to the discovery of thousands of biblical manuscripts over the last 400 years. It is for these reasons I typically recommend either the ESV or the New American Standard (NASB) version. Both are highly accurate and easier to understand for 21st century readers. I used the NASB for about twenty years, then switched to the ESV about four years ago. I love both of them for their accuracy and ease of reading. For more information on choosing an English Bible translation, please see my article The Mailbag: Which Bible Do You Recommend?.

If you need some materials to share with KJVO’s or would like to study the issue more yourself, please see the Additional Resources section below.

Additional Resources

King James Onlyism by James White

The King James Only Controversy: Can You Trust Modern Translations? by James White

Missing Verses in the Bible – Part 1 Part 2 by Gabriel Hughes

Are the translations of the Bible inspired? at Compelling Truth

What is the KJV Only movement? at Got Questions

If you have a question about: a Bible passage, an aspect of theology, a current issue in Christianity, or how to biblically handle a family, life, or church situation, comment below (I’ll hold all questions in queue {unpublished} for a future edition of The Mailbag) or send me an e-mail or private message. If your question is chosen for publication, your anonymity will be protected.

Mailbag

The Mailbag: Children’s Bible Recommendations

April 24, 2017January 12, 2023 Michelle Lesley

I continue to update this article as new
Bibles and information become available.

Do you have any recommendations for a trustworthy Bible for children? My son is almost 6 and still learning to read well. I’m looking for a Bible that he might be able to grow with and use until he’s 10 or so. We’d love to get him in the practice of bringing his own Bible to church. I saw you have a large family so I thought you might have some insight.

Getting your kids started on Bible ownership and reading at an early age is definitely something Christian parents should be doing, and finding a great Bible for young readers can take some searching.

I do have six kiddos, but my youngest is almost fourteen- a little above the age bracket you’re looking at. I couldn’t remember which kids’ Bible we had most recently used with our own kids, so I asked my almost fourteen year old and my fifteen year old. They both reported that we had given them the NIV Adventure Bible when they were around six or eight. Sadly, I cannot commend that children’s Bible to you today (see below).

My friend Rachel over at danielthree18 recently wrote a helpful review of the ESV Following Jesus Bible she and her husband bought their son for Christmas. It wasn’t available when we were Bible shopping for our own kids, but if it had been, it’s probably the one we would have chosen.

As I was gathering links for this article, I stumbled across a couple more kids’ Bibles that, while I haven’t read them, look like they might be worth checking out: the ESV Grow Bible and the ESV Children’s Bible. I can’t personally vouch for either of them, so examine them carefully, but ESV Bibles generally have a reputation for being trustworthy.

More recently, Steadfast Bibles and Three Sixteen Publishing released the NASB (New American Standard Bible) Children’s Edition. The NASB is one of the most accurate and reliable English translations of the Bible on the market today. I used the NASB as my primary reading Bible for over 20 years and highly recommend it. I have no doubt that the children’s edition is equally stellar. Read more about the NASB Children’s Edition here.

If you’d rather get your son a simple, non-child themed, no frills Bible, I’d recommend a regular old ESV. If you’d like to examine the translations I’ve mentioned here, or any others, you can “try before you buy” at BibleGateway.com. They have numerous Bible versions you can take a look at online for free. There’s even a side by side comparison feature:

You can also check your church’s library or your local public library and examine their children’s Bibles to see what’s available out there, and what your child likes, before purchasing him a Bible.

For our readers with smaller children, I’d like to suggest checking out (I haven’t read it) The Biggest Story Bible Storybook by Kevin DeYoung. Kevin has long had a reputation as a solid, trustworthy pastor and teacher of God’s word, not to mention a dad of young kids.

“Beginning in Genesis and ending with Revelation, DeYoung provides engaging retellings of various Bible stories, explaining how they fit into the overarching storyline. Each reading is coupled with beautiful illustrations by award-winning artist Don Clark and concludes with a reflective prayer. Perfect for bedtime stories or to read together as a family…”

While there are a number of good children’s Bibles out there, unfortunately, there are some that should be avoided. The following children’s Bibles and Bible storybooks are..

Not Recommended

Though numerous doctrinally sound sources have recommended The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones in the past (including Tim Challies and me), I’m afraid I can no longer commend it to you.

The Jesus Storybook Bible was released in 2007. In 2018, Sally Lloyd-Jones released a children’s book entitled Goldfish on Vacation which included an illustration of a homosexual couple. When a homosexual man commended her for this on Twitter (the tweet has since been deleted) she had this to say:

There are other issues with the Storybook Bible itself:

Though our own children used it, and I used to recommend it, I have retracted all previous recommendations of the NIV/NIrV Adventure Bible (and any other NIV or NIrV Bible). As you may be aware, in 2005, Zondervan revised the trustworthy 1984 translation of the NIV to include gender neutral/inclusive language. It was called the T(Today’s)NIV. In response to completely appropriate backlash from the Christian community, Zondervan again revised the NIV in 2011. Unfortunately, they did not revise out the gender neutral/inclusive language, but, rather, essentially merged the NIV with the TNIV, dropping the “T,” and simultaneously took the 1984 NIV and the TNIV out of print. The current editions of the NIV/NIrV Adventure Bible contain the 2011 gender neutral/inclusive text of the NIV.

For a better grasp of the problems with the gender neutral/inclusive verbiage of the 2011 NIV, please read: A fair analysis of the new NIV.

Here is an excerpt from the preface of the current edition of the NIV Adventure Bible. (Click on “look inside” at the upper left of the page for the entire preface.):

On a “wear and tear” note- we’ve purchased both soft cover (paperback) and hard cover Bibles for our elementary-aged kids, and both seem to get torn up pretty easily. (Or maybe my kids are just tough on Bibles!) With soft covers, the front and/or back cover can get ripped clean off, and with hard covers, the binding tends to detach. The only solution I can think of for this is to purchase a hard cover edition and some sort of case to keep it in (maybe one made of whatever those airplane “black boxes” are made out of). Perhaps training your child to keep his Bible in a certain place (on his dresser, the coffee table, etc.) whenever he’s not reading it might help. We neglected to do this and I often found Bibles on the floor, in the toy box, at the bottom of the closet, and other places conducive to Bible destruction. Anyway, keep the duct tape handy is all I’m saying.

The main thing, when you’re looking for a Bible for your kids is to find a good translation, avoid paraphrases, and be on the lookout for false doctrine, which has, unfortunately, trickled down into kids’ Bibles and devotionals (such as the kids’ versions of Jesus Calling). You might find my article Which Bible Do You Recommend? (for selecting an adult Bible) to be helpful.

Bible, Mailbag

The Mailbag: Which Bible Do You Recommend?

March 6, 2017January 10, 2023 Michelle Lesley

I was saved out of Mormonism but, as a new Christian, spent some time in the Word of Faith movement. I want a Bible that hasn’t been tampered with by a false religion, but I’m not sure which one I can trust. Which Bible do you recommend?

What a blessing it is to even be able to ask this question! You would not ask this question if God had not graciously saved you, and you could not ask this question if there weren’t a ton of different Bibles available in English, nor if you lived in a country where it is illegal to own a copy of God’s word. It’s a dilemma, but it’s a good dilemma to have.

The good news is that there are many fantastic Bibles out there- far more good ones than bad, and far more than I could recommend in this brief article. So, please don’t take this as an exhaustive list or think that because I’ve left a certain Bible out that it isn’t any good.

The first thing you want to look for is a good translation, not a paraphrase. You want to know what God said through Paul, not what somebody 2000 years later thinks about what God said through Paul. You’re looking to get as close to the original wording as is possible.

There are several great English translations on the market. I started using the English Standard Version (ESV) about four years ago, and I love it. Prior to that I used the New American Standard Bible (NASB) for about 20 years. It is also an excellent translation. If you’re familiar with various Bible translations, ESV is, in my opinion, like a more accurate, more linguistically sophisticated 1984 New International Version (NIV). NASB is like a cross between the King James Version (KJV) and the 1984 NIV, but more accurate. In my opinion, ESV and NASB are the two best translations out there today.

There are, however, several other solid translations such as the Legacy Standard Bible (LSB), the New King James Version (NKJV), the Lexham English Bible (LEB), the Christian Standard Bible (CSB– This is a newly revised version of the Holman Christian Standard Bible {HCSB}, and they’re dropping the “Holman”. So HCSB and CSB – whichever one you happen to see – are the same thing.), and the “old” or “1984” NIV (You want to stay away from the TNIV {Today’s New International Version}, now out of print, and any 2011 or later NIV, as those both contain gender neutral/inclusive language. The 1984 edition is also out of print, but you may be able to acquire one from a second hand store.)

The KJV is a good translation and the language is beautiful, but if you have trouble with 1611 English, it’s not the only game in town anymore. Some of our modern translations are actually more accurate than the KJV because thousands more biblical manuscripts have been discovered since it was first published, allowing translators to be more precise.

Below is a helpful chart from Brent MacDonald of Not Just Another Book comparing a number of different translations and paraphrases. (On this chart, it’s good to be a “leftist”).

You can try most of these translations out for free at Bible Gateway. There’s even a great feature that allows you to compare several versions side by side:

Just as there are a number of good Bible versions I would recommend, there are a few I’m familiar with which I would strongly recommend against: The Message, The Voice, The Passion Translation, The Amplified Bible, and any “translation” that uses gender neutral language.

More than a few articles have voiced concerns over The Message’s – a paraphrase – often misleading texts. (I would add that Eugene Peterson {author of The Message} frequently shows poor discernment. One recent example is his front cover endorsement of the heresy-laden book – and movie – The Shack.)

The Voice is not only a paraphrase, its contributors include female “pastors” and false teachers such as Brian McLaren, Phyllis Tickle, Chris Seay, and Leonard Sweet.

The Passion Translation is a New Apostolic Reformation version of the Bible which actually changes the wording of many verses in order to fit the NAR agenda. Click here for a Bible translation scholar’s review of Passion’s version of Psalms.

The Amplified Bible falls prey to an improper translation technique called illegitimate totality transfer, which, in its attempt to clarify a particular word or phrase, may actually end up causing you to misunderstand the correct meaning of the verse.

I’ve already mentioned the post-1984 versions of the NIV, but be sure to avoid any “translation” of the Bible that uses gender neutral language extensively or exclusively. And you certainly don’t want a “Bible” that uses neutral or feminine pronouns or references to God – those should always be male.

There are some perfectly reliable and accurate newer Bible translations that will, for example, occasionally render (or add a footnote) “brothers” as “brothers and sisters” when it’s clear from the context that Paul is talking to or about the entire church. That’s not what we’re talking about here. We’re talking about changing passages clearly referring only to men to include women. Thus, these “translations” are actually changing God’s words. Let me give you an example from the Common English Bible (CEB). This is 1 Timothy 3:1-7:

This saying is reliable: if anyone has a goal to be a supervisor in the church, they want a good thing. 2 So the church’s supervisor must be without fault. They should be faithful to their spouse, sober, modest, and honest. They should show hospitality and be skilled at teaching. 3 They shouldn’t be addicted to alcohol or be a bully. Instead, they should be gentle, peaceable, and not greedy. 4 They should manage their own household well—they should see that their children are obedient with complete respect, 5 because if they don’t know how to manage their own household, how can they take care of God’s church? 6 They shouldn’t be new believers so that they won’t become proud and fall under the devil’s spell. 7 They should also have a good reputation with those outside the church so that they won’t be embarrassed and fall into the devil’s trap.

Compare this to any reliable translation, and you’ll see the problem (and not just with the gender neutral language). I recently saw a woman “pastor” defend her right to serve in that office from this passage in the CEB “translation,” which, I imagine, is precisely the reason it was rendered this way. (It appears that there are likely a number of other problems with the CEB, as well. I looked only at the passage above and 1 Timothy 2:11-15, and the translation of that passage is completely botched as well, erroneously rendering “woman” and “man” as “wife” and “husband,” removing the “for/because” at the beginning of 13, and completely mangling the meanings of verses 14 and 15. This passage could also be used to support the sins of women preaching, pastoring, and holding authority over men in the church. Again, compare this to any reliable translation.)

If you’re looking for a good study Bible (or want to avoid a bad one), I’ve discussed that a bit here (#4). I frequently use and highly recommend both the ESV MacArthur Study Bible and the Faithlife Study Bible (which is FREE!). When shopping for a study Bible, do you homework and vet the contributors. Avoid any study Bibles whose contributors are false teachers, theologians from apostate churches, female “pastors,” etc. Some in particular I would recommend you avoid are the CSB LifeWay Women’s Bible, ESV Women’s Study Bible and the YouVersion app (all feature false teachers). And check out this article from Tim Challies: What Makes a Really Good Study Bible?.

Looking for a great Bible app? Check these out.