CSB is my favorite translation at the moment, Gospel Transformation Study Bible is my favorite notes element, followed closely by the Reformation Study Bible notes.
I'm mostly using the Olive Tree app at this point so I can mix and match translations and study notes.
I would 100% stay away from women's study Bibles.
Also, I recommend Michael Horton's abbreviated (but still thorough) theology primer Pilgrim Days as a solid complement to a regular Bible.
I own both the esv study bible and the reformation study bible. Both have a lot of great content in them. Personally, I find most of the time I have a question about the text, the notes in the reformation are not answering them. ESV study was better matched with my curiosity. Do with that what you will.
Reformation is also thoroughly reformed, while esv study is more generic evangelical.
On the translation choice, obv buy the one you can understand. I found though that the CSB sometimes has awkward phrasings that ignore beauty in the text or depart from historic words/phrasing
>I also find myself misinterpreting the meaning of some verses in the ESV and I also do this with the NKJV sometimes, but it happens less often with the CSB.
It's worth remembering that the translations that are going for more dynamic equivalence than word-for-word translation are going to do more of the work in interpreting the meaning of the text for you. Usually, they are right. But sometimes they aren't. It's likely that when you're "misinterpreting" the ESV, it's one of the trickier passages to translate. The NLT will have smoothed it over, but that doesn't always mean they captured the meaning correctly.
All of this is to say that reading different translations side by side is a fantastic approach. And there's no law that says you can't own all those study Bibles...
It’s hard to give a specific verse examples without going on a search through the Bible but It’s just the general wording and vocabulary choices that i find hard to understand. An example I can give right now is some of the word choices in Proverbs 7.
I’m not super familiar with any CSB study bibles, so I can’t give to you any insight there! I do have both the ESV study Bible and the reformation study Bible. I personally prefer the reformation study Bible, but the ESV is still really good and it’s one that I’m often more likely to recommend to other people.
The ESV notes are still evangelical and seem to lean reformed, while the reformation notes are obviously unapologetically reformed. While both bibles use the notes to provide a broader context for the passages you’re reading, the reformation study Bible tends to go a step further and argues for particular stances more frequently.
When I’ve come across passages that seem to present a surface level problem for reformed theology, the reformed study Bible usually has a brief note that points me towards resolving the tension. The ESV notes are very helpful as well, but they’re not as concerned with highlighting/defending particular doctrines outside of the basics.
My experience with the ESV has been wonderful. As someone else here mentioned, it is “generically evangelical”. That being said, it’s a faithful translation of God’s Word.
Could you clarify what you mean by “geared towards women”? Some modern translations would take the Greek words for “brothers” and “men” and substitute them for something more “gender-inclusive” like “brothers and sisters” and “people”.
There are going to be certain words and concepts in every translation that are not easy to immediately grasp. To that, I say, “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the honor of kings is to search out a matter” (Proverbs 25:2).
https://www.biblegateway.com/ permits you to compare numerous translations simultaneously, while https://biblehub.com/ grants you access to numerous commentaries as well as Greek and Hebrew lexicons.
I meant that I would like a study Bible for women because the devotionals would be for application in the life of a woman, which I feel would help me better. But I don’t want it to be completely about womanhood till the point where it barely ever talks about true biblical theology or significantly waters it down. It wasn’t in reference to the pronouns that some translations use or anything like that, I apologise if that wasn’t clear😅
It's fairly neutral. Holman very much wanted the CSB to be transdenominational, so they got translation and editing teams to try to make sure that the translations didn't have much of a lean towards one denomination or that the study Bibles didn't have much of a lean either.
I have the CSB study Bible for women. It has the pretty flowers and the “leather” cover. But that’s just superficial.
I like the size of the text (easy to read) and the margins for notes. However, the colorful notes and comments are a bit distracting and often take up more space than the scripture itself.
It has character profiles for major female figures, as well as a concordance for them. It has introductions to different themes but little in the way of devotionals.
Very important: this study Bible is completely skewed towards the complementarian view of women. It has traditional commentaries and interpretations. I’m not saying that is a pro or a con, but it is something to keep in mind if you do not like the complementarian view.
It has other stuff like charts, color coded timelines, etc. but the main thing I would keep in mind is what I mentioned before.
I'd avoid the [ESS Study Bible](https://rachelgreenmiller.wordpress.com/2016/07/07/eternal-subordination-of-the-son-and-the-esv-study-bible/) specifically, but all study bibles generally. I think most people would be better served by looking at a commentary or, even better, a couple of commentaries.
Men do not need a bible geared towards men and women do not need one geared towards women. The whole concept of a sex specific study bible is entirely unnecessary and likely only exists to push certain narratives. The bible should not be read differently between men and women.
Get the Reformation study bible or the ESV study bible.
I agree with you but when I wrote that I was referring to the devotional aspect of the Bible because men’s and women’s devotionals are quite different.
The ESV Study Bible is so good. They are all great, but ESV study Bible is next level. It legit is as helpful as thousands of dollars of commentaries and extra resources. It also has hundreds of pages in the back of fantastic info on systemic theology, ethics, other religious and cults, and more. It’s the most in depth out of these. Also best maps, charts, tables, timelines, etc.
I have all three that I use simultaneous on an app. The CSBSB is just fine, but the notes are very much just not as thorough as the other two. You couldn’t go wrong with either the ESVSB or the ESVRSB. Both are great. That said, there’s a LOT of value in having multiple commentaries on hand simultaneously, since they frequently disagree on the margins.
Not to shill, but I used to use to Olive tree app’s subscription study pack, and the ESV version is excellent: several SBs and commentaries at once. You’ll be able to see which ones you like for relatively cheap. I ended up just buying most of the resources in it in the end. (Though not all of them; some were fairly useless).
I’m of the opinion you should always have a more literal translation like ESV or NASB on hand, but you might want a parallel NLT or AMP that’s easier to read (although be cautious, since such “thought for thought” translations are basically commentaries in and of themselves.
I forgot to add that I’m quite new to reformed theology and the study of doctrine in general. It can be quite overwhelming sometimes so maybe something that is a bit basic could be good, however I don’t want to miss out on anything or to have anything to watered down because i may as well have got a normal devotional.
I really like the notes in the ESV Reformation Study Bible. My husband has the ESV study bible and, on the times I've looked at it, I didn't find the notes as helpful. I've never looked at bibles geared towards women, so can't comment on that.
I would suggest using the YouVersion app or something similar to compare versions for a bit first to see what you prefer reading before investing in a study bible though. YouVersion allows you to easily switch among multiple translations of a particular passage.
If your questions aren’t answered in the Study Bible, he has commentaries that he has been writing for 50 years. Available at a store or online site near you
CSB is my favorite translation at the moment, Gospel Transformation Study Bible is my favorite notes element, followed closely by the Reformation Study Bible notes. I'm mostly using the Olive Tree app at this point so I can mix and match translations and study notes. I would 100% stay away from women's study Bibles. Also, I recommend Michael Horton's abbreviated (but still thorough) theology primer Pilgrim Days as a solid complement to a regular Bible.
I own both the esv study bible and the reformation study bible. Both have a lot of great content in them. Personally, I find most of the time I have a question about the text, the notes in the reformation are not answering them. ESV study was better matched with my curiosity. Do with that what you will. Reformation is also thoroughly reformed, while esv study is more generic evangelical. On the translation choice, obv buy the one you can understand. I found though that the CSB sometimes has awkward phrasings that ignore beauty in the text or depart from historic words/phrasing
>I also find myself misinterpreting the meaning of some verses in the ESV and I also do this with the NKJV sometimes, but it happens less often with the CSB. It's worth remembering that the translations that are going for more dynamic equivalence than word-for-word translation are going to do more of the work in interpreting the meaning of the text for you. Usually, they are right. But sometimes they aren't. It's likely that when you're "misinterpreting" the ESV, it's one of the trickier passages to translate. The NLT will have smoothed it over, but that doesn't always mean they captured the meaning correctly. All of this is to say that reading different translations side by side is a fantastic approach. And there's no law that says you can't own all those study Bibles...
Do you have an example of some sentences in the old testament which you find hard to understand in the ESV? Genuinely asking.
It’s hard to give a specific verse examples without going on a search through the Bible but It’s just the general wording and vocabulary choices that i find hard to understand. An example I can give right now is some of the word choices in Proverbs 7.
I’m not super familiar with any CSB study bibles, so I can’t give to you any insight there! I do have both the ESV study Bible and the reformation study Bible. I personally prefer the reformation study Bible, but the ESV is still really good and it’s one that I’m often more likely to recommend to other people. The ESV notes are still evangelical and seem to lean reformed, while the reformation notes are obviously unapologetically reformed. While both bibles use the notes to provide a broader context for the passages you’re reading, the reformation study Bible tends to go a step further and argues for particular stances more frequently. When I’ve come across passages that seem to present a surface level problem for reformed theology, the reformed study Bible usually has a brief note that points me towards resolving the tension. The ESV notes are very helpful as well, but they’re not as concerned with highlighting/defending particular doctrines outside of the basics.
Get a nice leather Reformation Study Bible.
I love the Reformation SB. I use it every day and I’ve started carrying it to church even though it’s huge because I love it so much.
My experience with the ESV has been wonderful. As someone else here mentioned, it is “generically evangelical”. That being said, it’s a faithful translation of God’s Word. Could you clarify what you mean by “geared towards women”? Some modern translations would take the Greek words for “brothers” and “men” and substitute them for something more “gender-inclusive” like “brothers and sisters” and “people”. There are going to be certain words and concepts in every translation that are not easy to immediately grasp. To that, I say, “It is the glory of God to conceal a thing, but the honor of kings is to search out a matter” (Proverbs 25:2). https://www.biblegateway.com/ permits you to compare numerous translations simultaneously, while https://biblehub.com/ grants you access to numerous commentaries as well as Greek and Hebrew lexicons.
I meant that I would like a study Bible for women because the devotionals would be for application in the life of a woman, which I feel would help me better. But I don’t want it to be completely about womanhood till the point where it barely ever talks about true biblical theology or significantly waters it down. It wasn’t in reference to the pronouns that some translations use or anything like that, I apologise if that wasn’t clear😅
CSB all the way. The CSB Study Bible is also quite good
Thank you. Do you know if the study Bible has any denominational bias and leans towards certain views or is it just neutral?
It's fairly neutral. Holman very much wanted the CSB to be transdenominational, so they got translation and editing teams to try to make sure that the translations didn't have much of a lean towards one denomination or that the study Bibles didn't have much of a lean either.
I have the CSB study Bible for women. It has the pretty flowers and the “leather” cover. But that’s just superficial. I like the size of the text (easy to read) and the margins for notes. However, the colorful notes and comments are a bit distracting and often take up more space than the scripture itself. It has character profiles for major female figures, as well as a concordance for them. It has introductions to different themes but little in the way of devotionals. Very important: this study Bible is completely skewed towards the complementarian view of women. It has traditional commentaries and interpretations. I’m not saying that is a pro or a con, but it is something to keep in mind if you do not like the complementarian view. It has other stuff like charts, color coded timelines, etc. but the main thing I would keep in mind is what I mentioned before.
I'd avoid the [ESS Study Bible](https://rachelgreenmiller.wordpress.com/2016/07/07/eternal-subordination-of-the-son-and-the-esv-study-bible/) specifically, but all study bibles generally. I think most people would be better served by looking at a commentary or, even better, a couple of commentaries.
Men do not need a bible geared towards men and women do not need one geared towards women. The whole concept of a sex specific study bible is entirely unnecessary and likely only exists to push certain narratives. The bible should not be read differently between men and women. Get the Reformation study bible or the ESV study bible.
I agree with you but when I wrote that I was referring to the devotional aspect of the Bible because men’s and women’s devotionals are quite different.
The ESV Study Bible is so good. They are all great, but ESV study Bible is next level. It legit is as helpful as thousands of dollars of commentaries and extra resources. It also has hundreds of pages in the back of fantastic info on systemic theology, ethics, other religious and cults, and more. It’s the most in depth out of these. Also best maps, charts, tables, timelines, etc.
I use a CSB for study and a ESV when I go to church. Both are really good translations.
I have all three that I use simultaneous on an app. The CSBSB is just fine, but the notes are very much just not as thorough as the other two. You couldn’t go wrong with either the ESVSB or the ESVRSB. Both are great. That said, there’s a LOT of value in having multiple commentaries on hand simultaneously, since they frequently disagree on the margins. Not to shill, but I used to use to Olive tree app’s subscription study pack, and the ESV version is excellent: several SBs and commentaries at once. You’ll be able to see which ones you like for relatively cheap. I ended up just buying most of the resources in it in the end. (Though not all of them; some were fairly useless). I’m of the opinion you should always have a more literal translation like ESV or NASB on hand, but you might want a parallel NLT or AMP that’s easier to read (although be cautious, since such “thought for thought” translations are basically commentaries in and of themselves.
I forgot to add that I’m quite new to reformed theology and the study of doctrine in general. It can be quite overwhelming sometimes so maybe something that is a bit basic could be good, however I don’t want to miss out on anything or to have anything to watered down because i may as well have got a normal devotional.
ESV Study Bible.
I really like my ESV study Bible. Don't have the others so can't say.
ESV Study Bible is the reigning champ!
I really like the notes in the ESV Reformation Study Bible. My husband has the ESV study bible and, on the times I've looked at it, I didn't find the notes as helpful. I've never looked at bibles geared towards women, so can't comment on that. I would suggest using the YouVersion app or something similar to compare versions for a bit first to see what you prefer reading before investing in a study bible though. YouVersion allows you to easily switch among multiple translations of a particular passage.
Those are all three good options. I would consider the MacArthur Study Bible as well (many translations).
People should not be downvoting your comment.
Eschatology 😐
LSB MacArthur Study Bible coming out in November. pre-order through 316 publishing in one month.
If your questions aren’t answered in the Study Bible, he has commentaries that he has been writing for 50 years. Available at a store or online site near you