While doing my doctoral work with Professor Howard Marshall, I often heard him say, “The beginning of wisdom is knowing what not to read.” He was referring to the vast number of books available but the very real limitation of time.
Exposure to good books, helpful resources and rich teaching aids us indispensably as we seek to preach to others. But we must make choices as to what resources are best suited to our current needs. To help in this I have surveyed some of the key books that have been released in the last year, trying to note the concerns or strengths of the books so that you can discern which ones will be useful for you.
Bibles
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Each year brings a continuing flow of various study bibles and this one has been no different. Some such Bibles seem merely to be the result of marketing efforts, but others are truly helpful.
One of the most interesting this year is The Books of the Bible, just released by The International Bible Society. Using the TNIV text they have sought to produce a more natural reading Bible. The text is printed in one column (like most books) instead of the typical two column and chapter and verse divisions are not in the text (the range covered is noted at the bottom of each page). The result is that the text looks like a regular book. This will aid reading and seeing the more natural divisions in the text which are often obscured by the chapter and verse divisions. The biggest change however is in the order of the books. The editors have sought to place books in order according to chronology, genre and theology. Probably the most obvious change is that Luke and Acts are placed together at the beginning of the New Testament followed by Paul’s letters (since Luke was his colleague) in what is believed to be chronological order. You can see the order of all the books as well as other information on the Bible at www.TheBooksofTheBible.info. There is also a companion book which describes the methods and goals of this Bible, The Beauty Behind the Mask: Rediscovering the Books of the Bible, written by Christopher Smith.
The most interesting study Bible this year is the Literary Study Bible (ESV), ed. Leland Ryken (Crossway). I have only seen a portion as it is due out soon, but the study notes aim to help readers be aware of and appreciate the literary dimensions of Scripture.
Another very promising study Bible due out very soon is the Apologetics Study Bible from Broadman & Holman. In addition to notes on various verses this Bible also has special articles dealing with verses commonly twisted, key apologetic issues and prominent apologists in the history of the church. The impressive list of contributors includes William Lane Craig, Darrell Bock, and Ravi Zacharias. This should be a very helpful resource.