Archive for the ‘Thompson Chain Reference’ Category
Getting the Full Bible Effect
The Bible is the most widely circulated book in the world, and is also one of the most extensive. It is difficult to appreciate and comprehend all that the Bible has to offer without the assistance of references and mapping. Luckily, today there are many versions that come with a full section of aids and references to help you understand the holy book.
A KJV reference Bible will include various studies that you can do while reading, as well as outlines of the major books. It also has a full index to help you cross-reference information while you are studying. Its detailed topographical maps highlight how the geography of the Mediterranean region played a huge part in role in the events of the Bible.
First KJV Bible
Virtually every culture and religion has a set of rites that adolescents must go through before they are considered an adult by the elder members of the community. Growing up in a Christian household, this rite of passage included going through confirmation and receiving my first communion. At my church we also received a Bible to commemorate the ceremony.
I remember being nervous as I was forced to kneel in front of the entire congregation to receive the communion. Following this, I was presented with my own KJV Bible with my name inscribed in it. The ceremony had little impact on me, honestly, and seemed more important to my parents and family.
Bible Study in Layman’s Terms
Biblical commentary has been around almost as long as the good book itself. It’s only natural for people to internalize their readings and form unique interpretations of the source material. The Thompson reference bible takes that concept to the next level, serving as a traditional bible with a study guide built right in. The company’s revolutionary “chain-reference” system provides links between bible topics that share a similar theme.
The first reference bibles were created with the aim of appealing to a broad audience – not just to pastors, priests and scholars. Many of them feature helpful illustrations, character studies of prominent biblical heroes and even a chronology of prophecies. In short, the reference portion adds enough supplemental material to make bible study an absorbing learning experience for all concerned.
A Trusted Translation
Leading up to the beginning of the 17th century, several English monarchs had commissioned translations of the Latin Bible, but the results had been murky and middling at best. It wasn’t until 1604 that King James I convened a special conference to have a new version drafted that would correct previous mistakes and make the content more clear and concise.
By 1611, the King James Version Bible was complete. To this day, Christians continue to read this version of the Bible. Many people find comfort and solace in its pages. The ancient parables add up to a moral guidebook that acts as a compass for believers to this day. Without the King James Bible and its clear, decisive language, the word of God wouldn’t have been understood by the masses to the extent that it is today.
New American Standard Bibles
The Bible was the first book to ever be mass produced by means of printing. Thus, it is also the oldest book ever written – The Gutenberg Bible. Since its original version, the Bible has taken on many new editions. Some even include and a workbook and reader’s guide. But the important factor to really focus on is that it’s the Bible’s popularity and an undying faith of the Christian religion that has caused such an expansion of followers.
One version in particular, the New American Standard Bibles, has emerged as a terrific source to study the word of God. Ultimately popular with prayer groups and Sunday school classes, this new bible has totally revamped the way we come to learn and understand religion. Just ask any devoted church-goer, and I bet they will have heard of this wonderfuly new religious tool of grace.
Spreading the Word of God Near and Far
Last spring my church, The Sanctuary of Universal Life, organized a missionary project to help build clay huts for the families of who had lost loved ones to the deadly and vicious disease malaria. Our journey began in a small village outside the African Congo. Traveling only by bus or foot once we had reached our new continent of exploration, we journeyed through rainforests and deserts in an effort to reach out to as many shelter-less people as we could. After three weeks of hard labor and nearly sleepless nights we had built more than 85 huts from the ground up.
Once the strenuous work had been completed, we stayed an additional week to spread the word of God. During our twice-daily prayer sessions, all the villagers gathered around Pastor Boba Fett in awe of his pressed white robes and authoritatively squeaky voice. For hours on end they sat atop a tattered, burlap blanket and listened. Before parting ways with our newly beloved Christian pen pals and heading back to the land of the mighty, we granted their wish of a concrete wisdom of the Lord. And thus, we gave them bibles.
Translation Information about the New American Standard Bible
The New American Standard (or NAS) Bible is widely regarded as the most literally translated of 20th-century English Bible translations. According to the NAS Bible’s preface, the translators had a “Fourfold Aim” in this work:
• These publications shall be true to the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek.
• They shall be grammatically correct.
• They shall be understandable.
• They shall give the Lord Jesus Christ His proper place, the place which the Word gives Him; therefore, no work will ever be personalized.
As its name implies, the NAS bible is a revision of the American Standard Version of 1901. This translation was begun as an alternative to the Revised Standard Version (1946–1952/1971), itself a revision of the ASV, but considered by many to be theologically liberal. Using the ASV as its English base, the NAS Bible’s translators revised the ASV as literally as possible.
Seeing the need for a literal, modern translation of the English Bible, the translators sought to produce a contemporary English Bible while maintaining a word-for-word translation style. In cases where word-for-word literalness was determined to be unacceptable for modern readers, changes were made in the direction of more current idioms. In such instances, the more literal renderings were indicated in footnotes.
The greatest perceived strength of the NAS Bible is its reliability and fidelity to the original languages, which, along with other literal translations, also allows for ambiguities in the text’s meaning.
New American Standard Bible
The New American Standard Bible did not start out as a complete Bible and was published in stages. The New Testament was first published in 1963 and the complete Bible was published in 1971.
As its name implies, the New American Standard Bible is a revision of the American Standard Version of 1901. This translation was begun as an alternative to the Revised Standard Version of the Bible which is also a revision of the American Standard Bible. The New American Standard Bible is widely regarded as the most literally translated of 20th-century English Bible translations.
The New American Standard Bible did not start out as a complete Bible and was published in stages. The New Testament was first published in 1963 and the complete Bible was published in 1971.
As its name implies, the New American Standard Bible is a revision of the American Standard Version of 1901. This translation was begun as an alternative to the Revised Standard Version of the Bible which is also a revision of the American Standard Bible. The New American Standard Bible is widely regarded as the most literally translated of 20th-century English Bible translations.