Bible Review: Allan Longprimer Diamond Jubilee Limited Edition

A few months ago I pre-ordered two of the R. L. Allan KJV Longprimer Diamond Jubilee bibles from evangelicalbible.com and I came home this afternoon and found them on my doorstep. At last the wait is over. These are the first R. L. Allan bibles I have purchased. I bought one of them to commemorate the birth of my son Nathaniel (DOB 10/04/12) and plan on giving it to him when he gets older. I'm not sure what I'll do with the second one I purchased. Due to the limited number of these produced (only 60 of them) I went ahead and purchased the maximum number allowed per customer, which was two.

The Bibles Direct website posted this description of them:


To celebrate 60 years since the Allan Oxford Longprimer KJV edition was first printed in 1952, we are proud to publish a very special edition of this fine Bible setting, limited to only 60 copies.

 
Bound in smoke grey buffalo grain leather and full yapp edges, grey leather linings and double silver lines inside, with three ribbon markers in red white and blue, blue/white head and tailbands. Blue under silver gilded page edges, silver embossing.

Printed on writeable india paper with Presentation pages, dictionary of proper names, subject index, concordance, 32 pp lined writing paper, 16pp of Oxford Bible maps.

Each Bible will be individually marked 1 - 60 with the company seal.

Page size: 8 3/4 x 6 inches : 1 1/4 inch thick ( 222 x 152mm)

Type size: 11 pt bold

 

These really are beautifully made. The layout for these are the same as the other Longprimer editions and the grey and silver color scheme is very attractive. The three ribbon markers are a nice and unique touch as well.

If you didn't get a chance to place an order for one of these while they were available contact me and perhaps I will be willing to part with one of the two that I have.

New KJV Study Bible Coming in 2014

Last month Joel Beeke announced that Reformation Heritage Books plans to publish the "KJV Study Bible for Personal and Family Worship" in 2014. This got me excited as I can not think off the top of my head of any other modern KJV Study Bibles out there that is written from a reformed perspective. Here is an excerpt taken from the advertisement:

The planned publication date for this quality Study Bible is the Fall of 2014. Dr. Joel R. Beeke will serve as the General Editor, Dr. Michael Barrett as Old Testament Editor, and Dr. Jerry Bilkes as New Testament Editor. The following contributors are committed to write on various Bible books: Dr. Mark Allison, Rev. Geoff Banister, Dr. Charles Barrett, Dr. Michael Barrett, Dr. Joel Beeke, Dr. Jerry Bilkes, Rev. John Greer, Rev. Pooyan Mehrshahi, Rev. Andrew McIntosh, Dr. John McKnight, Rev. Alan J. Macgregor, Rev. Gerald Procee, Rev. Maurice Roberts, Rev. David Silversides, Rev. John Thackway, and Rev. Malcolm Watts. All of these men are Reformed in their theology, appreciate the experiential tradition of Reformed theology, and use the KJV in their own pulpit and teaching ministries.

If you want to see the advertisement in its entirety click here. Please pray for this project as it will be an enormous undertaking involving a substantial amount of time, money, and resources....but oh what a blessing this will be for those who use the King James Version of the Bible. Lord willing we will see the first of these new study Bibles become available in about two years.

 

Reasons for Using the King James Version (KJV) Bible

A couple weeks ago I purchased the new Westminster Reference Bible from the Trinitarian Bible Society (TBS) and along with it I added a couple informational pamphlets about the King James Version (KJV). If you are familiar with TBS then you know that they actively promote and strive to circulate accurate and trustworthy translations of the word of God.

One of the informational pamphlets I would like to highlight was produced in response to the question of whether or not Christians should still read the KJV when there are so many modern translation versions available nowadays. This is an important question especially in light of the ridiculous number of new translations that have become available over the past twenty years.

Produced by TBS

The pamphlet shown above explains five plain reasons for keeping to the KJV over the modern translation versions. For this post I will not dive in and expound upon the five reasons, but will only provide a brief description of the five points. If interested in reading the arguments in their entirety I encourage you to visit the TBS website here and you can request a copy be sent to you free of charge.

Reasons for Using the KJV over the modern translations available today:

1. The KJV is based on a better "text." 
2. The KJV is a more accurate translation.
3. The KJV is in more appropriate English.
4. The KJV bears a stronger testimony.
5. The KJV serves as the standard English translation. 

While the reasons above personally resonate with me, I am not necessarily a hardcore KJV-onlyist. My journey as a Christian has led me from initially using the NIV, to preferring the ESV, to finally reaching a position where I only use the KJV in my personal studies and when leading family devotions.

Finding a trustworthy and reliable Bible translation should be seriously considered by every Bible believing Christian out there. The "market" for Bibles has become flooded with new translations and one needs to really exercise discernment and look critically at whether the version one is considering is accurate and trustworthy. While the word of God is without error the same can not be said for the various modern translations that are available out there!

Bible Review - LCBP Mid Size Note Takers - 400 Series (KJV)

Up for review today is the executive mid size note takers Bible (400 Series) published by Local Church Bible Publishers (LCBP).  If you have not heard of LCBP, they are a ministry of Parker Memorial Baptist Church in Lansing, MI and they produce high quality KJV Bibles and sell them at the cost of production. I received this Bible back in March 2012 as a birthday gift from my wife and daughter. This Bible is the executive version and features red one-piece calfskin leather with red thread and sells for $57.00.

Here are some other specifications of this Bible:

• Quality Sewn Binding
• Two Ribbon Markers (Red)
• Black Letter Edition
• Standard Text with No References
• Page Size - 9.9" x 6.75" x 1.75"
• Contains "The Translators to the Reader"
• Contains a Concordance
• Model #: 400E1R

 The leather on this Bible is nothing short of amazing! It is extremely soft, smooth, and very supple. This Bible will lay open flat whether you are reading Genesis, Revelation, or somewhere in the middle. The outer edge of the Bible is stitched with red thread and the inside is black leather lined. This is the first red Bible I have ever owned and at first I was a bit skeptical about whether I would like the color or not, but upon first glance I fell in love with it. The red leather is a rich bright red, more like fire engine red than a cherry or burgundy red.

The binding is real tight on this Bible and it feels extremely well made. The paper quality is also of extremely high quality, which is paramount after all since this Bible was designed for those who do a whole lot of writing in their Bibles. I have taken notes in this Bible using my pigma micron pens and none of the colors I have used (purple, blue, green, red, brown) have bled through the paper at all. For those who like taking notes in their Bibles it gets no better than this! There is a ton of real estate in the margins for note taking!

I have owned this Bible now for a little over six months and I have nothing bad to say about it. Of all the wide margin Bibles that are on the market this one by LCBP has to rank among the very best. It costs a third of the price of other top of the line Bibles out there (think Cambridge and R.L. Allan) and I believe the quality is just as good. One thing that does need to be considered; however, is that this Bible is pretty heavy. LCBP considers this one of their "mid size" Bibles, but in my opinion it is a little too big and bulky to lug around to church on Sundays, but it is perfect for reading and taking notes at home in my office. This is a wonderful Bible and I encourage you to head over to LCBP's website and purchase one. If red is not your thing there are other colors and styles to choose from.

Bible Review - TBS Windsor Black Calfskin w/ Zipper (KJV)

The bible up for review today is the Trinitarian Bible Society's windsor text black calfskin which features a  zipper. If you are familiar with the Trinitarian Bible Society (TBS) then you know that this bible is the King James Version (KJV), as they do not publish any other translation versions of the bible.

I purchased this bible last month when looking for a new "travel bible" to take with me to church, the coffee shop, work, or wherever else I might be able to carve out time to read and meditate upon God's word. The primary criteria I had in my head when considering all the KJV bibles available was I wanted something durable and easy to carry around with me. Once I had a half dozen contenders in mind I applied my secondary requirement, good readability and best bang for the buck, which left me with this TBS bible. This is the first TBS bible I have ever purchased and I ordered it from evangelicalbible.com for $32.30.

Here are some of the other specifications of this bible:

• Quality Sewn Binding
• Two Ribbon Markers (Black)
• Black Letter Edition
• Standard Text with No References
• Page Size - 7.5" x 5.25"
• Model #: 9781862283411

Table of Contents

The black calfskin leather on this bible is moderately flexible with a course grainy texture to it. This bible is not the softest and most supple bible I own, but neither is it the firmest either. I place it somewhere in the middle. I was initially a little skeptical of how I would like the zipper feature, but after using this bible for a while now I have grown to like it. The zipper zips very easily and to date it has not snagged or had any other issues when opening/closing the bible. The only minor thing to note is that the ribbons hang long and need to be tucked out of the way when zipping up.

This bible was printed and bound in Belarus. The sewn binding is nice and tight; however, the paper, which is gold gilt edged, is thin bible paper with a fair amount of bleed through. The print though is nice and dark throughout and while the text size is relatively small it is still very readable indeed. Due to the thinness of the paper and the compact font size I have refrained from taking notes or highlighting in this bible. If I feel inclined to take notes I use the bulletin or a separate sheet of paper. I know for some the lack of space in the bible for notes might be a show stopper, but for someone like myself who is reluctant to take notes in most of my bibles I don't take issue with this. The only criticism I have on the quality of the paper and the printing is that it seems like it transfers a small amount of ink to my fingers if I run my fingers over the verses with a little pressure. While it is not so bad as to be comparable to a newspaper it is enough to make me cognizant of how I handle the pages.

For the most part this bible will lay flat when open; however, if on one of the first or last few books of the bible it will not lay flat on its own. Additionally when handling this bible in church I usually need to hold it with both hands unless I'm somewhere smack in the middle.

Overall I am happy with this bible. The quality of the craftsmanship exceeds the dollar amount spent by far. The only possible contender to this might be the Cambridge KJV Pitt Minion Pocket Reference in French Morocco, which runs around $33.00. However, I have not held the Cambridge in my hands and do not know how the two stack up against each other.

Would I recommend this TBS bible? - Absolutely. The Trinitarian Bible Society did a good job with this bible. I am happy with my purchase.

May God bless you richly!