Customer Reviews

The Holy Bible: containing the Old and New Testaments with the Apocryphal / Deuterocanonical Books [New Revised Standard Version]

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

No translation of God's Word is perfect. Each one has its flaws. Each one hopefully casts new light on God's message to us (translation is inherently interpretation). So it is with The New Revised Standard Version. There are both flaws and moments of revelation.

The Bible is full of stories about humanity's interaction with the Divine. As a whole, it is the story of God's redemption of humanity through the death of his Son: Jesus Christ. The NRSV is a rather literal translation (from the original Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek) of these stories.

The greatest weakness of this particular translation is its needless neutering of the Hebrew and Greek generic male pronouns. This cause difficulties (especially with the Psalms) when translating "he." They often pluralize such cases to "Those" and "They." This causes passages to lose personal immediacy and force.

That said, I feel the NRSV is a fine overall translation. It ranks right up there with The New American Standard Bible as the best literal translations. The NRSV has the extra benefit of having been overseen by Bruce Metzger--one of the finest modern Bible scholars.

The greatest strength (and probably the main selling point) of this edition of the NRSV is its extensive Apocrypha. Books recognized by Roman Catholic, Greek, and Slavonic churches are all included. They are placed in between the Old and New Testaments. They are divided into four sections based on who accepts them.

The Hardcover edition that I own (from Oxford Press) is extremely well made. It is far more durable than most other hardcover Bibles I have used.

If you are looking for a good literal translation of the Bible, you would be well served by The New Revised Standard Version. I highly recommend this book.

We have multiple copies of this Bible in our parish atria (Catechesis of the Good Shepherd) for children age 6-12. It is difficult to find NRSV Bibles that include the Apocrypha. I have ordered this Bible in both hardcover and paper back. The quality of the paper (not too thin) and print is good for the price. We also purchase this Bible to give as gifts to the children. More maps would make it even better, but for the price and availability, this Bible best meets our parish needs for children.

NCThe Religious Potential of the Child: Experiencing Scripture and Liturgy With Young ChildrenThe Religious Potential of the Child: 6 To 12 Year Old (Catechesis of the Good Shepherd Publications)The Catechesis of the Good Shepherd in a Parish Setting

I HIGHLY recommend this bible! Easy to read and understand with great credentials to back up the translation.

There were so many different bibles and it was confusing on which to get,finally I chose this one and it's everything I thought it would be.I was able to read the print it wasn't so small like the other bibles I looked at, I'm very pleased this my first bible that I ever had in my life I will read it, treasure it and keep it close to my heart.
If this is going to be your first bible then I highly recommend this one.

I am not a major fan of the NRSV translation but this particular bible has one of the most complete collections of Apocrypha I have come across. It includes books that most others do not.

I ordered this Bible because it was highly rated, and I like the New Revised Standard Version. This would be an excellent bible if it had a better quality of paper. The pages are so thin, that they feel like they are about to disintegrate. Now that I have it, I will read it, but I do not think it will last long at all. Its too fragile. I think for a Bible that you will read a lot, you need to go to a local bible store or book store where you can inspect it before you buy it.

The NRSV is a vast improvement from the original RSV, but it's still not my favorite translation. It does bring to light some passages, but I'd suggest the NASB over the NRSV.