Text Bible-Good News [Hardcover]

American Bible Society (Author)

Product Details

• Hardcover: 1563 pages
• Publisher: American Bible Society (July 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1585161543
• ISBN-13: 978-1585161546
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (8 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #222,351 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars good news at a great price!, September 1, 2009

By 

Edward C. Lugar "unworthy servant" (coral springs, florida United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Text Bible-Good News (Hardcover)

this is a nice, well put together edition that comes with all of the excellent line-drawings from swiss artist annie vallatton.
the text is very readable. the paper is decent enough but looks like use of a highlighter may bleed thru so recommend useing
colored pencils instead. which is fast becoming my favorite way to highlight since this is common in most bibles now a days.
the binding is excellent and should last for a long time.
this translation is good for reading and devotions . for serious study i'd go with a more literal version( nasb,nkjv,esv etc.)
though this can help clarify the more difficult to read passages.
it is always good comparing bible translations to get a better understanding and fuller meaning of all the words used. one additional help it provides is very thorough references to other passages and alternative renderings of the text.
all in all a solid edition to add to any ones bible collection.
and considering the price, it's a bargin that is hard to beat!

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Bible, March 24, 2010

By 

Bonnie Floyd "Christian Sister" (Tennessee) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Text Bible-Good News (Hardcover)

I continue to purchase the "Good News" bible for anyone who does not have a bible.

This English translation is the one that I was given in 1978 and I couldn't quit reading it. It is not a commentary, nor a Message bible written with a summary of ideas that someone decided was the best way to say something. It is a verse by verse that can be compared with any other bible. I oftentimes compare it with the King James version as there is oftentimes people who feel the King James version is the only bible on earth that is accurate. (They should read the history behind the King James version). Nonetheless, I found Christ and became a Christian with this bible and highly recommend it to anyone who seeks to understand the scriptures.
If you cannot understand the scriptures, just how are you going to understand God's purpose for you and His wonderful love?

I generally buy from vendors at Amazon.com. The vendor described the condition of this Bible and it arrived in even better than expected condition and well ahead of the expected delivery time. Thank you!

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Really good originally, now marred by "inclusive language" revisions, February 22, 2011

By 

Adam Bigham (Michigan, USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Text Bible-Good News (Hardcover)

This is the 1992 revision of the Good News Bible (a.k.a. Today's English Version), which is now being called the Good News Translation. The New Testament was originally published in 1966, and the entire bible in 1976. It was one of the first meaning-based translation efforts undertaken ("functional equivalence" as opposed to word-for-word "formal equivalence"). The translators used language that could be understood by English speakers around the world, and they did not take pains to use traditional biblical vocabulary. It is an accurate translation; do not think this is a paraphrase. The Good News Translation is emminently readable -- the Old Testament stories can be read to kids, and the Proverbs are entirely comprehendable. "You will make him burn with shame, and the Lord will reward you," we read in Proverbs 25:22; while another translation reads, "For thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head, and the Lord shall reward thee." I don't automatically think of pouring shame and remorse on somebody when I hear "heap coals of fire," so the GNT certainly clears up some of the antique references we wouldn't readily understand today.

I like the extra features of this bible -- book introductions, line drawings, maps within the text, Septaugint passages, word list, and text notes (for example, indicating "probable text", where the Hebrew was "unclear".)

The reduction to 4 from 5 stars is because the 1992 revision published here was mainly concerned with "gender inclusive" revisions, many of which are problematic. An example is Hebrews 2, where originally the Old Testament reference says "man", the revision changed it to "human beings". The author of Hebrews means for us to infer Jesus from this, which we cannot do from the reading rendered as "human beings". Another example is Galatians 3:26 where "God's sons" is changed to "God's children". In verse 28 the author includes men and women within the term "sons" (see the implication of inheritance, among other things -- not in the gender sense -- in Galatians 4:1-7;) so changing this to children changes the meaning (as if we are simply to be loved and coddled by God, as opposed to being heirs with responsibilities).

Some of the revisions are harmless or even beneficial. One example is 1Peter 1:24 where "mankind" was changed to "human beings". The traditional translation here is "flesh", but of the three, "human beings" is more accurate and personally effective -- I can relate to the scripture at hand as a "human being" better than "flesh" (used modernly by whom? medical students or vets?) or "mankind" (too general, more a philisophical term than scriptural.)

All in all, a good bible to have at hand; but its use for serious study has been compromised by the "gender inclusive" revisions. I do like to compare it with the New American Standard Bible, for one or the other is bound to enhance my understanding of a particular passage -- the NASB for its word-for-word approach and traditional biblical vocabulary; the GNT for its clarifying of out-of-modern-usage phraseology (such as I mentioned for Proverbs 25:22).