World English Bible [Paperback]

Rainbow Missions (Creator)

Product Details

• Paperback: 348 pages
• Publisher: Rainbow Missions, Inc. (July 20, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0970334400
• ISBN-13: 978-0970334404
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 6.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,004,129 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Modern English Bible liberated from copyright!, February 5, 2001

By 

Michael Paul Johnson "Michael Johnson" (Kailua Kona, HI, USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: World English Bible (Paperback)

The World English Bible is a public domain (not copyrighted) modern English translation of the Holy Bible. It is a revision of the American Standard Version of 1901, with corrections based on the best available Greek and Hebrew manuscripts. The World English Bible is written for English-speaking people all over the world, so it avoids local idioms and language fads. It balances understandability, accuracy, and preservation of the style of the original writers. Because the Holy Bible is inspired by God, it continues to help people of all backgrounds.

The entire text of the World English Bible is available at the URL shown on the front cover, but it is nice to have a nice printed and bound book to read.

This edition is only the New Testament plus Psalms and Proverbs. The rest of the Old Testament is still being edited.

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Readable and accurate translation of the best Greek text, March 31, 2002

By 

Gary F. Zeolla "Director of Darkness to Light... (Pennsylvania USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: World English Bible (Paperback)

The translation philosophy of the "World English Bible" is described on the WEB: FAQ page on its Web site, "Some people like to use the terms 'formal equivalent' and 'dynamic equivalent.' Neither of these exactly describe what we are doing, since we have borrowed ideas from both, but I suppose that we are closer to formal equivalence than dynamic equivalence."

Dynamic equivalence refers to the thought for thought translation principle used in such versions as the NIV and NLT. This method is less literal than the formal equivalence (word for word) method seen in such versions as the KJV and NKJV. And in my opinion, formal equivalence is a much better principle for translating the Bible.

In any case, the above is a rather accurate description of the translation method of the WEB. It is mostly a formal equivalence version, but it tends towards dynamic equivalence at places. Also added words are not italicized or bracketed as they are in versions like the KJV and NKJV. So its accuracy is somewhat less than these two versions but much better than true dynamic equivalence versions. And with only minor deviations into dynamic equivalency, the WEB is reliable Bible version. Moreover, the WEB is much more readable than the KJV and somewhat more readable than NKJV.

In addition, the WEB differs from the KJV and NKJV in that it is based on the Majority Text (MT) rather than the "Textus Receptus" (TR). These two texts are very similar, much closer to each other than either is to the more popular Critical Text (CT). Of these three texts, I believe the MT is the most accurate, so being based on this text a big plus in favor of the WEB.

In fact, the WEB is one of only two versions currently available based on the MT. The other is my own "Analytical-Literal Translation" (ALT). But, as the name implies, my ALT differs from the WEB in that the ALT is a very literal translation, thus it is more accurate than the WEB. But the WEB would be more readable.

The WEB also has footnotes indicating textual variants, along with alternative translations and explanatory notes. My ALT includes such information. It has alternative translations and other aids within brackets within the text and a list significant textual variants in an appendix. And whether in footnotes, within brackets, or in an appendix, such info can be very helpful in Bible study.

So the WEB provides an accurate and readable translation of the best available Greek text, while providing helpful aids for Bible study. So I would highly recommend it. And for an even more accurate translation of the MT, see my ALT.

For further details on these two versions, an extensive discussion on the three different Greek texts mentioned above, along with reviews of about 30 other versions of the Bible, see my book "Differences Between Bible Versions."

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Literal, Modern, Accurate!, March 5, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: World English Bible (Paperback)

After years of reading various bible versions and a strong commitment to literal translations I finally found the best. I used to be forced to shift from version to version depending on my purpose. Not anymore. No other bible version captures the Greek and Hebrew manuscripts as well as the World English Bible does. It is more literally accurate than other more popular versions (YLT, NASB, NKJV or KJV) and best of all uses modern english. By remaining more literal to the meaning of the context the translators have managed to select words that address various dividing issues in this church age. It is good for study as well as devotional reading. If you are sick and tired of all the various translations and want to settle with one translation give this one a try. You will never go back.