First, catching up, the 9/22 host was The Church of Jesus Christ, with the review is here.
Yesterday, the tour continued right here with my review and an interview with Keith Williams. Keith provided some very helpful answers. The tour continues at This Lamp today, and Rick’s review is already posted.
You can find all tour links at the Holy Bible Mosaic blog.
Remember that my contest for a free copy of the Mosaic Bible remains open until the end of the week.
I’m delighted to have Keith Williams, General Editor of the Mosaic Bible, and Bible and Reference Editor at Tyndale House. This is part of The Mosaic Bible blog tour. You can find Keith regularly on the NLT Blog, or follow him on twitter, @keithwilliams. Don’t forget to look at the rules for my contest to give away a certificate for one free copy of The Mosaic Bible.
Q: In preparing this Bible was there any single experience that most touched you and the editorial team?
A: In almost every week, there was at least one quote, prayer, or reading that captured my spiritual imagination, but the one thing that sticks out most was seeing the final page proofs. To see how everything had come together in a way that fulfilled and even exceeded our vision for the Bible was quite gratifying. Our design team did an amazing job with the layout, and the final touch of varying the size and presentation of the art was captivating to me.
Q: I know that you chose quotations from writers of each century of Christian history and from every continent. What other criteria did you use in choosing the contributors?
A: It was important to me to present a wide diversity of perspectives throughout, not only historically and geographically, but also across the various strands of Christian traditions, etc. I was also careful to include women throughout. In every single week, the contributors gave me more content than I could actually fit in a given week, and often I found myself cutting excellent material simply because I already had half a dozen quotes from a particular author or others like him or her. Ultimately, however, even though the diversity was important, I was careful to make sure that everything included would point the reader to deeper reflection on God and his Word in the context of that week’s theme.
Q: Did you find any new writer that particularly touched you or interested you that you could recommend to my readers?
A: This was my first exposure to most of the contemporary authors who contributed to this project. By “contemporary authors,” I mean those people who were commissioned to write the central meditation for each week. I found many of them to be very interesting and engaging, and I am somewhat at a loss to pick and choose. I do remember quite clearly that Tamara Park’s meditation (“Marked with Khesed,” p. m312-313) was so good that I couldn’t bring myself to edit it down to just one page. It is the only one that spills over to a second page. I remember agonizing over the proof, seeing that I just couldn’t get it to fit on one page without losing something important, so we broke the rules and let it spill over.
Q: In my experience the NLT is much more commonly used for personal reading than for public reading or exegetical study. Is that an accurate characterization of normal use? Do you see the NLT text as well suited for public reading and preaching?
A: There are definitely churches that use the NLT as their primary Bible for preaching and reading, but there are also believers and pastors who encourage using the NLT for personal reading while using a more formal translation in worship and study. I think the NLT can be used in both contexts with profit; it is a serious translation, done by qualified scholars who are passionate about communicating the Word of God as clearly and accurately as possible in modern English. Of course, the preacher will sometimes have to explain why the sermon deviates from the NLT, but doesn’t that happen with every translation in an exegetical sermon? The honest answer is yes. The nature of translation is that decisions are made that will capture major aspects of the original text, but it is not possible to represent all of the nuance of the original in translation. It is a myth that formal translations are better at preserving more of the aspects of the original language than dynamic ones. Both strategies have their strengths, and anyone doing in-depth Bible study in English should definitely consult more than one translation in their studies. But the NLT is definitely an excellent choice as a primary translation for exegetical study, public reading and preaching. Often the clarity of the NLT will shine a bright light on the central point of the text that might be obscured by the familiarity or traditional language of a more formal translation.
Q: Could you expand on what it means for this Bible to be Christocentric and how you accomplish this through the choice of readings and the layout?
A: This is a great question! There are two primary ways that I hope believers will be able to “encounter Christ” through this Bible. First, they will most certainly encounter Christ through his Word, which is presented on its own without the distraction of other content sharing the page. All of the supplementary content in the front is intended to drive readers back to the Scripture readings, the revealed Word of God. Second, I believe people will be able to encounter Christ through the witness of a community of believers from various times, places, and traditions of the faith. The readings, hymns, prayers, and artwork are all representations of Christ’s work in his people. They are brought together in a way that highlights the fact that Christ is truly present among his people, despite (and perhaps even through) our obvious differences.
… and whether they are protestant. I think that Geoffrey Lentz covers the ground rather thoroughly and points to some need for reformation in the church today.
… Tyndale has provided me with a certificate to award in a contest over on my Participatory Bible Study blog.
I’m not going to make an extended comment here except to note that the point at which I get the most questions about my own interpreation of scripture and the doctrine of inerrancy is Genesis 1-2, possibly extending to Genesis 1-11. The fact is that I can find people who affirm the doctrine of inerrancy to back everything I have said about those chapters.
Besides pointing out that I haven’t done anything very original in this area, it shows that people very often conflate some form of Biblical literalism with Biblical inerrancy. The two are not the same thing. I have discussed this more extensively in my series on Biblical interpretation on my Threads blog, and more specifically regarding Genesis 1-11 on this blog. I would note that some things I say regarding Genesis 4 and later raise more questions, though I would still maintain I could find backing from folks who support Biblical inerrancy.
In any case, there has been a recent uproar over some remarks by Dr. Tremper Longman, and my main point is to link to a discussion of this matter by Jeremy Pierce, which I think is exceptionally clear on a number of key points. One cannot determine whether a document in error before one determines what it intends to convey, and one cannot determine what it intends to convey without knowing what type of literature it is.
Read Jeremy’s entire post for a good exposition.
Note: I am participating in a blog tour for the release of this Bible on my Participatory Bible Study blog. Please go there for more information on the Mosaic Bible giveaway. There are more details on the tour at the HolyBibleMosaic.com site.
I was very excited to receive a copy of The Mosaic Bible from the folks at Tyndale House, because I had great hopes for this devotional and study Bible.
It’s very hard to get me excited about study Bibles, because I see so much abuse. I can cover most of that abuse under two headings:
Readers who treat study notes as equal to or sometimes superior to the text itself. Nobody actually says this, but they often act as though they believe it.
Study Bibles with notes that are so narrowly based as to slant one’s Bible reading in favor of a particular tradition. Now I don’t expect Bible editors to cover all perspectives, but when the view of a particular tradition or even of an individual theologian is stated authoritatively in the notes as the one interpretation, it’s possible for the inexperienced reader to become confused.
With that, enter The Mosaic Bible. I must admit to starting with a bit of bias. I have a strong appreciation for the NLT, and that is the chosen Biblical text. That text is particularly appropriate to a Bible that aims primarily at devotional or liturgical study and reading. The clarity of the translation text is too often neglected in liturgical use. Yes, we want accuracy. Yes, we want a decent literary sound for the scripture reading. But in addition, clarity is particularly important in public reading. The NLT is quite good in that area.
But from that good foundation, it is possible still to construct a Bible edition that detracts from the excellent text. That is not the case here.
Most importantly, in my view, the study and devotional notes are separated from the Biblical text. Instead of breaking up the flow of the Biblical text, thus suggesting that they are almost part of it, the notes and meditations are placed in the front of the Bible and then crossreferenced from the text.
Of almost equal importance is the variety of materials included. The claim of the preface is that this Bible is intended “… to provide a way to encounter Christ on every continent and in every cenury of Christian history.” And it does precisely that. We have readings ranging from the 1 Clement and the Didache to writers of today, and they come from different tradition streams as well as different geographical locations.
In teaching on how to study the Bible for laypeople, I emphasize sharing. By sharing I mean not just telling others what you have learned, but also listening to the broader community, in time, in space, and in tradition, so as to hear possible corrections of your own eccentricities. Often people come and ask me where they can find such things. Of course there are numerous reference sources one can use, but many are not easily accessible outside of an academic environment.
I can now recommend using this Bible for a year as a way to introduce yourself to the variety of resources and authors that are available. It will provide you with places to start in many areas.
I attend a more liturgical church, and hear preaching from the lectionary. But I didn’t grow up with that. The church year was pretty much a mystery to me. The Mosaic Bible divides its notes into 53 weekly readings (the extra week helps deal with different dates for certain church days), each of which includes four scriptures patterned after the lectionary (Old Testament, Psalm, Epistle, Gospel), and at least one additional suggested reading. In addition, there is an introductory note on the topic, readings, a medition, a prayer, and some white space to use in taking notes.
The obvious approach to this Bible is either liturgical or devotional. Follow the Christian year with this Bible, do the readings, and watch your devotional life grow, or alternatively, use them in church liturgy. I am a strong advocate of more scripture reading in our worship services. We have little tolerance for listening to substantial passages of scripture, but I would suggest we would do well to develop a spiritual discipline of just plain listening to scripture.
With the crossreferences, however, you can choose instead to follow your own plan of reading, and use this Bible as a supplement. Clearly marked references indicate what scriptures are used in the weekly studies, so you can use them in reverse as well. The Bible text portion of the book will serve quite well as a Bible you can carry to church with you, or use for other reading and study.
Having listed all these strengths, let me note a couple of weaknesses. The difficulty with the word “weakness” is that it needs to be interpreted with reference to a goal. I think this Bible accomplishes what the editors set out in the introduction or “Mosaic User’s Guide.” Nonetheless I think I need to point out what the Bible is not.
First, it is not a technical study Bible. The introductions to the Bible books are basic, not detailed. The notes are not about historical background or technicalities of language, but are instead devotional (this is, of course a strength as well). You will not find discussion of historical-critical questions. For example, the introduction to Genesis gives the date of writing as “Uncertain, perhaps 1450-1410 BC.” You could generate decades of arguments over that, but you won’t find any of them here.
Second, it is not a guide to any particular tradition. It is not surprising that often Catholics would like a Catholic study Bible, protestants a protestant Bible, evangelicals an evangelical Bible, Methodists a Methodist Bible (sort of!), and so forth. Those groups overlap, of course. This Bible isn’t designed to address the most controversial issues, at least as I read it. It is, instead, to take elements from all the traditions that point to Christ as the center.
Before I make a final point about the Bible I want to expand on that point. I don’t think we are used to christocentric study notes. Some evangelical study Bibles point to prophecy and fulfillment. Those interested in historical interpretation look more at an isolated meaning at a particular place and time. But as the scriptures of the Christian faith, the books of the Bible can and should be read as centering around the one greatest revelation, Jesus the incarnate Son of God.
I do not intend to deny historical-critical methodologies. I use them myself. But that is just one way of looking at the Bible—important, but not exclusive. It contributes to our other understandings. But if we see Jesus as the primary revelation of God, then I think we must look at the rest of God’s action in the world through that lens. This Bible will help you look at the whole in that fashion.
My final point has to do with book design. It’s easy to criticize book design formt he cheap seats. I handed this to my wife and she said it wouldn’t work for her, largely because of the print size. Be aware that the print is small. At the same time, I’m not sure how one would change the design to satisfy everyone. If the print were substantially larger, the whole volume would become too large to carry.
Book design is a collection of compromises. So a compromise must be struck, and I’m personally not unhappy with the result. For me, the text is large enough, though I need my reading glasses, while the book remains small enough for me to carry to church or a small group study.
Overall, I give this Bible five out of five stars, and thank Tyndale House for the opportunity to review it.
(Please see my previous post for an announcement of the Mosaic Bible giveaway. This review has also been crossposted to the Energion.com Book Blog.)
Note: I am participating in a blog tour for the release of this Bible. More details on the HolyBibleMosaic.com site.
I was very excited to receive a copy of The Mosaic Bible from the folks at Tyndale House, because I had great hopes for this devotional and study Bible.
It’s very hard to get me excited about study Bibles, because I see so much abuse. I can cover most of that abuse under two headings:
Readers who treat study notes as equal to or sometimes superior to the text itself. Nobody actually says this, but they often act as though they believe it.
Study Bibles with notes that are so narrowly based as to slant one’s Bible reading in favor of a particular tradition. Now I don’t expect Bible editors to cover all perspectives, but when the view of a particular tradition or even of an individual theologian is stated authoritatively in the notes as the one interpretation, it’s possible for the inexperienced reader to become confused.
With that, enter The Mosaic Bible. I must admit to starting with a bit of bias. I have a strong appreciation for the NLT, and that is the chosen Biblical text. That text is particularly appropriate to a Bible that aims primarily at devotional or liturgical study and reading. The clarity of the translation text is too often neglected in liturgical use. Yes, we want accuracy. Yes, we want a decent literary sound for the scripture reading. But in addition, clarity is particularly important in public reading. The NLT is quite good in that area.
But from that good foundation, it is possible still to construct a Bible edition that detracts from the excellent text. That is not the case here.
Most importantly, in my view, the study and devotional notes are separated from the Biblical text. Instead of breaking up the flow of the Biblical text, thus suggesting that they are almost part of it, the notes and meditations are placed in the front of the Bible and then crossreferenced from the text.
Of almost equal importance is the variety of materials included. The claim of the preface is that this Bible is intended “… to provide a way to encounter Christ on every continent and in every cenury of Christian history.” And it does precisely that. We have readings ranging from the 1 Clement and the Didache to writers of today, and they come from different tradition streams as well as different geographical locations.
In teaching on how to study the Bible for laypeople, I emphasize sharing. By sharing I mean not just telling others what you have learned, but also listening to the broader community, in time, in space, and in tradition, so as to hear possible corrections of your own eccentricities. Often people come and ask me where they can find such things. Of course there are numerous reference sources one can use, but many are not easily accessible outside of an academic environment.
I can now recommend using this Bible for a year as a way to introduce yourself to the variety of resources and authors that are available. It will provide you with places to start in many areas.
I attend a more liturgical church, and hear preaching from the lectionary. But I didn’t grow up with that. The church year was pretty much a mystery to me. The Mosaic Bible divides its notes into 53 weekly readings (the extra week helps deal with different dates for certain church days), each of which includes four scriptures patterned after the lectionary (Old Testament, Psalm, Epistle, Gospel), and at least one additional suggested reading. In addition, there is an introductory note on the topic, readings, a medition, a prayer, and some white space to use in taking notes.
The obvious approach to this Bible is either liturgical or devotional. Follow the Christian year with this Bible, do the readings, and watch your devotional life grow, or alternatively, use them in church liturgy. I am a strong advocate of more scripture reading in our worship services. We have little tolerance for listening to substantial passages of scripture, but I would suggest we would do well to develop a spiritual discipline of just plain listening to scripture.
With the crossreferences, however, you can choose instead to follow your own plan of reading, and use this Bible as a supplement. Clearly marked references indicate what scriptures are used in the weekly studies, so you can use them in reverse as well. The Bible text portion of the book will serve quite well as a Bible you can carry to church with you, or use for other reading and study.
Having listed all these strengths, let me note a couple of weaknesses. The difficulty with the word “weakness” is that it needs to be interpreted with reference to a goal. I think this Bible accomplishes what the editors set out in the introduction or “Mosaic User’s Guide.” Nonetheless I think I need to point out what the Bible is not.
First, it is not a technical study Bible. The introductions to the Bible books are basic, not detailed. The notes are not about historical background or technicalities of language, but are instead devotional (this is, of course a strength as well). You will not find discussion of historical-critical questions. For example, the introduction to Genesis gives the date of writing as “Uncertain, perhaps 1450-1410 BC.” You could generate decades of arguments over that, but you won’t find any of them here.
Second, it is not a guide to any particular tradition. It is not surprising that often Catholics would like a Catholic study Bible, protestants a protestant Bible, evangelicals an evangelical Bible, Methodists a Methodist Bible (sort of!), and so forth. Those groups overlap, of course. This Bible isn’t designed to address the most controversial issues, at least as I read it. It is, instead, to take elements from all the traditions that point to Christ as the center.
Before I make a final point about the Bible I want to expand on that point. I don’t think we are used to christocentric study notes. Some evangelical study Bibles point to prophecy and fulfillment. Those interested in historical interpretation look more at an isolated meaning at a particular place and time. But as the scriptures of the Christian faith, the books of the Bible can and should be read as centering around the one greatest revelation, Jesus the incarnate Son of God.
I do not intend to deny historical-critical methodologies. I use them myself. But that is just one way of looking at the Bible—important, but not exclusive. It contributes to our other understandings. But if we see Jesus as the primary revelation of God, then I think we must look at the rest of God’s action in the world through that lens. This Bible will help you look at the whole in that fashion.
My final point has to do with book design. It’s easy to criticize book design formt he cheap seats. I handed this to my wife and she said it wouldn’t work for her, largely because of the print size. Be aware that the print is small. At the same time, I’m not sure how one would change the design to satisfy everyone. If the print were substantially larger, the whole volume would become too large to carry.
Book design is a collection of compromises. So a compromise must be struck, and I’m personally not unhappy with the result. For me, the text is large enough, though I need my reading glasses, while the book remains small enough for me to carry to church or a small group study.
Overall, I give this Bible five out of five stars, and thank Tyndale House for the opportunity to review it.
(Please see my previous post for an announcement of the Mosaic Bible giveaway. This review has also been crossposted to the Energion.com Book Blog.)
I am excited about the release of Holy Bible: Mosaic NLT
For my part of the blog tour, Keith Williams, general editor for this edition, will be answering a few questions. The date for that post will be tomorrow, so I don’t have time to follow the excellent example of the Internet Monk in asking readers for their questions. (He has taken “the more excellent way” I guess!) But I have put a few questions to Keith and we’ll post the responses tomorrow.
A bit later today I will be posting my own review of this Bible to give you a preview of what’s in store and of its value.
OK, as to the contest, if you would like a certificate that you can take to your local bookstore and get a free copy of The Mosaic Bible, you will have an opportunity to do so here. If you don’t get one here, follow the blog tour and keep trying!
I am asking readers to give me suggestions for the best use of this Bible to encourage devotional Bible reading amongst Christians. Indicate in your comment that this is an “NLT Suggestion” and make sure your e-mail, provided in the comment form, is valid. I believe it will be one week from today (I may adjust this based on when I get the certificate in hand, but comment early in any case) that I will make a selection for the best suggestion. I’m going to be getting two other people to look at the suggestions as well, so it won’t just be my personal choice.
Your comment may be on this post, on my review, or on the Keith Williams interview.
Note: There are important resources related to use of this Bible at Mosaic Holy Bible.
The next stop on the tour is at This Lamp. The previous stop on the tour was at The Church of Jesus Christ.
