Tuesday, September 5, 2017

The Apologetics Study Bible: Christian Standard Bible - A Review



Apologetics Study Bible CSB.jpg


A Review


Holman Bible Publishers has combined one of my favorite Study Bibles with what is becoming a favorite preaching Bible. The result is a tool that I will be keeping on my shelf for years to come.

Over the last few months, I have begun to appreciate the Christian Standard Bible (CSB), beginning with a couple of reviews published in February and March of 2017. It is quickly becoming my favorite pulpit Bible. I am becoming increasingly excited as Study Bibles are becoming available based around the CSB. The Apologetics Study Bible is the third such Study Bible to cross my desk.


The Bible text used in this edition is the newer Christian Standard Bible. But the changes do not stop there. Notes have been updated in this newer edition. As one example, the notes of the original HCSB Apologetics Bible for Colossians 2:8 are as follows:

2:8 The term “philosophy” occurs only here in the Bible. Paul was not making a blanket denunciation of philosophical study or even Greek philosophy (e.g., Platonism, Stoicism). Nor was he worried that the Colossians’ faith would crumble if they subjected it to critical inquiry. The article (“the”) appearing before the term in the Greek text suggests that the opponents had characterized their own teaching as a “philosophy”—the specific teaching Paul opposed.

The newer CSB version rewords this slightly and adds a bit more content:

2:8 The term “philosophy” occurs only here in the Bible. Paul was not making a blanket denunciation of philosophical study or even Greek philosophy like Platonism, Stoicism. Nor was he worried that the Colossians’ faith would crumble if they subjected it to critical inquiry. The article (“the”) appearing before the term in the Greek text suggests that the opponents had characterized their own teaching as a “philosophy”—the specific teaching Paul opposed.

“Elements of the world” (stoicheia) suggests supernatural agencies or spiritual beings.

Knowing that the text was not merely imported from the previous edition into the newer edition is a helpful observation. It means the editors were not only thinking about the Bible text, but also about the  contents of the notes.


Note - this review is specifically for the hard copy of the CSB Apologetics Study Bible. Kindle versions are flawed in that they do not provide access to the main Apologetics Study Notes - this is true for both the HCSB and CSB versions and for the separate, though related, student versions. LOGOS versions of the original HCSB Apologetics Study Bible does not have this flaw. CSB versions of both the Apologetics Study Bible and the Student versions are in the queue for possible development - given sufficient pre-orders.


Is it worth purchasing the CSB Apologetics Study Bible - only if you want the most up-to-date details and notes. I have not checked every note, so I cannot verify that there are no critical updates to the notes - the buyer may want to check important verses, chapters, or books, for changes.


______________
This review is based on a free electronic copy provided by the publisher for the purpose of creating this review. The opinions are mine alone.

No comments: