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Written by Rey
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Tuesday, 27 June 2006 |
My hope: Bible Publisher reads this and says “Great Idea!
Let’s print and publish it.” I was inspired to do this when submitting a form a
while back to HCSB. They asked “what would your perfect Bible be” so here it
is. Be warned that this Bible will likely break the physical boundaries of time
or space but if someone can persevere and overcome these obstacles, I’ll say a
hearty “thank you”. Before the charge is raised, I know that this Bible exists
in electronic form. But I don’t like carrying my laptop to the pulpit since I’m
afraid of a catastrophic incident. Like, it’ll slip off, crash into my glass of
water in a sermon stopping moment and an elderly man will shoot up, shaking
fist in the air and a shadow on his brow as he shouts “Thus the fiery wiles of the
devil shall be quenched!”
Physical:
- Calfskin leather.
It’s really purdee as they say out here in the Uber-Rural. Plus it’s durable.
- Good binding: I
don’t want my pages to fall out after years of serious thumping. I’m just
kidding, I don’t thump the Bible. I slap the pulpit thrice and glare at anyone
who thinks different.
- Thick paper. I
want to be able to write on the Bible without things bleeding through. The
paper has to be thick enough to handle that kind of traffic if need be without
destroying the text or the paper.
- Extra Wide Margins.
I want some clear space on the outside margins of the page where I can put my
own notes. I’m talking two and a half inches.
- Light. I want this
Bible to be fairly light without losing substance. In other words, if it weighed
under five pounds it could still be used as a +3 missile weapon.
- Five Ribbon
bookmarks. I abhor those single ribbons that I have to double over to hold
two spots or having to rip papers to save other spots. Look, I know where my
Bible books are located and I have no problem quoting a passage that I’ve
looked at a hundred times over before preaching but I don’t like to do that.
Sometimes I would rather go to the section and read it; those days that it’s
humid and the pages stick to my fingers plays havoc on preaching. Five
bookmarks will make me happy.
Textual:
- Red Letter. Jesus
words in red letter are fine by me. Easier to read.
- Added words in itals.
I can identify them right away.
- Contested verses
between brackets with a note saying that most manuscripts don’t have them.
- Paragraphs? I
like Paragraphs but a parallel Bible seems to demand single verses being in a
one to one location. Therefore a paragraph could be defined by a bold number or
something else genius. I’ll leave this one to the marketers, publishers or the
Better Bible Blogs. ( I do so love paragraphs though).
- Four Versions in one.
Those versions being NASB’95, HCSB, TNIV and the NKJV. No Amplified here; it
presents interpretation as Actual Translation of the Text. NASB is high on
personal study, HCSB is nice for reading, TNIV is great for relevance and NKJV
is most likely sitting in the pews or at least close enough to KJV to make the
older crowd able to follow along. Also, I might sacrifice the TNIV for a
Spanish version. I’ll let the Publishers decide.
Referential:
- NET Bible notes.
I know that the NET Bible notes are tied directly to their translation but I
would love to see corresponding numbers with all these versions to a small 6 pt
text running along the bottom of the page that gives some solid textual
information.
- Book notes. Like:
who wrote it and when. What was going on around that time. Who was ruling. A
timeline chart showing whereabout the book lies in connection with other books.
External and Internal evidence that supports or denies those claims. A couple
of blank pages where the user can insert their own outline in the beginning of
the book. An exit page that has some key verses
- Center Column
References. Same thing as in other Bibles but really going into using that
space of center margin with some contextual, topical, informational, and
comparative references.
- Concordance. Definitions
are fine but I’d also like to see it cover more ground in giving more words and
focusing more on where to find them. If I had my wish it would be an all out
actual concordance but that would make this Bible way too heavy for a missile
weapon so I’ll settle with something more condensed in content and font size.
Perks:
- Maps. Not those
cheesy old maps in the back of the gift bibles nor those week political maps
that just shows perceived boundaries. I want a map of Israel with acetate pages
that can be overlayed on the map with either topography, OT names, NT Names,
Paul’s travels, likely locations of certain places and a couple of clear sheets
that let me do my own marking if need be.
- Illustrations.
I’ve always loved those old illustrations of the items in the tabernacle. They
were great. Make them super technical, pen and ink and easy to reproduce (with
a copyright of course) then you got yourself some good illustrations. I’d like
it to have the tabernacle, the temples and the layout of Solomon’s temple.
- 6 Mechanical erasable
Pencil highlighters. Thin .5 lead. Six colors consist of Red, Blue, Green,
Yellow, Brown and Purple. Section on outline page on chapters has a section
(legend) with the colors already in place and an empty field where a person can
write in what the colors signify in the book (ie: Red: Promise; Blue: God;
Green: Division; Yellow: Key Verse; Brown: Pattern; Purple: locale)
- Kneaded Eraser.
To erase stuff without destroying paper.
- CD-Rom with
Libronix book, E-Sword module and Pocket PC program—with a two-version upgrade
option.
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...but you want a TNIV? You crack me up. If I was you, a Spanish-speaker, I'd go for the Spanish instead.
Anyone can glue some extra ribbons in their Bible. The ribbon in one of mine got ripped out, so I glued five in its place, nicer than the original.
It sounds like a pretty big book. I think you'll need wheels and a retractable handle like that new-fangled luggage has now, too.
Incidentally, I wish we had some old-timers like the one you described in our church.