Recently I got my hands on a copy of The Expanded Bible put out by Thomas Nelson. This is an modified version of the New Century Version with a ton of valuable extras, all in one handy location. The Bible has, in bold, the main text of the New Testament. Using brackets and a non-bold font, it then “expands” the text to include various notes and study helps to deepen your understanding of the passage. These expansions include:
[...] expanded understanding of the text
[L] literal renderings of the text
[T] more traditional translations of the text
[or] alternate translations of the text
[C] commentary on the text
Overall, I love the concept of this Bible and the information it contains. I am in love with the idea of the text, other translations, commentary, and study notes contained in one volume. With The Expanded Bible, it is not necessary to have multiple other Bibles or commentaries littering your desk as you study the Scriptures.
When I first started reading The Expanded Bible, it took some time to really understand the flow of how it works. There is so much information and so many brackets and notations, my brain tended to get bogged down at first. Once you get into the flow, though, this resource is incredibly valuable.
But, these drawbacks are minimal when compared to the wealth of value found in these pages. I would highly recommend this Bible to any serious student of the Bible.
