Holy Bible: New Living Translation

I grew up using a KJV Bible with the cheap bonded leather and that lasted me a good 20+ years until the binding started falling apart. At that time I replaced it with a NIV Life Application Bible, which is a combo of a NIV Bible that I use in Bible Study, along with a life lessons/applications. I rarely open the Life Application Bible and the reason is because it is a hardback book. I enjoy reading and what I love about this paperback version of the Bible is that it is paperback, so I can sit in my awkward position and comfortably contort this paperback book to my needs. I enjoy reading my Bible and hope I never lose that passion, but having a version that I can hold like a book means that I have a version (and translation) that I may read like a book. I'm not going to mark the Holy Bible anything less than 5-stars unless it were a poor translation but I do wish that this, or a similar styled Bible, contained red-letter. On a plus side, I found out today that using a Pilot G-2 pen to underline will not fully leak into the other side of the page. I haven't used a highlighter yet but think I'll be okay since the G-2 didn't leak through. Yes, the font is small and fine but I have good eyesight so it's not an issue for me but can see how it may be an issue for others. I hope this review/rant helps you to choose, or not choose, the right Bible for you.

Love this translation. Very small print though. Actual hard to read it’s so small.

I bought this Bible a while back because I wanted to see what all the fuss was about this 'New Living Translation' that so many people loved. Well, I'm no linguistic scholar, so I can't speak for how literal or dynamic it is, but comparing it with other versions I own (Like KJV, NASB, NIV, GW,) I can say it is in the top two or three translations I've seen as far as pure readability/style (next to maybe only God's Word or The Message Paraphrase) and for new Christians wanting a Bible that they can get familiar with easily without spending a lot on Commentaries or Study Bibles, this Gifts and Awards edition is probably just about right. To start with it has a short paragraph at the beginning of every book giving the general theme and outline along with other helpful info to get you asking the right questions while you're reading. I'm not saying it's a suitable replacement for a more thorough Study Bible such as the NLT Life Application Bible, which you might want to get later on down the line, but as I said, for someone just getting into the Bible who doesn't have a lot of dough to blow just yet, this is what I'd recommend personally without any reservations whatsoever. Some more good features at the beginning of the book are the 'Welcome To The Bible' page, along with the 'How To Know Jesus Personally' section shortly following it, as well as a very concise summary of where to find the important sections of the Bible. In just a very short matter of time one could quickly read over this and have a good overview of the Bible's main storyline of God's justice, grace, love, and His ultimate plan of redeeming the human race to Himself. At the back of the book there is a good little concordance too, which for people new to the Bible should prove invaluable until they want to get into something deeper. All in all, at the five dollar asking price, there isn't a single thing in this Bible worthy of complaint, inside or out. Besides maybe, that the cover pages are rather flimsy and are apt to deform after one or two prolonged uses, but then again, this isn't a Bible meant to be displayed proudly on a bookcase, or coffee table, it's one meant to be read, and lived. And for that it serves its purpose very well.

Interesting concepts. Fresh outlooks.

I can’t read it it’s like a phone book!

Because I’ve read the Bible through many times, it’s easy to glide over familiar passages. When I decided to read this version, I had just finished Exodus. So I read Leviticus and Numbers and then went to the New Testament and read Romans. As I read these books I compared the text with the NIV which has become quite familiar to me... though I have memorized many passages from the KJV. Wording was only slightly different in many cases, but I consider it more like today’s vernacular. Sometimes details painted a clearer picture. Some explanations clarified a passage for me. People who are reading the scriptures for the first time on their own will find this version easy to read and to understand because it verbally paints picture of passages that the KJV readers would find difficult to decipher. For example, Numbers has so many numberings that one has a tendency to skip them and move on to see what is happening next. The NLT puts many of them in chart form beginning in chapter one where tribes, leaders, and numbers are listed. Double-spacing in many places compensates for the small-than-usual font so that it’s not hard to read. Though limited in scope, the dictionary/concordance is printed in two-sized fonts and is double-spaced between entries. The passages are listed to the left making it easier to read than the way most concordances are setup. -Hope Irvin Marston, author of EYE ON THE IDITAROD: AISLING'S STORY

Letras pequenas, mas muito boa.

It has thin pages and small print but that’s what I paid for and I love it! It’s a great gift item and I wanted it to loan out or give away to those who don’t have their own so this is perfect! Thank you!

I really love the NLT translation but the text is painfully small. Literally. If you have very good vision or maybe are a bit far-sighted then this could probably work for you. My eyesight is pretty decent (not 20/20 ofcourse), it's not too farsighted with a little astigmatism. Still, the text is very small. It caused my head to hurt at first glance. I want to use it, but I have to give this away. I'm disappointed but I still recommend this translation, especially to new believers.

Very good

Great