Newsletter #65
On Buying a Bible
As a former outfielder, I couldn’t help but share this. The pitcher’s reaction is only slightly less awesome than the catch itself.
Last week I purchased a Bible. In and of itself, that isn’t impressive. However, the nearly tortured experience I had in arriving at my decision is probably the bigger headline.
Some background might be helpful.
I began using the English Standard Version of the Bible in 2004. That’s right. Before it was cool, I took the plunge. I use it for most of my daily Bible reading, and all my teaching and preaching. Despite a recent flirtation with the Christian Standard Bible—which I quite like—I plan to continue with the ESV as my primary version. In short, it seems to capture the lovely cadence of the King James and the overall accuracy of the New American Standard Bible. I realize this characterization could be disputed, but it has been my tentative, shorthand basis for using the ESV.
Since serving on a church staff for the first time in 2007, I’ve used three different copies of the ESV. Obviously, with the proliferation of different editions through Crossway, there have been plenty to choose from. But I try to find something that works and stick with it until it becomes too worn to use profitably. In the past, pages starting to come loose has been the event that triggers a new purchase. In the case of my latest Bible, which I’ve used for perhaps five-to-seven years, the pages have begun pulling away from the spine. It’s only a matter of time before they gives way.
I have been investigating suitable repair options, but last week I remembered that Crossway offers a lifetime guarantee on many of its Bibles. I decided to put it to the test. After an initial email to Customer Support, I received a polite response indicating that they’d be happy to honor the guarantee. All I needed to do was go to their website and let them know which replacement Bible I wanted. I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
Decisions, Decisions
According to the Bible section of Crossway’s website, they sell 123 different editions of the ESV—whether both testaments or New Testament only. 123. I don’t know how that compares to other publishers, but I can’t help but think it’s astounding. Some of this speaks to the popularity of the ESV. However, the various types of Bibles give some indication about the specialized nature of Bible manufacturing and marketing.
ESV Teen Study Bible
ESV Single-Column Journaling Bible (Large Print)
ESV Gift and Award Bible
ESV Value Compact Bible
Chinese Study Bible
Church History Study Bible
ESV Systematic Theology Study Bible
ESV Big Picture Bible
ESV Economy Bible
ESV Chemistry Bible
Okay, okay. I made that last one up. But you almost believed it, didn’t you?
By no means am I making fun of the folks at Crossway. They do fine work both on the Bible publishing division and in their book division. But occasionally the Christian church in the West (especially America) needs to take a long pause and consider the nature of our situation. That is to say, what does it mean (1) for countless people groups not to have the Bible in their own native tongue; (2) for untold millions not to have access to the Bibles which have been translated into their language; (3) for untold millions to be legally prohibited from owning and/or distributing a Bible; and (4) for untold millions to only have portions of the Bible—often soiled or damaged—in their possession.
I know how easily such enjoinders can sound like sermonizing. We’ve all heard our childhood preachers say, at some point and in some form, “It’s a shame we have all of those unread Bibles on our shelves, while many in the world don’t have a Bible at all.”
This sentiment especially registers with me. As part of my church’s weekly worship, we have a dedicated time for prayer for Great Commission work and the global church (the Missions Moment). We pray for a North American ministry, typically church planters. We then pray for an international missionary. Finally, we pray for a country where Christians are a small, persecuted minority. (We use the Voice of the Martyrs Global Prayer Guide for direction on this.) Oh, how often we have prayed for a country where Bibles are illegal, scarce, or altogether unavailable!
Meanwhile, here I am in the land of free cashing in on my lifetime guarantee to replace a specific Bible. Mind you, this isn’t the only Bible I could use in the pulpit; it’s simply the one I prefer to use.
Beyond Guilt Trips
Christians face a fierce temptation to indulge in false piety in this area. Despite taking the time to acknowledge the disparity of circumstances surrounding Bible ownership in the world, it doesn’t make anyone a more virtuous person. It’s much like the young adult who looks back over his childhood and realizes he grew up in a financially privileged background. Having surveyed his peers’ personal circumstances, he feels a twinge of guilt. Is he therefore guilty? Of course not. Is he now virtuous for simply being aware of the differences? No.
Yet this terrain is spiritual just as everything else that involves our stewardship is. We are stewards of the Word by virtue of having received the truth of the gospel. Additionally, all Christians are charged to share this Word in the world. But we could extend that stewardship to our very physical Bibles. How well are we humbly and joyfully treating these containers of Divine revelation? Indeed, it may be time we did some inventory of what’s on our shelves, and thought very carefully about how best to see that these bound blessings are utilized.
I think it’s worthwhile to heed the caution from some to not to turn the Bible itself into an idol. Many of our great theologians and biblical scholars have supposed that one reason why God didn’t see fit to preserve the original biblical autographs was to free us from the temptation to treat them as relics. This is a reasonable view. But practically, how should we treat our physical Bibles? And is it wrong to upgrade when what you currently own is still serviceable?
I hope it’s obvious enough that I can’t answer the second question definitively. On the first, let me urge us all to be a little less casual and a lot more humble when we look at it and open it. And may we all be a lot more circumspect when we get too gaga over all the latest and greatest products from our favorite Bible publishers.
Epilogue (Can a newsletter have an epilogue?)
Ultimately, I decided to split the baby. I’m going to continue to try to find a way to repair my current Bible and I found a less expensive version to replace it with when I’m teaching and preaching. After all, I can’t have stuff falling out my Bible while in the pulpit.
But the countless notes, underlined words and phrases, and even dates of births, marriages, and deaths in the front of my current Bible are too precious to shelf altogether. This Bible has been a valued part of my spiritual formation. May the Lord give it some extra years of service.
Follow-Up:
It has been a few weeks since I wrote a bit about the anxiety many were feeling over the ongoing legal battle over student loan forgiveness. Well, there have been some developments. For now, $6 billion in student loan forgiveness will go forward. Regardless of how you may view this, you can read a fuller account of this news here. I’ve never been big on writing about “current events,” but I guess this ended up being pretty current and fluid!
Currently Reading:
Abraham Kuyper, Wisdom & Wonder: Common Grace in Art and Science
Quote of the Week:
I sometimes wonder how difficult it may be for a young person to imagine how un-administered life was just a short time ago. And how easy. For example, material culture was not alienating and frustrating: stuff just worked. One reason, I am sure, is that there weren’t mysteries embedded in your things, a hidden social logic connecting your every action to the hive of surveillance and social management. Your refrigerator wasn’t smart. It didn’t give you a nudge for healthy habits, it just kept food cold. Your telephone didn’t want to integrate you with the hive, it just transmitted the voices of two people (and did so with great clarity). Things had straightforward functions that could be fulfilled relatively cheaply; they were tools that elicited action, rather than portals to hidden bureaucracies that foster passivity and dependence while soothingly repeating “your call is important to us.”