My core study and teaching Bible is an Oxford wide margin. This is the one with Brevier Clarendon type that has chapter summaries. There is another version of the King James wide margin Bible by Oxford University Press that does not have a summary at the beginning of each chapter (it is a Brevier Blackface typestyle with a kind of quirky thing in that all the chapters are numbered). The type of text I have is still in print, but high priced.Wide margin refers to a type of Bible that is printed with lots of space around the sides so you can write your own notes next to the text. In effect, you begin to author your own study Bible.Dalona bought me this Bible in 1985. It was originally bonded leather and I have since had it rebound. It has so many notes in it, it is my life. Years ago I photocopied the whole thing because I was making a missions trip overseas to a third-world destination, and I wanted to make sure I had it “backed up” in case it did not return with me. But there are a couple of drawbacks to this Bible.
This edition is not printed on thin “india” paper, but a thicker stock. This makes it an enormously thick Bible compared to the edition you can buy today. That is a plus if you make a lot of notes in ink (like with a Pilot or rapidograph pen). But I don’t. I normally use a 0.5mm mechanical pencil with a darker lead (like B, instead of HB or no.2 lead). Secondly, this Bible has chapter summaries but not Ussher’s dates. (No, no. Usher was dating Tamika Foster but cancelled their wedding last summer. Ussher was Archbishop for the Anglican church in Ireland and he worked up a complete biblical chronology back in the mid 1600s.) Plus, some publishers like Cambridge now make wide margins with a sheaf of ruled paper in the back. Would have been nice.
India paper is bleached hemp and rag fibers, making it thin and strong, but with titanium oxide additives it is nearly opaque. It bulks up to 1,100 pages to the inch, making it perfect for slimming Bibles. It is a premium, long-life paper. The name originated in about 1770 from the fact that it imitated fine papers imported from “the Orient.”Here are a couple of esoteric ideas for the adventurous. The Newberry Study Bible, and the Companion Bible (198 appendices!) of Bullinger. Now that will blow your mind. But then if you have that much information in the margins, why build your own study Bible?
One time I even found the Oxford "hand-size" Bible that was the basis for my wide margin. So for several years I was able to have my wide margin study Bible, and a reading or preaching Bible with the exact same pages, but without the margins. Also, it was printed on india paper, so it was much thinner. I got it from a Canadian source at the time, because Oxford was not selling all versions of their Bibles in the US.SIDEBAR: If I want to refresh my theology I have another Oxford Bible I “turn to,” an Old Scofield Study Bible Classic Edition. It is the 1917 version of the Scofied Reference notes. They market it as a “$69.99 Value,” but you can get it quite cheaper here.
My favorite Bibles are ones with the softest, most flexible covers. So my current reading Bible is a Nelson UltraSlim reference bound in something called “English Brown Leathersoft™.”
I have an affinity for Bibles with center column references (in this case, 60,000 of them). But if you only wanted a “reading Bible” with no refs, you used to be able to get a Leathersoft™ version without them. (If you like burgundy, B&N is closing some out for a dozen bucks. I assume that both editions will be soon out of print, but a hopeful sign is here)
One word on method. Last year I chose to read from Bibles that were about 1050-1100 pages in length for both testaments. This allows me to read daily until I reach a page that ends in a zero (10,20...1020) and even with a few days that you invariably miss, still get through the Bible three times a year. I don’t have to worry about counting calories, I mean chapters. Just end on a chapter every ten pages and you get through in under 120 days.
The ideal, dream, “reading Bible” for me would be a King James with a buttery-soft cover that was also printed in paragraph format in a modern typeface. I heard about one once but have never located a copy. It was printed by an outfit in England for Queen Elizabeth's jubilee. Let me know if you run across it.
