“New Believer’s Bible”, “The Invisible War”

One of the interesting books I found today is The Invisible War. According to the back cover this book is “an exploration of the great conflict going on between good and evil within the spiritual realm.” It was written by Dr. Donald Grey Barnhouse, former pastor of the Tenth Presbyterian Church in Philadelphia, PA. The copyright date is 1965 by Zondervan. It is in paperback format. The subtitle is The Panorama of the Continuing Conflict Between Good & Evil. It looks to be an interesting and easy read. The other book I brought home is the New Believer’s Bible (New Testament). There are so many versions and translations of Bible’s around that you never know what you’ll stumble across. This is a paperback version of the New Living Translation from Tyndale House Publishers. This Bible has commentary throughout and is described as “first steps for new Christians”. While I use the King James Version for Sunday School and church study, I plan to begin reading this version tonight. It appears to be easy to read and the study aids look very helpful.

“The Dead Sea Scrolls 1947-1969″, “The Blood and the Shroud”

I picked these two books up recently at a book sale. The first, The Dead Sea Scrolls 1947-1969, was written by Edmund Wilson. It is a revised and expanded version of The Scrolls from the Dead Sea, which was originally published in 1955. The book gives an account of the work that was done in connection with the Dead Sea Scrolls between 1955 and 1967. The book I found was a library edition, as it still has its library dust jacket and the card catalog number on the spine! The second book, The Blood and the Shroud, was written by Ian Wilson. (I don’t believe the authors of the two books are related, though I found them both at the same sale.) It was copyrighted in 1998, and is apparantly a follow-up to The Shroud of Turin, which Wilson published in 1978. The book contains some quite amazing photographs and diagrams.

More Rediscovered Bibles (And a Few More Good Books)

I discovered two Bibles at the local library’s used book store this past Saturday. Being the first Saturday of the month meant that it was also half-price day at the store! I found a hardback copy of The New English Bible (New Testament), printed in 1961 by Oxford University Press/Cambridge University Press. This copy is a 9th printing and was printed in the USA.  The cover is dark blue. Verse numbers are placed in the margins. I also found a paperback copy of the New Revised Standard Version, with the Apocrypha. Its a second printing by Hendrickson Publishers from July 2007. The books I picked up are: 1) Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible, a paperback edition from Thomas Nelson Publishers, copyright 1997; 2) The Torch of Faith, by Freda Dunlop White, published by the John C. Winston Company, first edition, copyright 1958; 3) The Epistle to Hebrews, A Practical Treatise for Plain and Serious Readers, by G. H. Lang, published by Schoettle Publising Co., Inc., copyright 2008, original copyright 1985; and 4) Just Give Me Jesus, by Anne Graham Lotz.

“All the Miracles of the Bible” & “Great Women of the Christian Faith”

I picked up two used books today that look to be very interesting reads! The first is titled All the Miracles of the Bible, written by Herbert Lockyer. It’s a third printing from 1965 by Zondervan Publishing House. The book discusses miracles found in both the Old Testament and the New Testament in an extremely detailed fashion. It includes a bibliography, subject index and scripture index. The second book is Great Women of the Christian Faith, by Edith Deen, copyright 1959 and printed by Harper & Brothers Publishers. This book describes the life stories of 123 women of faith. Some of them include Vibia Perpetua, an early Christian martyr; Katherine Von Bora, wife of Martin Luther; Narcissa Whitman, missionary to the Indians; Catherine Booth, mother of the Salvation Army; and many others.

Bible Characters, Max Lucado, “Two Minutes till Midnight”

Books rediscovered this week were: 1) In Search of Paul – How Jesus’s Apostle Opposed Rome’s Empire with God’s Kingdom, by John Dominic Crossan and Jonathan L. Reed, 2) Bad Girls of the Bible – And What We Can Learn From Them, by Liz Curtis Higgs, 3) The Book of Thomas the Doubter – Uncovering the Hidden Teachings, by George Augustus Tyrrell, 4) The Lost Books of the Bible (Forword by Solomon J. Schepps), 5) In the Grip of Grace, by Max Lucado, 6) Traveling Light, by Max Lucado, and 7) Two Minutes till Midnight, by Elmer Davis. I’m most interested in reading Two Minutes till Midnight. This is a 1955 edition of the book, in red hardcover. It appears that this book is more a history of the hydrogen bomb and its impact on the world than it is a theological work, but one of the chapters is titled “Isn’t God Going to Save Us?” The book looks to be a quick and easy read, with history as its background. I’m not quite sure about The Book of Thomas the Doubter. It was written by a psychologist and appears to be written from the viewpoint of Thomas. I’ll post a review once I’ve read it.

‘New Oxford Annotated Bible’ and ‘The Way’

I rediscovered two Bibles this past week at the local library book sale: 1) The New Oxford Annotated Bible With the Apocrypha, and 2) The Way (The Living Bible) Complete Catholic Edition. The first is a hardback Revised Standard Version Bible which, on the title page, describes itself as an “Expanded Edition” and as “An Ecumenical Study Bible”. Copyright is 1977 and it was printed in the United States. The Apocrypha is located at the back of the Bible, with a number of study helps inserted between it and the Old and New Testaments. At the very back of this Bible there is an index to the annotations, a very nice set of Bible maps and an index to these maps. The print in this Bible is very clear and easy to read. Each book of the Bible has a brief introduction. The annotations are located at the bottoms of the pages. This is a very nice, readable Bible. The second Bible, The Way, is a paperback, and is described as “An illustrated edition of The Living Bible as developed by the editors of Campus Life Magazine, Youth for Christ International”.  It is a “Complete Catholic Edition including the Deuterocanonical Books”.  To be honest, I wasn’t aware that this particular version of the Bible was printed for use by different Christian denominations until I found this edition! This Bible is illustrated with modern (at the time!) black and white pictures and brief commentary is sprinkled throughout the book. It is a second printing from May 1977 and is written in very understandable English.

Some Fascinating Book Finds

I made my monthly trek to the “first Saturday of the month” library book sale a few week ago. I really enjoy the time I spend there — so many people crammed into such a small space, all looking for something that so few people seem to truly enjoy any more: the printed word. There’s nothing like holding a book in your hands and letting your imagination take hold! And at the price of a good book these days, this sale and those like it are wonderful ways to add to your library. I pick up books at half price on sale days — a quarter for anything paperback and fifty cents for hardbacks. I came away with the following this past Saturday: 1) The Holy Bible, authorized King James Version, printed in Great Britain by Collins. It’s illustrated with glossy pictures throughout and has a help section at the back with some great charts and maps. 2) Demon Possession, written by John L. Nevius. Original copywright was 1894, but this is a reprint from 1970. 3) The Gospel and the Churches, by Wilhelm Niesel, a 1962 translation of Das Evangelium und die Kirchen, Ein Lehrbuch der Symbolik. 4) A Tale of Three Virtues, Cures for Colorless Christianity, by Steven R. Mosley, second printing 1990. 5) A Treasury of Early Christianity, edited by Anne Fremantle, copyright 1953. 6) A Harmony of the Gospels for Historical Study, by William Arnold Stevens and Ernest DeWitt Burton, copyright 1904 and 1932. I’m very excited about this one, as it will make a great study aid.  7) Death, The Final Stage of Growth, a paperback edition by Elixabeth Kubler-Ross.

I’m constantly amazed that the majority of the Christian books I find have been donated to the book store by churches and church libraries. While I understand that over the years the diction and writing styles of these books may make them seem less readable to many people, they are still founts of religious information and history. For this, they will never grow old, at least to those who are truly interested in learning about the church and religion through the ages. I suppose these books are replaced with newer, glossier, more modern-thinking volumes, but I can’t help but think that those individuals who will never have the chance to read them are missing out on some great literature. Along those same lines, most Bibles I find (and save!) have some type of inscription in them, indicating they were given by someone to someone. A gift of this type emphasizes the love that one person has for another; for that reason I find it hard to imagine someone giving such a gift away. I still have the very first Bible I received from my parents as a young person in Sunday School. I treasure it to this day! For those of you who enjoy reading Christian books of yore, I’d encourage visits to local library book stores and thrift stores in your area. You never know what you’ll come across. Good hunting!

Bibles and Books Rediscovered

I simply cannot ignore a Bible when I stop by a garage sale, flea market, resale shop, etc. This being said, I hadn’t been to a garage sale in ages up until yesterday. As I was out running errands I stopped at two of them, both church sales. One sale was just a rehash of items that are put out on tables year after year after year. The second was a different story entirely. As usual, I headed straight for the books when I entered the building. And there, stuck in a corner, was a stack of Bibles and Christian books. What did I come home with? Three Bibles (one in not very good shape, but I couldn’t leave it behind) and several books.

All three Bibles are the King James Version. The first is a small Bible, and though nowhere does it say ‘Authorized King James Version’, or words to that effect, it does contain the preface by the translators. It also does not have a print date, but it was published by The Syndics of the Cambridge University Press and printed in Great Britain at the University Printing House, Cambridge. The title page and spine simply refer to it as the Holy Bible. This Bible has been well-used, with markings on some pages, and contains a Concordance as well as Cambridge Bible Maps and Gazetteer.

The second Bible is medium-sized. On the front are the words Holy Bible and an imprint of Jesus holding a lamb. The spine of the Book says Cyclopedic Indexed Bible, Good Shepherd Edition, Self Pronouncing. The name of the publisher — Hertel — is found at the bottom of the spine. This Bible is in very good shape. There is an individual’s name on the presentation page but there is no writing or marks on the pages of the Bible itself. The Bible includes an Alphabetical Index, Women of the Bible, Messianic Prophecies and Their Fulfillment in Jesus, Life and Teachings of Jesus Christ, Things First Mentioned in the Bible, Doctrinal and Practical Information, Practical Instructions for Personal Workers and Sunday School Teachers, Guide to the Laws of the Bible, Digest and Encyclopedia, as well as a Concordance and maps. It is a red letter edition of the Bible and has some color plates. It is copyrighted 1948 by The John A. Hertel Company, Chicago.

Bible number three has Holy Bible embossed on the front and on the spine. The spine also indicates it is a Red Letter edition as well as a Master-Art Edition. The cover is in very bad shape; the front cover is loose and the back cover is missing. There is no writing or marks in the Bible, and it has a number of colored plates. It also has much of the same encyclopedic and illustrative additions as the previous Bible. It was printed by The World Publishing Company, United States of America. There is no date.

The books I picked up at the sale are: The Prophet Jeremiah, by Harold C. Case, copyright 1953 by the Woman’s Division of Christian Service, Board of Missions of the Methodist Church; The Acts of the Apostles (The Daily Study Bible Series), by William Barclay, copyright 1976; The Pilgrim’s Progress, by John Bunyan, a modern paperback edition; and God’s Promises For Your Every Need, copyright 1981 by Living Scriptures.