New Believer's Bible New Testament First Steps for New Christians

2009/12/04 This is a nice Bible to use for personal or group study - especially for new believers because it has a simple outline approach, that if you follow it, it leads you through the New Testament and teaches you very important Christian concepts along the way. It is set up with four "Reading Tracks" that take you from the foundational teachings ("Cornerstones") to more advanced topics ("Big Questions") in stages. Also, it helps you get accustomed to the "chapter and verse" set up of the Bible slowly because when you read the topic in the front pages, you are directed to supporting Scripture passages by page number, so you don't have to struggle to find a passage by Bible book, chapter and verse - if it is unfamiliar to you. We are using this Bible for a Bible study at my church and for our uses, it tends to be a guide to follow for specific topics, then it becomes a springboard for discussion and further study. The translation is the "New Living Translation" which is an easy to read / understand version. I don't usually use the NLT, I usually read the "New American Standard Bible" (NASB) which is more literal, or the "New International Version" (NIV) which is in the middle between literal and paraphrase. I would rate the NLT as more on the paraphrase end of the spectrum. It says on the back cover that the NLT is both easy to understand and accurate at the same time, so that it is good for reading but also for in-depth study. However, I would suggest that someone use the NLT for it's easy reading quality, and if you are going to be involved with more in-depth study (after a while), I would suggest the NASB because it is more literal in it's translation from the original Greek into English.