The Original Bible for Modern Readers

THOUSANDS of ancient manuscripts, including the Dead Sea Scrolls and other ancient documents, confirm that we today possess the original Bible. And multiple independent translations allow modern readers to see that the Word of God has been faithfully translated into our own language. The availability of many good translations today also makes it possible for readers to get a fresh perspective and a deeper understanding as they read the Bible over and over again, following the admonition to "meditate on it day and night." (Joshua 1:8, compare Psalm 1:2)The divine Author of the Bible used dozens of human penmen to produce the collection of histories, psalms, prophecies and teachings that are bound together today as one Bible-Old Testament and New Testament-for us to read, take to heart, and obey. He produced the Bible for our benefit:"Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words . . . and keep the things that are written in it . . ."-Revelation 1:3"Every Scripture is God-breathed and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work."-2 Timothy 3:16-17"For the word of God is living and active, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and is able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart."-Hebrews 4:12The Bible's divine Author wants us to read it, to think about it, and to discuss it with our families:". . . you shall lay up these my words in your heart and in your soul. . . . You shall teach them to your children, talking of them, when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise up." (Deut. 11:18-19)THE ORIGINAL BIBLE FOR MODERN READERS follows the tradition of the American Standard Version (ASV), The Jerusalem Bible (JB), The Living Bible (LB) and the World English Bible (WEB) in featuring the sacred name of God wherever it occurs in surviving manuscripts of the Old Testament-rather than the custom of substituting the title the LORD in small caps. So, where some other translations speak of the "fearful name, the LORD," "the LORD . . . This is my name forever," and "I will proclaim my name, the LORD" (Deut. 28:58, Ex. 3:15, 33:19), TOB features God's name, as the original manuscripts did.With a few exceptions, The Original Bible for Modern Readers features the text of the copyright-free World English Bible (November 2012 HTML version). The exceptions include the occasional use of the World English Bible's alternate readings from the footnotes where those seem more understandable, corrections found in later updates of the World English Bible, the word used when rendering the divine name, and the use of quotation marks, paragraphing, etc. in sections where that work had not yet been completed. Rather than the transliteration Yahweh, The Original Bible for Modern Readers uses the more familiar translation Jehovah, following the pattern of the American Standard Version and The Living Bible -- consistent with the English translation and pronunciation of the names of the Messiah and ancient Jewish kings: Jesus ("Jehovah saves"), Jehoshaphat ("Jehovah judges") and Jehoram ("Jehovah is exalted"), for example. YOU MAY FREELY COPY from The Original Bible for Modern Readers, because it is not copyrighted. It is in the public domain, so you are free to quote from it and to reproduce it in whole or in part, without any need to pay royalties or even to ask permission.