What version of the bible do you read and why? Please give your thoughts on that version so others may learn about it.

I currently am using the ESV, because it is an essentially literal translation, plus it is very easy to read. It uses a word for word method of tranlation where the NIV uses a thought for thought method, so it makes it more accurate.

I also like the NASB for many of the same reasons.

But I also use the NIV, KJV, NKJV.

But for study I use my Concordia Self Study Bible(alongside my ESV, and others) which does use the NIV but the study notes make up for the method of translation, I do hear they are going to print a new one using the ESV, which will be great.

Oh the Concordia Bible is a Lutheran(LCMS) version of the NIV study Bible

Peace be with you,
John.

Like John i use a variety of versions, because i want the most accurately translated, the NASB is pretty accurate except it don't have the correct names of YHVH and YHVS' , and a few other points are not accurately translated from the original language into english, i also use the New Jerusalem Bible which has the Father's Name as Yahweh, but i prefer the online versions >>

http://www.paleotimes.org/bible/index.html

http://www.yahushua.net/scriptures/index.htm

http://www.eliyah.com/thescriptures/

check these out and see what you think,

i used to use only the KJV with Thompson chain reference , and it is very good, except that it has too many doctrines of mankind intertwined into it, and i prefer only the doctrine of my Saviour,

this was my first Bible, and it is a very good study Bible, i used it for many years and learned a lot with it,

I have used the NIV in the past but have recently found the KJV to be the complete and it is easy to understand if you can not undermine yourself by getting worked up by the thee's and thou's

i use kjv because it is simple to understand coz am still a new born baby in christianity. i like the straight to the point verses which dont get me confused but wld love to hear if u gat any versions i can try. God bless

I use KJV and the NKJV usually. Check this out about NIV and other bible version...

http://www.theroughwoodsman.com/archives/000355.html

http://www.wordsoftruth.net/wordsoft...7_20_2003.html

http://www.gutlesspacifist.com/gp/archives/002552.html

http://forums.christianity.com/html/P979647/

http://thingsabove.freerovin.com/whlvrsdel.htm

Seems like nobody uses just one!

I use the NLT for reading .... because it is smooth and written in modern English, but I find I have to be careful and check this against other translations.

I study from the KJV, the NKJV, the NIV. Plus I use Bible Gateway to check out other versions, and I use Strong's, the Lexicon and other tools.

I have recently discovered the version published by The Way of the Master, which they call THE EVIDENCE BIBLE. Included in this version are great witnessing tools, information on how to witness to people in cults and sects. If you believe you are here to obey God in taking the Word out in the world, you'll love what you learn here!
www.wayofthemaster.com or www.livingwaters.com .

The MAIN things I rely on are:
1. Passages in scripture MUST support each other (you cannot pull pieces out of context and build your doctrine),
2. Probably most important, I rely on the Holy Spirit to guide me when there are questions concerning wording and interpretation.

There seem to be more and more versions which make the claim of being "more accurate" but in truth change the Word! Be careful brothers and sisters!

Always study with the Lord "sitting beside you"!

I also use KJV for most of my studies mostly because I love my Thompson chain Reference Bible . It was basically what I was raised on. I think you definately have to go with something you are comfortable reading and can get the most out of as well as being sensitive to the Spirits leading. I am also aware of some Versions and how they leave certain ( IMPORTANT ) things out. I do not like this and look for the most accurate.
I like my grandfather do enjoy checking out other versions just for variety.

i read the niv,and the nkj, and then cross refrence with stronges concordence
because i have found sometimes the words we read is misinterpited and the strongs gives hebrew and greek meanings god bless

When I was ten years old, my mother gave me my very first Bible. It was titled, "The Children's Living Bible". It was the twenty-ninth printing, published in February of 1987 by Tyndale House Publishers of Wheaton, Illinois.

The translation was done by a man named Kenneth Nathaniel Taylor. Most English translations of the Bible are done verse-by-verse, simply substituting English words for the Hebrew or Greek words. Kenneth Taylor took this act a step further by creating a thought-by-thought translation. Without regard to where one verse ended and another began, Taylor simply translated into modern English the thoughts that were conveyed while reading the Bible in the American Standard Version.

This version of the Bible has underwent much criticism, due to the fact that it paraphrases one man's thoughts of what he obtained while reading the Bible. Many people say the translation is not an accurate account of the Holy Bible. There was also much criticism about some of the words Taylor chose to use in his translation. The word that was questioned the most was a word that Taylor chose to use in 1 Samuel 20:30. This section of the Bible is a recount of a heated argument between Saul and Jonathan. In this particular verse, Saul yelled profanity at Jonathan, and Kenneth Taylor used an equally profane word in his translation of this verse. Taylor did not want to sugar-coat the word and make it any less crude than what it really was in its original language. However, many people were outraged that this translation of the Bible could contain such profanity, and the more recent printings of the Bible (including my own) had been reworded to read "fool" instead.

Kenneth Taylor had excellent skills in writing stories in the Modern English language that were easy to follow. His writings had a way of placing you the reader into the stories themselves. I myself am very pleased to have a collection of his stories written straight from the Holy Bible. I feel as though Kenneth Taylor has read the original version of the Bible and then retold every single little detail in a story form just for me, so that I could feel as though I were actually there. When I read Taylor's version of the Bible, I forget that the events and the people existed thousands of years ago.

Popular Evangelist Billy Graham was also pleased with Taylor's work and recommended it to his audience. This version of the Bible was a very popular one until it got choked out by the criticisms of the many people who still felt like it was "not a real Bible". Kenneth Taylor never meant for his paraphrased translation of the Bible to be used as a person's only Bible. He created it for children and adults with the purpose that they may find a renewed love for God's Word. He himself agreed that this version of the Bible was for reading purpose only, and that "For study purposes, a paraphrase should be checked against a rigid translation."

Kenneth Taylor's translation is longer being printed today. Tyndale House Publishers has found a new translation of the Bible that was translated verse-by-verse and they now publish it under the title, The New Living Translation.

For more details about Kenneth Taylor's translation, you may visit The Living Bible website. The Living Bible is available in hardcover at Amazon.com and at Barnes & Noble. It is even available electronically as an add-on module to the PC Study Bible Version 4 software, or as an e-book to be read using the Libronix Digital Library System.

The sources I used while writing this article are:

Amazon.com: The Living Bible
Bible-Researcher.com: The Living Bible (1971)
KenAnderson.net: The Living Bible
BibleSoft.com: The Living Bible
LogosBibleSoftware: The Living Bible, Paraphrased
Wheaton.edu: About the author, Dr. Kenneth N. Taylor
WayOfLife.org: The Living Bible, Blessing or Curse?