NRSV Apocrypha Text Edition Hardback NRAO

Rating:
Summary: Very good edition. Has all you could ever want!
Review: The Bible I use-King James Version, by the way--doesn't have an Apocrypha in it, so I decided to pick up this copy, partly because this edition was the KJV version, and partly because it matched the size of my Bible. I'm in to the Bible so I am curious about anything and everything associated with the Book of Books. I find the canonization process to absolutely fascinating. Moreover, Thomas Aquinas, my favorite philosopher, frequently cites Apocryphal books in his writings, so it followed as a matter of course that I would want to get this book.

This is a "top of the line" version of the Apocrypha. It has an introductory essay and table of contents. The footnotes are for alternate readings on the text, but do not cross-reference the text with the Apocrypha, or the Bible proper. The printing is wonderful-I haven't found any typos, or faded text. The versification is kept in the left margin, so the text is kept eye friendly, and the poetic portions are set apart as in the NIV.

I am surprised at the number of books included in the Apocrypha. It is the "fattest" version I have seen that isn't a musty scholar's book. It has the standard books, plus 3 and 4 Maccabees, Psalm 151, the prayer of Manassah, and two more books of Esdras. I think this is all anyone could want in an Apocrypha.

For a more user-friendly version of the Apocrypha, would recommend the Godspeed Translation, which has a modern English style, along the lines of the J. B. Phillips translation. Plush, this edition has great headnotes for each chapter, and the numbering is kept in the margins, so it doesn't break up the text..

The Apocrypha is a fun book. Yes, theology is fun, since it is a form of learning. You a given a better perspective on how things went between Malachi and Matthew, and are exposed to profound wisdom literature. If you like proverbs, read "The Wisdom of Solomon," or "Eccelsiasticus, or the Wisdom of Jesus, son of Sirach." My favorite book is Tobit, which has a wonderful Orphic love story.