Hunting for the KJV

The other day, while I was browsing the shelves at the local Cokesbury, I had an urge. It was a little strange, but something that has been tugging at me ever since. I don't own a good King James Bible. I have one of the $5 Wal-Mart variety on my shelf. I know I could find an armful if I just looked around the church. Still, I was bothered by the fact that I don't own a nice copy of the KJV. I have two copies of the NIV Study Bible, The Harper Collins Study Bible, The NRSV Classics Devotional Bible, and The New Interpreters Study Bible. But I decided that I wanted a good King James Study Bible. So, that became my obsession for a couple hours the other day.

In case you wondered, here are your 3 basic options (to be found at Cokesbury, Wellspring, Family Christian Store, Barnes & Noble, or Borders...yes, I visited all five!):

First is the Zondervan KJV Study Bible. This is the cheapest of the three in hardcover. That would seem to be all that is going for it. The introduction states that the study notes are intended for the 'Conservative Christian'. Strike one. The back cover includes an endorsement from Jerry Falwell. Strikes two...and three. It looks nicely put together and I almost decided to go with this one because of the price. It has nice type-setting and the print is easy on the eye. It is not too bulky and is available in paperback. (No leather cover, however). Still, I just couldn't get past the endorsement from its biggest fan.

Second is the Nelson KJV Study Bible. This one was hard to pick out from the Nelson KJV Reference Bible, which contains no study notes. Again, the introduction states that the bible is for the 'Conservative Christian'. What is up with that? I shouldn't have asked. Turn to the next page...Jerry Falwell is listed as one of the editors. Yikes! Dr. Falwell must really be a fan of the Authorized Version! Its okay...I don't like the layout of this book as much. The print is too dark (I know, it sounds weird, but you'd have to see it). There are symbols that function as pointers to study notes, including a 'set of keys' that are included to indicate essential doctrines. I found these study notes to be heavy-handed and certainly a little bit awkward as they intruded into the text itself. This version was more expensive, though it did come in a nice leather bound addition. Sadly, I don't think it would be proper to buy a Study Bible that you would want to throw across the room every time you sat down to read.

Last, but not least...in this case best (relatively speaking) is the Life Application Bible KJV. I have had a Life Application Bible in the past. It is a beautiful creature. I love the typesetting and layout. It was nicely bound, the kind of bible you'd pass on to your child. This bible was almost identical to the one I remember. The main problem here is that the study notes aren't study notes as much as they are life application questions. It is a little different approach, though it doesn't seem nearly as heavy handed as the Nelson version. There is still some good textual information, though nothing like the Harper Collins or Interpreters. Also, it is the most expensive. However, it was the bible I eventually chose, in the leather bound version no less! Thank God for Amazon! (I saved almost $20 ordering it online!)

All in all, you can find some good KJV bibles out there. It is funny, though, how different store skew towards one version or another. Cokesbury really didn't have much in the way of KJV. They were selling a lot of NRSV Study Bibles. (BTW, the paperback of the Interpreters Study Bible is only $15 at the DSM Cokesbury...get it while its hot!). Wellspring had the largest collection of KJV bibles and that was my basic spot to compare bible version. Family Christian is the place to go for the Message, evidently, as well as the NIV. B&N and Borders had about the same variety. (They had the cheaper paperbacks in more abundance...plus I snagged THE BEST Illustrated Bible Dictionary I have ever seen for only $10 on the bargain shelf.) Basically I wanted a KJV that was easy on the eye and that I would look forward to reading. I got what I needed. As for why I want to read the King James Version...I'll get to that later.