Advent starts tomorrow! And so do the readings in Holy Bible: Mosaic. Are you going to be reading it?

If you haven't decided yet, you can try it out for free online: just use this online booklet, which includes the four weeks of advent from Mosaic. (click on the corners of the pages to turn them) Another way to try it out (if you don't fancy reading online for four weeks) is by getting the print copy of the Advent sampler (for $2) which includes the readings, color artwork, and scripture readings for the week. (Scroll down on this page for more details)

Sean and Keith and I will be reading through Mosaic. Who else is with us?

J.I. Packer recently commented on the One Year Bible in an excellent article called “A Balanced Bible Study Diet” in from our friends at Logos in Bible Study Magazine (Nov/Dec 2009 issue). Here's an excerpt from the article:

As an advocate of Bible study for over sixty years, Packer tells Bible Study Magazine he has long believed Christians should read the entire Bible thoroughly at least once every year. To help facilitate Bible study, he recommends tools such as The One Year Bible, where passages from the New and Old Testaments, Psalms and Proverbs are part of a 15-minute daily reading. “I find that variety, along with the cross references they suggest, keeps my heart fresh and alert in Bible study. I suppose you can compare it to a balanced diet."

I love the "balanced diet" image for the One Year Bible--seems just right.

If you want to read the rest of the article, you should be able to find this issue in many Christian bookstores or check here to see if it becomes available as a back issue.

Labels: J.I. Packer, Laura Bartlett, NLT Bibles, One Year Bible

Reposted from Sean Harrison's post on the NLT Study Bible Blog.

Today we are announcing the beta release of NLTinterlinear.com, a new website dedicated to helping people study the Bible in the original languages alongside the NLT text.

The website is based on a detailed morphological matchup between the Greek New Testament and the NLT text. The matchup is produced by James Swanson, an author and editor who has devoted his career to writing and editing concordances, and lexicography based on semantic domains. This matchup allows us to produce an interlinear that includes an exhaustive Greek-English Concordance of the New Testament.

One of the benefits of using the NLT for this kind of study is that the NLT translates the meaning of each Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic word in context. So, for instance, in the above screenshot of the concordance for χαρις ("grace, favor"), the NLT text on the right highlights all of the different ways that this word is translated into English. This enables us to see very easily the full range of meanings that is possible for a given Greek word, a benefit that is not available when using more "woodenly literal" translations.

I am personally very excited about this release. As one of the men who attends our Wednesday evening Bible study said, "This tool will help average people like me to understand the language of the Bible so much better." And as Jim Swanson said to me in an email, "The site is just beautiful. I could go on and on about the various features. . . . Thanks for making my vision and long work come to harvest time."

So visit the site (NLTinterlinear.com), sign up for free, and take it for a spin. And then please let me know your thoughts and suggestions here in the comments or using the on-site feedback link.

Labels: reference, research

Tyndale Español, the Spanish publishing division of Tyndale House Publishers, announces the launch of the New Testament of a new Spanish translation of the Bible--the Nueva Traducción Viviente (NTV). This Spanish counterpart to the NLT is being developed by Tyndale Español in partnership with the Luis Palau Association and the Spanish publishing house Editorial Unilit.

The Spanish language is considered to be the third most spoken language in the world, and the intent is for the NTV to have the same ministry impact in the Spanish-speaking world that the NLT has in the English-speaking world. The goal for the NTV is identical to that of the NLT: to communicate the Scriptures to today's readers as clearly and powerfully as the original texts did to readers and listeners in biblical times. The NTV will bring the style and purpose of the NLT to the Spanish-speaking world.

The Nueva Traducción Viviente (NTV) is an entirely new translation of the Bible with roots in the original Hebrew and Greek texts and the style and dynamic approach of the NLT. Phase One of the NTV project was the creation of a Spanish translation from the English NLT and the original Hebrew and Greek texts. The translation went through a rigorous theological, grammatical, and stylistic review under the supervision of Jaime Mirón, Bible Project Director, from the Luis Palau Association in Portland, Oregon. Phase Two, now in its final stages, is being supervised by Senior Bible Editor Dr. Rafael Serrano. In Phase Two the NTV is undergoing an additional theological, linguistic, and stylistic review with emphasis on the original Hebrew and Greek texts. The overall NTV development is being overseen by Andres Schwartz, Publishing Director of Tyndale Español, and Dan Elliott, Editorial Director of Tyndale House Publishers. The NTV project has involved over 50 theologians, translators, linguists and stylists over a course of 9 years.

The New Testament is being released over the course of this summer/fall in several editions. Some beautiful pocket thinline editions just arrived on my desk last week. By the summer of 2010, the Nueva Traducción Viviente will be available in its entirety. It will be published in many styles and bindings, including Spanish-language versions of The One Year Bible, standard text and reference editions, and parallel Bibles.

Tyndale House president and NLT blogger Mark Taylor says, "We pray that the NTV will bring God's word to life in a fresh new way for the Spanish-speaking world. God intended us to read his word with clarity and understanding, and the NTV will provide a wonderful new tool for anyone who wants to read and understand the Bible in Spanish."

Luis Palau, who has often been called the Billy Graham of Latin America, says, "I am proud to be associated with the Nueva Traducción Viviente. This translation boasts an academic precision which is perfect for serious study of the word of God. At the same time, it is characterized by quality, clarity, and the contemporary language of our Spanish-speaking world. I recommend with all my heart that you read and assiduously study this translation of the Bible."

Labels: Laura Bartlett, NLT Bibles, NTV, Nueva Traduccion Viviente