CSB Women's Study Bible

Study Bibles are interesting creatures. The notes tend to reflect a particular point of view, and that’s what they’re expected to do. They are written with a particular audience in mind and can be very helpful for anyone struggling to understand he Sacred text.  The very thing that makes them useful for personal study is also the thing that can lead the reader down a slippery slope. Many people confuse study notes and essays in a study bible with the text itself. If it’s in the bible, it must be reliable. Especially for new bible readers it’s easy to forget that these essays were written recently, and are not part of the original text, that which the Apostle Paul calls God-breathed and useful for instruction, reproach and correction.

I find the CSB to be an easy to read bible while remaining true to the original intent of the text. It’s been reviewed many times for accuracy of translation, readability and any number of other things.  Recently the publishers have come out with a couple of different Study Bibles, (I recently reviewed the CSB World View Study Bible).

Because so any people don’t understand that the study part is written by men and women, often biblical scholars or pastors, I was glad to see that publishers offered bloggers the opportunity to review this Bible to see if ordinary readers understand the notes in the same way the authors intended. As a male, I wanted to see if I rated this bible as highly as some of the female reviewers did. Probably not

There are a number of features that readers can use in the study. It starts with a section called How to Study the Bible, followed by an essay called The Christian Life.  There are multiple maps, charts and tables, which provide good background information. Each Biblical Book starts with a synopsis of the book, along with author, dates, to who it was written, where it happened, and what it’s about. The editors also suggest ‘how’ to read the book.

Throughout the pages other features include ‘word studies’ which explain how a particular word is used throughout the book and in other places in the bible. One feature that I particularly like is called ‘Hard Question’; these brief inserts help the reader discover what the bible says about the questions with which Christians are confronted on a daily basis. Similar inserts deal with issues of doctrine. Prominent women in scripture are covered by a brief biographical piece which gives the reader insight into what these women were dealing with, what their struggles were, and how they overcame those struggles.

And then there are the essays covering different aspects of what God designed women to be. Over the years society’s views of women have changed, but God's truths are eternal, and He doesn’t change. It’s in these essays that I had the hardest time. I suppose I take more of an egalitarian view than do the editors who seem to take a more complementarianist approach.

I wouldn’t hesitate to offer this bible to any of the women in with whom I work in my roles of pastor or chaplain.

4/5

I was provided a copy of this bible from the publisher in exchange for my review.