Review of the NASB Ultrathin Reference Bible

July 19, 2014March 29, 2017 Bob Snyder4 Comments

The Lockman Foundation has been producing some affordable and well made NASB (New American Standard Bible) Bibles for quite some time now. The NASB has become known for its excellence in staying true to the original languages. The NASB Ultrathin Reference Bible is no exception. It is bound in genuine leather and is smyth-sewn. A sewn binding makes the Bible more durable and helps it to lay flat as opposed to a glued binding. Pages are folded into groups of pages and stacked, then sewn together. In a glued binding the pages are just cut and glued in the spine. These types are always loosing pages. Sewn bindings are far less apt to fall apart that way.

The Bible has center column references and is a two column format in approximately an 8 point font.

This Bible is almost 9 inches long, 6 inches wide, by almost and inch thick. It is a light bible to carry.

This Bible is light to carry and the pages are pretty thin because it is an Ultrathin. Here is a shot of one page held up to the light.

The page thickness is sufficient and doesn’t lend itself to as much show-through as is prevalent in similarly priced ultrathins. There is ghosting.

The font is clearly printed and easy to read. There is some room in the margins for limited note taking. This Bible is crammed full of quality and features for the price making it a very good value for the price of around $25.00 depending on where you pick one up.

This Bible is a red-letter edition.

I mentioned that this Bible is a smyth-sewn binding and you can tell from this picture that right out of the box it lies flat on the table.

This is a case bound book. The covers are lined with vinyl paper.

You can see where the corners are glued here.

The pages are edge gilt and the spine is hot stamped with gold colored foil as well.

There are some pages in the front that record family info and the like,

One thing I noticed and liked about the construction is where the first and last pages are glued into the lining to stop the Bible from falling apart as easily.

There are also decorative head and foot bands.

The Bible came in a hard cardboard box. The Bible was wrapped in clear plastic.

This Bible also comes with a quite useful concordance which is a surprise for a Bible this thin.

As well as a concordance there are 8 color maps.

There is also on ribbon marker to keep your place. I hope all of the pictures were helpful. Lockman did a good job of making a “users” Bible. This thing is a good value and can take all the punishment of being dragged along where ever you happen to go… within reason, I mean come on, it isn’t water-proof or fire-proof. If you are in the market for an ultrathin and you don’t want to spend big bucks for a premium Bible this is the way to go. Again it is genuine leather, and has a sewn binding all for about $25.00! Come on people, that is pretty good.

Disclaimer, I received this Bible free from the publisher for review purposes and am in no way obligated to give a good review.

The Voice isn’t the Word!

July 16, 2014 Bob Snyder1 Comment

Don’t listen to the, “Voice” because it isn’t the Word!

I am pretty picky about Bible translations. Call me crazy, but I think we shouldn’t try to make the Bible easier to read. I mean come on, how hard is it to read already? What more do you want? It has been translated into English in the KJV, NKJV, NASB, and ESV. If you can’t understand the last three a new translation isn’t going to help you however, a G.E.D. or E.S.L. class might. People don’t fail to read the Bible because it is over their reading skill. They fail to read it because it is beyond their desire scale. They simply don’t want to. The unregenerate find it boring at best and offensive at worst. The, “Voice” claims that people need this version because the others are too difficult to understand. I say, “Hogwash!” Thomas Nelson got purchased and now it is all about the bottom line. They have to have their own copy written versions to print so they can keep all the cash. Lockman Foundation and Crossway made their translations copy written to keep other from changing them. They did it to protect the translation from those who would do violence to the Word.

If a person is regenerate and has the indwelling of the Holy Spirit we know that they will desire to read the word and it will be understood by them. We also know that God’s word is always relevant and efficacious. So instead of twisting it all around to fit some emergent church movement agenda how about we just do good faithful translations and leave all of the Creative Teams and Writing Teams out of it. Hers is the, url for the list of contributors on the Voice Writing/Creative Team, http://www.hearthevoice.com/team Notice these names on the list Brian McLaren, and Phyllis Tickle. They are two of the most heretical emergent church movement leaders.

So for my litmus test I always compare what the new version says in John 1:1-14 to my good old NASB.

Here is the text from the, “Voice”

1Before time itself was measured, the Voice was speaking. The Voice was and is God.	1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.	I believe the NASB is actually easier to understand here than the Voice lol.
2This celestial Word remained ever present with the Creator;	2He was in the beginning with God.	Ditto my previous statement.
3His speech shaped the entire cosmos. Immersed in the practice of creating, all things that exist were birthed in Him.	3All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being.	Nope, I checked the Greek, they added all the artsy verbiage.
4His breath filled all things with a living, breathing light—	4In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men.	ἐν αὐτῷ ζωὴ ἦν, καὶ ἡ ζωὴ ἦν τὸ φῶς τῶν ἀνθρώπων· Word for Word the NASB is the same as the Greek.
5A light that thrives in the depths of darkness, blazes through murky bottoms. It cannot and will not be quenched.	5The Light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not comprehend it.	Light thrives? Did these clowns even read the Bible first? Hey Phd’s do a word study κατέλαβεν.
6A man named John, who was sent by God, was the first to clearly articulate the source of this Light.	6There came a man sent from God, whose name was John.	So they just added,” was the first to clearly articulate the source of this Light.” Because, you know, they are smarter than God…NOT!
7This baptizer put in plain words the elusive mystery of the Divine Light so all might believe through him. Some wondered whether he might be the Light,	7He came as a witness, to testify about the Light, so that all might believe through him.	Tell me again how the Voice is supposed to be a simpler, easier to read version ha! What a joke. It is a perversion.
8but John was not the Light. He merely pointed to the Light.	8He was not the Light, but he came to testify about the Light.	Μαρτυρέω to testify or bear witness… I wonder where they got, “pointed?”
9The true Light, who shines upon the heart of everyone, was coming into the cosmos.	9There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens every man.	The English word, “cosmos” doesn’t have the same meaning as the Greek word, ”kosmos.”
10He entered our world, a world He made; yet the world did not recognize Him.	10He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him.	Again, NASB more accurate and simple.
11Even though He came to His own people, they refused to listen and receive Him.	11He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him.	ditto
12But for all who did receive and trust in Him, He gave them the right to be reborn as children of God;	12But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name,	ditto
13He bestowed this birthright not by human power or initiative but by God’s will.	13who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.	The Voice loses some of the meaning retained in the NASB.
14The Voice took on flesh and became human and chose to live alongside us. We have seen Him, enveloped in undeniable splendor—the one true Son of the Father—evidenced in the perfect balance of grace and truth.	14And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we saw His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.	Λόγος Logos!!! Not voice. You just called Sovereign God a voice when He called Jesus the Word! Repent! ARRRRGG!!! I can’t go on!

So in conclusion, DON’T READ OR BUY THE STINKING VOICE VERSION OF THE BIBLE!!! IT ISN’T THE BIBLE, IT IS A SCAM TO MAKE MONEY AND TWIST THE WORD OF GOD SO EMERGENT NUTS CAN CORRUPT THE TRUE FAITH!!!

Bible Reviews

Review of the Holman NKJV Large Print Compact Reference Bible

July 4, 2014July 4, 2014 Bob Snyder9 Comments

I received a copy of the Holman NKJV Large Print Compact Reference Bible in black bonded leather promptly after requesting it.

The bonded leather is quite stiff.

That is to be expected on a small Bible like this. The Bible did not come in a box, but rather a card-paper sleeve. The spine is gilded as well are the page edges.

The cover is about six inches long, and four inches wide.

It looks to be an inch thick.

The older version of this that I have in the KJV was smyth-sewn, had decorative head and foot bands. These are conspicuously missing in this newer iteration.

Being made in China could account for the lower production quality.

That isn’t to say that this isn’t a good value. It appears that the binding is glued. The Bible doesn’t as yet lay flat. It might once it is broken in. The inside is lined with black card-paper.

This also makes the cover a bit more stiff. This Bible has 8 point font for the text which makes it very easy on the eyes for such a compact and small Bible.

It is very easy to hold and read. For those of you who think the 8 pt font is too small, what are you doing getting a compact Bible anyways? As with most compact Bibles the font is always going to border on the ridiculously small. Again, at 8 pt. this is a great little Bible. The paper is thick enough to endure use and not so transparent as to ghost horribly.

The text is printed clearly and sharply. The print quality is pretty good for an inexpensive, “take anywhere Bible.” This little Bible has a concise concordance and eight maps in the back.

This Bible does have a lifetime warranty. Contrary to some descriptions this Bible does not include a reading plan. I would recommend this Bible for anyone looking for an easy to transport and read Bible.

https://plus.google.com/u/0/photos/104300587445797986685/albums/6031977939005781313

Apologetics · Church · marriage · Theology

Gay marriage, What’s next?

May 19, 2014May 20, 2014 Bob SnyderLeave a comment

To learn who rules over you, simpy find out who you are not allowed to criticize. — To learn who rules over you, simply find out who you are not allowed to criticize.

In the near future, gay marriage will be a reality across the U.S. It seems that we have become the moral minority. The younger, more liberal crowd and even moderates are on board with it. Even some professing evangelicals are approving gay marriage. I don’t understand it, but it is going to happen. I have resigned myself to it as a certainty.

We’ve been told that all they want is the same rights that we have to be married. Marriage isn’t a right to be conveyed upon a people by a government. Marriage predates any human government or authority. As such, governments can only recognize what God has already ordained. In this post-Christian world of secular morals, government no longer looks to the moral authority of God, who transcends their authority. No, they look to the secular majority for their doctrine. The majority wants gay marriage to be a reality. We can’t stop it from happening. The secularists and the government will take marriage and define it how they will. That does not mean that the marriage is one of Godly ordination.

The question we need to ask now is, “What’s next?” What will they want from us? I am certain they will want the, “right” to be married in a Christian Church, by a Pastor. Now ask yourselves, “Why would a couple who don’t believe in the authoritative word of God or God Himself, want to be joined in a covenant between Him and a man and a woman? Why would they want to do this in a Church that is dedicated to God? Why would they want a minister of His word to perform the ceremony?” It doesn’t make any sense to us because our minds are being renewed by the reading of His word. We are not worldly thinkers anymore. Our moral authority is external to us. God is our Lord and master, not the sinful world system that enslaves the minds of the unregenerate.

We can’t expect them to change their minds and be reasonable. They are deceived by their very own sinful natures. It is this fact that drives them to pervert every good thing from God. They will keep doing this because they are His enemies. Because we love the Lord and are His children, the world will hate us for His namesake. This is just one step on the path to full open persecution of Christians in America. The next step will be to punish Churches that won’t perform the ceremony for them. Then it will be to arrest anyone who preaches from the Bible about Hell, sin, and mankind’s wretched state. It will be a, “hate-speech” violation to call a person a sinner and to suggest that God is anything other than love. Try it now. Try preaching the justice of God and His sovereignty. Try preaching that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. Preach that all are destined for eternal torment in Hell lest they repent and put their faith in the exclusivity of the saving grace of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. This is the utmost offense, that there is only one way to the Father and that is through Jesus.

If you don’t believe it will happen, then you will be surprised when oppression, in a velvet glove comes to quietly crush you in the night. Then later the gloves will be off and open persecution will come. We will see the type of persecution that happened during the communist revolution in Poland. We will see the persecution that happens to our brothers and sisters in Christ that is happening now all over the world. When it hits home it will be too late. It will be too late for us to be salt and light. There will be nobody to listen to us except to delight in our cries.

For those of you who are secular and reading this… remember. Remember what I have said this day. When it happens while you are young or much older, remember and intervene. Let it be a testimony to you. Let the screams of the tortured bounce around in your head until you see the truth of it. Then, repent and ask God to forgive you for being so very wrong. Repent and put your faith in Him to forgive you for going along with it. He is merciful and trustworthy to forgive a humbled, penitent heart. You can know peace between you and your creator through His finished work on the cross. Jesus has paid the debt that your sin has accrued. He provides righteousness for you upon your regeneration and justification. May God bless you with salvific repentance and faith.

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The Noetic Effects of Sin, and How it Affects Our Reasoning.

April 14, 2014April 14, 2014 Bob Snyder2 Comments

I know it sounds complex, but trust me it isn’t… or perhaps it is? The word, “noetics” means; the science of the intellect or of pure thought; reasoning. So what we are talking about here today is how our ability to reason has been corrupted by sin. See, I told you it wasn’t that complex, but wait, there’s more! When we start getting into the concept I think we will all be amazed at how affecting this problem is.

Adam and Eve were made with good minds. They functioned free of sin. Well, then came the fall. They sinned, and God punished them, and their progeny. (us) Part of what happened is that we gained the knowledge of good and evil. We also gained the corruption of our ability to reason. We became spiritually dead and enslaved to sin. God says in His word;

9What then? Are we better than they? Not at all; for we have already charged that both Jews and Greeks are all under sin;

10as it is written, “THERE IS NONE RIGHTEOUS, NOT EVEN ONE;

11THERE IS NONE WHO UNDERSTANDS, THERE IS NONE WHO SEEKS FOR GOD;

12ALL HAVE TURNED ASIDE, TOGETHER THEY HAVEBECOME USELESS; THERE IS NONE WHO DOES GOOD, THERE IS NOT EVEN ONE.”

13“THEIR THROAT IS AN OPEN GRAVE, WITH THEIR TONGUES THEY KEEP DECEIVING,” “THE POISON OF ASPS IS UNDER THEIR LIPS”;

14“WHOSE MOUTH IS FULL OF CURSING ANDBITTERNESS”;

15“THEIR FEET ARE SWIFT TO SHED BLOOD,

16DESTRUCTION AND MISERY ARE IN THEIR PATHS,

17AND THE PATH OF PEACE THEY HAVE NOT KNOWN.”

18“THERE IS NO FEAR OF GOD BEFORE THEIR EYES.”

19Now we know that whatever the Law says, it speaks to those who are under the Law, so that every mouth may be closed and all the world may become accountable to God;20because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the Law comes the knowledge of sin.

So God says there are none who understand or seek God. Think about this, if our reasoning wasn’t corrupted we would objectively reason through problems without pride or anger affecting those conclusions. Have you ever been so angry you couldn’t think clearly and made a bad decision you regretted later? Well that wouldn’t happen if we weren’t sinners. Imagine a mind operating free from sinful influence. Do you know who has a mind like that? I’ll give you a hint, the answer is what every kid in Sunday School says when they don’t know the answer… If you said, “Jesus” you are correct. So if you are not God, then you have the problem of sin affecting the way you perceive, process, understand, and apply everything that comes into your head. That’s right kids; we are all under the curse of original sin.

Here is another example, have you ever been so enamored with a person that they could do no wrong according to you? Most of us could say yes to that. The problem is that they are just as much a sinner as everyone else. They aren’t the person you perceived them to be. The mind was not able to properly understand and judge the information available because of sins affect on reason.

Our perceptions are affected by sin. We see what we want to see. We don’t see what is actual. Our reasoning of what we see is affected to. We run everything through a filter that is changing what goes in so that what comes out is not actual. When we are processing the unreal perceptions through a conduit that affects those perceptions we come up with flawed conclusions. These flawed conclusions are then applied to our situations with varying results, none of which are founded on actuality.

We are so deeply corrupted by sin that we would never be able to repent and have faith in the God of the Bible without His direct intervention in our lives. So think about how you think and if you think the way you thought you thought or if you think the way sin makes you think if you think of sin as a thing that can affect the thinking of thoughts you think.

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Don’t Use Pot, Even If This Godless World Makes It Legal!!!

April 6, 2014April 7, 2014 Bob SnyderLeave a comment

We all know the pot-head holiday is this month. We will see lots of idiotic articles crying for the legalization of pot for its many alleged benefits. Here are a couple of things to consider; 1) The Bible says to be of sober mind. This is so you can actively fight against sin and temptation in your life. 2) pot is sinful because it is a purely selfish and debasing thing to do. Getting high is no different than being a drunk. 3) Drugs like that are specifically referred to as, “magic, sorcery, enchantment” in the Bible. We are told to stay far away from them.

So go ahead and listen to the liberal, idiotic, Satan worshiping, masses of the left, and follow them to your own personal destruction, while hurting everyone you love because, you are a lackadaisical do nothing, or listen to God in His word. Stand up and be a real man worth remembering and looking up to as a good Christian man emulating Christ to the world.

Pot robs a man of his ambition. All the benefits of pot can be utilized without the smoking it or using the hemp that will get you high. The THC can be put in a pill form with uniform dosage. There is absolutely no need for you to smoke it other than your own selfish desire to get high.

(1 Corinthians 15:34 NASB) Become sober-minded as you ought, and stop sinning; for some have no knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.
(1 Peter 5:8 NASB) Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.

(Galatians 5:19 NASB) Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,

(Galatians 5:20 NASB) idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions,

(Galatians 5:21 NASB) envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.

http://www.marchofdimes.com/pregnancy/marijuana.aspx

http://youtu.be/PtecjlZHXS4

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Proof-texting, its dangers, and benefits.

January 27, 2014January 27, 2014 Bob Snyder1 Comment

Proof-texting is the practice of quoting a verse, or verses from the text of the Bible, to support, or refute a doctrine. This practice has been used by the orthodox and the heretic. The dangers of proof-texting are varied and manifold. With proper presuppositions proof-texting can be a valuable tool for supporting orthodox doctrines.

First, we will go over the problems with proof-texting. The biggest problem is when a person or group starts with a false presupposition. For example, a Mormon starts with the presupposition that Jesus is a created being. They hold this false presupposition because they believe the words of a false prophet, and teacher in authority over God’s very own word. The Seventh Day Adventists, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Muslims, do the same thing.

With this presupposition when they run into texts like John 3:16 “…For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life…” They wrongly understand the word, “begotten” to mean that Jesus was the progeny of the Father. They then, in turn use this as a proof-text for their false doctrine that deny the eternal deity of Jesus, in stark disregard for His proclamation of being the, “I Am.” This, in turn requires more eisegesis, and proof-texting, in an attempt to refute the true doctrines, in conflict with their false ones. When apologetically engaged with a heretic or cult member they are usually more than thrilled to proof-text ad nauseum. This can quickly become counterproductive. If this is done in a public forum it can be disastrous. The onlookers could be convinced of the heretical doctrines.

Our apologetics should be from a capable well rounded understanding of the entire Bible in its own context. It should be founded on the presupposition that the Bible is the truth, and the authority, on What God has to say to man. When we start with a true presupposition, and are exegetical in our reading of the Bible, we can proof-text like Paul to the Jews in Hebrews. When proof-texting is done correctly it can win people’s minds to the truths of the Bible. There is nothing like a good section of scripture quoted in context at the right time to hammer home sound doctrine. God’s word is authoritative and when we speak truthfully with the authority of scripture it is a powerful thing to witness.

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