Christian publishers are providing a wealth of choices for Bible readers these days. If you’re in the market for a new Bible, you can find just about anything you could describe.
The recent trend of journaling Bibles began some years ago, and the ESV Journaling Bible was early on the scene. Crossway publishes different versions of this Bible, with various covers and page layouts. The volume I received is handsome and hardy, well-suited for those who write as they read God’s word. (Thanks to Crossway for providing me with this Bible in exchange for an honest review.)
Description
This review concerns the ESV Journaling Bible with the bonded leather cover (mocha threshold design) and the text displayed in two columns per page. You can find a sample page from this Bible here.
From the outside, this looks like a fine journal indeed. The Bible is pleasant to hold, and it stays open easily. A ribbon marker is available for securing the page, and the ESV text is attractively printed on cream-colored paper. The Bible text resembles what you would find in a pew Bible or a thinline Bible.
The text is printed with generous, two-inch margins for journaling. There are faint, dotted lines printed in the margins which can be used or ignored at the reader’s preference. With these wide margins on every page, I could see this getting heavy use as a daily journal. It’s the perfect size for recording prayers, thoughts, questions, and applications that flow from devotional Bible reading.
It’s worth noting a few other details. The paper of this Bible is thin but not too thin. A gel pen will bleed through to the back of the page, but a ballpoint pen or a pencil will work nicely for journaling. Finally, paragraph-length introductions to each book of the Bible along with a yearly Bible reading plan occupy the final twenty pages of this volume.
Not a Great Markup Bible
Regular readers of this blog may remember that I’m always on the lookout for a good markup Bible. This Bible doesn’t exactly fit that description, but that is no mark against it! Crossway has produced a great journaling Bible.
The two-column text and small font size are barriers to using this Bible as a markup Bible. While you can highlight, underline, and mark up the text, the layout prevents you from writing notes next to the words or phrases in question. Recording questions or interpretations in the margins provided means that one must either draw lines connecting the writing to the text or live with the ambiguity of having one’s notes near several verses. In short, there is a lot of space in the margins, but not a lot of space elsewhere, and that’s something I look for in a markup Bible.
Recommended
If you like the ESV translation and want a Bible in which to journal, this Journaling Bible is a great option. I think you’ll enjoy it.
You can buy this Bible at either Amazon or Westminster Books. At the time of this writing, the price at Westminster Books was lower by about two dollars.
Disclosure: The links to Amazon and Westminster Books in this post are affiliate links.
I prefer Crossway’s single-column journaling Bible, though it has its own limitations. I’m considering their new interlinear Bible with space between each line of text.
I’m right there with you! This is a fine, fine Bible, but I think there are other choices that might be better for certain people (including me). I’ll be reviewing the ESV Journaling New Testament, Inductive Edition later this fall — this one has those spaces between lines you mentioned.
You should take a look at the ESV Journaling Bible, Interleaved Edition. The thing is monstrously large (about the size of an ESV Study Bible), but every other sheet of paper is blank, and even the pages with text have decent margins. I love mine.
Thanks for the suggestion!