ESV Reference Bible, Red Letter (TruTone, Coffee)

This is a comfortable bible for daily use. The text is at a size which makes it easy to read and the bible feels nice to hold while reading for extended periods of time.

Excellent buy

The bible is actually very lovely. I like the font, print size. The feel of it in general. Mine had a printing error however. A chunk of pages that were meant to be in the old testament were in the middle of the Gospel of Matthew. Edit: I didn't end up returning because it was a good price. Having used it for some time, I would recommend this version (without the error obviously.) It's very readable. The most readable bible I've bought so far. The paper doesn't show a lot of text bleed through. Combined with the printing and word layout I have no trouble reading it. The verse numbers are slightly darker and bolder and I can pick out the verses quite well. I have created bible tabs with washi tape. Combining this with a few sticky tape markers I'm able to navigate this quite well now. So I've upgraded my star rating to 4/5.

I am so surprised by this bible. I received it and was so much more happy with it then I thought I would be. The brown in this is truly a dark brown (not having as much "purple" under tone to it as photos show). The Bible is a bit thick, and is a bit longer than you would expect. But it's a really good bible if you are looking for a medium sized one. It would perhaps be a bit too big for people who want something a bit smaller/thinner. But I wanted something in the middle range between my large study bible, and a small compact bible--which this fits perfectly. I find that you have to follow the link that takes you to the American Amazon in order to see the photos that are shared in their reviews--so if you go there you will be able to see some good photos of this Bible there that a gentlemen posted. I'll share some photos I took that are just not as good (had to use my computer). But considering the horrible "photos" they give on this Bible, figured something would be a bit helpful.

Let’s see what the 2015 New Classic Reference looks like, and compare it briefly to the edition it replaces. I think you’ll find that there aren’t very many changes. I ordered this Bible from Amazon. It arrived in generally good shape. It does not have a retail box. Instead, it has a sleeve. I prefer clamshell or two piece style boxes for storage. You tend to see clamshell style with premium Bibles, not value editions. After tossing the sleeve away, I scrutinized the cover. I like synthetic covers more than bonded leather. If I can afford them, I purchase ones that are edge lined and covered in goatskin leather. This synthetic cover was not bad. It was soft and flexible. I did get a crease in it by folding it over. Once you get the paper liner creased it shows through the cover. I don’t know how durable it will be. I’ll get back to you on that on in a couple of years. There is a good lifetime warranty on these Bibles. I’m not worried about service should anything go wrong. One of the major qualities that I love about Crossway Bibles, is even their value Bibles use better paper than almost all of their competitors. The paper in this thing is as good as some of the paper in the cost prohibitive premium Bibles. It is very opaque and seems pretty heavy. The old edition was printed on 24 pound (36 g.s.m.) Thincoat. The paper in the new edition is uncoated. It remains the same weight. It is whiter than the earlier edition which in comparison seems a little more off white. It could be that since I’ve had the other Bible for a few years the paper has yellowed a bit, but I doubt it. It is more likely that the coated paper of the earlier edition was responsible for the slight color difference. There is a slight tradeoff when using a heavier paper. The Bible, by necessity of finites becomes thicker. That being said, I would much rather a Bible be thicker and very legible than be thinner and barely legible. Ghosting is a real problem on thinner paper and can make daily reading a near impossible task. The New Classic Reference is not too heavy or big. It feels good to hold and read from. The fact that it is a tad bit thicker doesn’t make it uncomfortable to use. I find it to be subjectively, one of the most comfortable Bibles I’ve spent hours reading from. Both the older edition and the new one, offer good contrast between the paper and the text. The text is a modern setting of Lexicon font in 9 pt size. It is sharp and crisp against the backdrop of the page. This is a red letter edition with the words of Christ printed in red. Some people like this feature and others think it detracts from the entirety of the word being inspired. I don’t have an opinion either way. If it is done well, I like it. The red and black ink is consistent throughout. There are book introductions at the beginning of each book. This is pretty helpful without adding the bulk that a study Bible would have. The New Classic Reference is laid out in a double column, paragraph format, with center column references. This is pretty standard, but again due to the paper quality, uniform printing, and smyth-sewn binding this Bible stands out. I am thinking about rebinding it in goatskin leather. It is an excellent candidate for rebind because of the low initial purchase price, paper, print, and the sewn binding. If you couldn’t tell by now, this does have a sewn binding making it flexible and durable. It has one ribbon marker that matches the color scheme of the Bible. It is a pretty thin ribbon. The spine has also been rounded. The older edition has a flatter spine that doesn’t appear rounded. The older edition was manufactured in the United States, while this one was manufactured in China. As long as Crossway can ensure quality control, this shouldn’t be a problem. Other publishers have not been able to, and have suffered the consequential negative effects to their reputations. An excellent three column concordance is included in the back with 32, color maps and illustrations. The overall impression I got was that this is still the same reference Bible that so many people have loved over the years with some small changes. The most important qualities have not changed. It remains very legible, and easy on the eyes for long bouts of reading. It wins, hands down over many other similarly priced Bibles due to the paper, print, and binding. Throw in the formal equivalent English Standard Version (ESV) translation and you have a great reference Bible.

発売が2015年となっているので、Text の Update はあきらめていましたが、Text Edition: 2016 が届き、とてもうれしいです。読みやすく、美しい本です。

It's a very good Bible. The printing is clear, the paper is clean and bright. Easy to read. Since I just received it, I cannot say about the binding quality. Hope it is as good as the printing quality. All in all, I am satisfied with the Bible.

Just a Little defect