Bible Features

After you’ve decided what version of the Bible to read, there are still a number of factors to consider before you’re ready to select a Bible.

Font Size

You should pick a Bible with a font size that will allow you to comfortably read the text.  Unfortunately, many Bibles are sold with very small font.  These small-font Bibles may be fine for looking up short passages provided that your eyesight is good, but even people with excellent vision will suffer eye fatigue when reading long passages in this format. 

Think of what size of text you would expect to see on the page when you buy a fiction novel at the airport.  Those books are formatted for a comfortable and enjoyable reading experience. Sadly, many Bibles are not.  Novels are typically printed in 10-12pt font size, but it is not uncommon to see bibles printed in 7 (seven!)-point font!

If you have good eyesight for reading, I recommend that you find a Bible that is at least 9.0pt font or larger.  If you do not have good eyesight for reading, then try to find a Bible with 11.0pt. font or larger. 

Page format

FIND A BIBLE WITH A SINGLE-COLUMN PAGE FORMAT.  I am so passionate about this particular issue.  An overwhelming majority of Bibles are printed in a two-column format.  This format is completely alien to almost anything else we enjoy reading.  The only other books we commonly read with this format are dictionaries – does reading the dictionary sound fun to you?  A two-column page format makes the Bible feel like a dusty, old, reference book to me, and I believe it presents a big hindrance to the enjoyable and smooth reading of God’s word. 

Furthermore, Hebrew poetry (which is the format of a very large percentage of the Old Testament) is written in couplets (sometimes triplets and quadruplets if the author is getting crazy) of lines that form a singular unit of meaning.  The first line of the couplet will be left-justified, while the following lines will be indented.  With a two-column page format, these lines almost always run over and turn into an absolute mess of indentations that are impossible to make sense of. Look at this image of Isaiah 46 with a two-column format on the left and a single-column format on the right – need I say more?

Unfortunately, Bibles with a single-column page format are hard to find.  The two-column format reduces the number of pages required to print the Bibles. Therefore publishers select it to save on costs and to make the depth of the book thinner, which is a feature desired by some consumers.  Once you start reading the Bible regularly with a single-column page format, you will never want to go back, and you will feel as strongly about this issue as I do.  It is worth paying a little more for a bible with a single-column page format.  We will provide links to single-column Bibles below.

Cover Material

Here your options are usually hardcover (like the pew Bibles at Madison Church), paperback, or leather/faux-leather.  The advantage of a leather binding is that it is more comfortable to hold and will usually do the best job of laying flat on a table, though some bonded leather covers will take time to become flexible at the spine like a hardcover book. 

Red Letters

Bibles with a red letter feature will change the font color to red for words spoken by Jesus.  It’s important to note that black letters in the bible are not* any less important than red ones. But when you’re reading through the gospels as we will be in 2020, it can be a helpful feature when trying to keep track of the dialogue.

Reference Column

If you’re shopping for a Bible and see one that says “Reference Bible,” it means that this bible will have a slim, vertical column that provides a number of cross-reference passages for the words you are reading on that page.  These cross-references will link important words, or ideas, or often in the Gospels, parallel accounts from the other 4 Gospel books.  For instance, when you’re reading about Jesus feeding the five thousand in Luke 9, your reference Bible will point you to Matthew 14, Mark 6, and John 6, where the other Gospel writers describe that same miracle. It will also point you back to a remarkably similar miracle that Elisha performed in the Old Testament (2nd Kings 4).  Reference Bibles are great for looking further into passages which you are seeking to understand better, and for making important connections.  However, note that this column will take up space on the page which usually means narrower columns; this is bearable in a single-text-column format, but badly squeezes a two-column page in my opinion.

Study Notes

A “study Bible” or “devotional Bible” will include helpful notes at the bottom of the page written by a certain commentator or committee of commentators. Study/devotional Bibles are best suited for the reader who wants to take a slower, deeper dive into God’s word.  If this is your first time taking a serious shot at reading the Bible, my recommendation is that you start with just the text of scripture, and then consider a study Bible for the second time reading through.  There are hundreds of different sets of study/devotional notes, and I’ll list a few of my favorites in the Bibles below.  It is important to remember the Bible verses at the top of the page are God’s Holy Word, while the words in the notes at the bottom of the page are not.  While those scholars/committees writing the notes usually have an academic pedigree by which they’ve earned credibility, they are not infallible like God’s word.

Wide Margin

If you are the type of reader that loves to write notes in your Bible, then this feature is for you. Wide margin Bibles leave a blank space on the outer edges of each page for notes. A newer variation of the wide-margin format is the “Journal the Word” format, which simply means that the wide-margin area on the edges of the page are ruled like a notebook. I (Joel) am definitely a note writer. When I’m listening to a sermon, I’m usually taking notes on it in the wide margins of my Bible. I will also write cross-reference passages, insights about certain vocabulary, and all sorts of other things. Here is what Ephesians 4 looks like in my old wide-margin NIV 1984 Bible which I used from 2008-2017. However, if you are not a note-taker, then this feature will just kill space on your page that will make the book bigger, and usually mean a smaller font size.