Great Introduction to the NASB
344167
I have used the NASB for years, and in comparison against the KJV, NKJV, or NIV; it is, in my opinion, superior.  No translation is perfect, but the NASB offers poignant phraseology that rings truer than other English version in respect to the original Hebrew and Greek.

This is an inexpensive paperback book, but it seems to be well-made and should hold up well for a few years, at least.  I like the way the publishers maximized space on the page - running the margins as close as possible to the edge of each page - to minimize the number of pages used.  It is feather-light, and is a perfect backpack Bible.  I've fortified the covers, using heavy tape, and intend to bring it along with me on my camping trips this summer.

My only gripe is that there is no referencing system.  I believe that the publishers could have included a trimmed-down reference system which put the references at the end of each verse without adding too much bulk to the entire project.  The concordance is very impressive, however (60 pages) and it also maximizes the available space on each printed page.  There are approximately 50 words referenced per page, making it approximately 3,000 entries total.

I plan to use this as my everyday Bible, replacing a NKJV personal-sized edition. I usually end up looking to the NASB for deeper insight - and it always delivers for me.  The font size is a bit smaller than I'm used to reading, but it is not at all unbearable. A well-designed book!
2873944
It is really a Beginning Book although it doesn't really fit the title. Alot of folks will probably be scared away by the treatment that they put on ATL and OLEDB providers but i love it! Why? Becoz i've read Grime's Beginning ATL 3 COM and it was really painful reading but these guys made the concept seemed EASY!
I like their walktruhs on RDS, ADSI and MSMQ, really neat. Something for me to get started on concepts which I am new to. Their treatment on MTS seemed like they pilfered the chapter from another wrox book - Professional VB MTS which covers the topic slightly in detail.
Otherwise, this is truely a Beginning Book, but a caveat to VB and ASP only programmers as they will find this book too hard. Wish that Wrox come up with another book called Beginning COM ASP with ATL. Which will be really be great with the way they handled the topic.
633264
This is a great introduction to the New Testament and questions the faithful student and reader should raise.  Well written and informative.  The offereings by different researchers and commentators adds perspective to the people and times of the New Testament origins.
1999140
Mr. Padilla provides an extensive introduction to the Book of Acts. It doesnt cover all issues traditional to an introduction, such as structure or canonicity, but focuses specifically on interpretation, history, and theology. The book is geared toward a more advanced audience that is deeply concerned about scholarly issues. The author explains that he is attempting to update Howard Marshalls Luke: Historian and Theologian for our generation.  I would not be surprised if this book is as widely quoted in the future as Marshalls title has been in the past.

The first chapter is about who wrote the book of Acts. He arrives at the traditional conclusion of Luke after he deals with all the other views and criticisms of the traditional view. When he writes on the genre of acts, he concludes that it is a Hellenistic historical monograph the Jewish tradition. Along the way, he surveys a lot of scholarly nonsense that has been believed. On the subject of how Luke writes history, he deals with a lot of negative scholarship that has concluded bizarre things. Still, he concludes that Luke is a trustworthy historian.

The next two chapters on the speeches in Acts were the best in the entire book. He is known as a specialist in the speeches and it shows. His working through each of the speeches provided many amazing insights. A great deal of theology is also revealed. The final chapter on the justification of truth-claims in Acts is merely answering postliberalisms attack on Acts that has been relentless.

This book will delight scholars. Some parts of it will be less interesting to pastors, but it is clear in what it discusses and will be considered a very important contribution in the study of the book of Acts.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commissions 16 CFR, Part 255.
2972235
A decent primer on the topic.  The topic is covered from a reformed/non-Armenian point of view. This results in a more cogent and complete hermeneutic.  The short and digestible chapters do well at building upon each over and uses applicable metaphors when needed.  There is space dedicated to the topic as it relates to God's sovereignty. However due to the short length there are a few sub-points on the topic that would have been nice to address.

The book offers a biblical look at the topic and the short length makes it a good starter on the topic especially for new believers.  Final grade - B
3759710
I picked up this volume last fall and have worked through it slowly, learning many new things. It is a compilation of authors - Richard Land, Paige Patterson, Emir Caner, etc. - each providing an introductory lesson on biblical and historical foundations of religious liberty. Baptists throughout history have been at the forefront of religious liberty issues. Given the recent attention given to the "Evangelical Manifesto," I appreciate Russell Moore's chapter, "Conservative Christians in an Era of Christian Conservatives: Reclaiming the Struggle for Religious Liberty from Cultural Captivity."
2872179
I was impressed with the book as soon as I saw it because the stories are written in chronological order and most are only a couple pages in length. To me, that makes this book an excellent starting point for those new to the Bible, as well as a great reference tool for those of us familiar with the Bible. (Especially since each of the 250 selections has a very commonsense title.) And, though, much of the actual Bible is missing, I still believe this book is worth having on your shelf.

I prefer the NIV translation for my personal Bible, but I didn't mind the NKJV at all. I also believe that it's understandable enough that children could benefit from sharing in this book. The "short story" format is another bonus for children, too.

This book is beautiful inside and out, and I would totally recommend it for personal use and as a gift.

I received this book free of  charge from the publisher, but my opinions are my own and wer not influenced in any manner.
587229
This book is a great introduction to the gnostic gospels, especially if followed up by "The Nag Hammadi Scriptures: The International Edition" also by Marvin Meyer.  Anyone who is reading these books in search of truth is on the path of true discovery.  There are many translations of the Nag Hammadi Scriptures and the gnostic gospels readily available, and while some may be good, others are not.  That being said, you won't go wrong here.  This book, which is easy and accessible, is a good place to start for anyone who is just becoming familiar with these gospels and texts.  For those who are already familiar with these texts, I highly recommend Meyer's other book: "The Nag Hammadi Scriptures."
2250272
Our Sunday School class decided as a class we would read through the Bible in 2017.  I like the format of The One Year Bible as it is arranged in a format of January 1 through December 31 where you have four passage to read each day of the year.  This format makes it easy to keep up by having a set of reading for each specific day of the year.  This is my first look at the NLT paraphrased translation and it is very easy to understand.  Although I like the NASB for my study translation the NLT has been enjoyable to read.  I have the hard copy and also I have the electronic copy on my ipad under Kindle. When not at home it is much easier to have to read without having to keep up with the hard copy.  I do recommend The One Year Bible NLT.
3596625
This is a terrific introduction to the Apostle Paul and the letters  attributed to him in the New Testament.  Roetzl is a superbly clear and  concise writer who knows how to write introductory material without  distorting and oversimplifying.  This is a well tested textbook, and the  new fourth edition brings it into line with the most current Pauline  scholarship.  Roetzl fully incorporates the continuing influences of the  "Sanders revolution" into his own understanding of Paul and his  writings.  The book provides a thorough treatment of each of the epistles  in terms of posible dating, situation, and literary structure before  explicating the primary themes.  Roetzl does divide the Paul's letters into  the categories of undisputed and disputed and treats them roughly according  to his own chronology.  Some will quibble with the ordering and the  categorization, but Roetzl is far from dogmatic on these positions.  Most  importantly, as the subtitle indicates, Roetzl takes seriously the role  Paul's letters play in an ongoing relationship with the churches to which  he writes.  In line with the the contemporary trend, he extends this  principle to Romans, moving further away from the older, non-situaltional  way of reading.  I have used this as a textbook with undergraduate students  and they have complimented it highly.
2556297
I ordered this for a college course I am taking but honestly, this book is a great starting book for anyone wanting to learn more about the Bible. This only goes through five books but it does a really good job of giving the history, authorship, language, character breakdown, etc. It also gives a good break down of the chapters. I fully intend on keeping this for future studies, as well as buying other books by the same publishers.
4709952
I am really enjoying this book and am learning a great deal, especially about the Old Testament, that I never knew before.  I would give this book five stars except that there are some formatting and proofing errors that seem odd.  Some paragraphs or sentences are cut-off and don't continue onto the next page.  There are also some box or side-bar notes where the words are run together into one long word. These errors are fairly infrequent, but still noticeable.  Even with those small issues, I would definitely recommend the book as an extremely readable and user-friendly introduction to the Bible. The graphics and illustrations are very nicely done and informative.
4242046
Easy to read. Covered all the foundational elements and easily directs to more detailed reads. Highly recommend as a quick intro
4703013
I have used this as my standard NT Backgrounds course textbook at Singapore Bible College for many years.  Students weak in English struggle with the older, more difficult English translations of ancient material.  However, the quick introductions to each ancient reading are invaluable.  The readings themselves are also concise as the editors have eliminated readings that do not enlighten any NT texts.
1446271
NASB is an Excellent translation now even better with Greek grammatical codes!  Well worth the time needed to understand that tough passage in the New Testament.
3871760
Check out the web site first. [...] Everything is linked together and can be accessed by one click.  The best thing is the ability to import and link additional books and commentaries. You can view the Greek (Westcott Hort or Texus Receptus) long side the bible of choice.  My wife uses it with precepts and loves it. She wanted the NASB added on and purchased for $14. You can choose what references you want to use and exclude the rest from the screen to reduce the huge selection of references like the Arabic bible (I should learn Arabic). The program will read the bible verses to you if you have a bible on cd (mp3 format). The down side is I don't use my paper bible much I just tote by net book with me and have all my notes and refrences on hand.  But there is something comforting about touching the paper....
150699
The format of this New Testament is really useful.  I'm an ordinary woman who doesn't know Greek, but I enjoy digging in a bit for a better understanding of the God's word.  If I had a vote, there'd be just one thing I would change:  in place of the NIV text on the left column of each page, I would prefer another version such as the ESV.  It's a small disappointment because the NASB is on the right.