The Chronological Study Bible is a new edition of the New King James Version, with the passages arranged in chronological order.
The dust jacket states that it is the “first study Bible” to have the passages arranged in chronological order; though this is technically true, “study” is the operative word, as there have been other chronological Bibles before. My family has had Harvest House’s Narrated Bible for years; its author, F. LaGard Smith, arranged the New International Version text in chronological order and added some extensive (often over one page long) historical background.
That said, the Chronological Study Bible is a step above any other chronological Bible I’ve seen. Between every transition, there is a note explaining the historical context. Virtually every page either has an extensive commentary box (which, in a rather unusual move for study Bibles, is placed at the top of the page instead of the bottom), or smaller in-column boxes with notes on one of fifteen different categories. Categories covered range from Culture and Customs to Medicine, Science, and Technology.
One of the sticky issues that comes up in the arranging of a chronological Bible is whether or not to accept Genesis’ account of the Creation of the world at face value. This Bible largely sidesteps the question, referring to Creation as “undatable” and putting the first eleven chapters of Genesis in a section of their own headlined “Creation—2000 B.C.” However, the commentary works from Evolutionary dating assumptions, making references to an Old Stone Age before 10,000 B.C. and stating in a highlighted box, “Scholars have placed the first human settlements as early as 7,000 to 8,000 years before Christ. Time Capsules, which do provide reliably historical context elsewhere, provide dates as early as 23,000 B.C. at points in the first eleven chapters.
Outside of that, the notes and commentary look fascinating. This will be a useful addition to virtually any pastor’s or layman’s library.
