"Under The Sea - Holy Bible" Book Review and Giveaway

How cute is that cover. You can't really tell from the picture but the fish and anemones are glittery too. Sparkly! I'm already sold.

As you can see from the top of the cover, this particular Bible is New International Reader's Version. In other words, it's NIV in easy reading style. Here are a few examples:

Romans 5:1
In original NIV - Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ

In NIrV - We have been made right with God because of our faith. Now we have peace with him because of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 11:7
In original NIV - By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith.

In NIrV - Noah had faith. So he built an ark to save his family. He built it because of his great respect for God. God had warned him about things that could not yet be seen. Because of his faith, Noah showed the world that it was guilty. Because of his faith he was considered right with God.

Psalm 27:1
In original NIV - The LORD is my light and my salvation - whom shall I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life - of whom shall I be afraid?

In NIrV - The LORD is my light, and he saves me. Why should I fear anyone? The LORD is my place of safety. Why should I be afraid?

I haven't read through this entire bible but of all the passages I read, with my NIV in hand, I thought the substitutions were appropriate and still accurate to the meaning of the verses. Plus, as you can tell from the examples given above, it makes it easier for younger readers to understand. Of course, some of the richer, deeper picture meanings may be lost (as in the case of 'place of safety' replacing 'stronghold') but by the time a child is old enough to appreciate the subtle ancient cultural metaphors, they would likely no longer wish to be reading from a sparkly fish Bible anyway.

There are no marginal notes, concordance or cross references. However, when an Old Testament passage is quoted in the New Testament, as it frequently is in the gospel of Matthew, the original reference is given in parentheses. There is also a 5 page dictionary in the back as well as 2 page list of where to find well known stories such as David and Goliath, and The Flood. The "Under the Sea" Bible also has a few colorful pages throughout the text that match the cover and talk about prayer, love, 10 commandments etc.

All in all, I'm pleased with this Bible and would definitely feel comfortable giving it to a child to read. So here's the good news:

YOU CAN WIN A COPY!!!

Happy Dance! I'm having a draw March 29th. (my birthday - just sayin') Winner will get a free copy mailed from the publisher. Comment below if you want in. Good luck.

"Disclosure (in accordance with the FTC’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising”): Many thanks to Propeller Consulting, LLC for providing this prize for the giveaway. Choice of winners and opinions are 100% my own and NOT influenced by monetary compensation. I did receive a sample of the product in exchange for this review and post.

Only one entrant per mailing address, per giveaway.  If you have won a prize from our sponsor Propeller / FlyBy Promotions in the last 30 days, you are not eligible to win.  Or if you have won the same prize on another blog, you are not eligible to win it again. Winner is subject to eligibility verification.”