Impressed by the ESV (the relatively new English Standard Version of the Bible) and annoyed with reading it on-line, I recently went Bible shopping . . . on-line. So, I was quite surprised to discover, upon delivery, that The Literary Study Bible (edited by Leland Ryken and Philip Graham Ryken for Crossway Bibles), actually turns out to have a textbook-style, hardback cover printed with the same artwork as the dust jacket. And odd artwork it is . . . a pince-nez, ink well, and quill pen resting on a piece of blank parchment (as if TV’s Craig Ferguson were about to put on John Boy Walton’s glasses and write a letter to the Moderator of the General Assembly of the Church of Scotland). But, a fine study Bible it is. Which goes to show, don’t judge any book, particularly the Good Book, by its cover.
Yet, many must be, since so many different bindings are being offered by publishers nowadays. Or is it important that a Bible you carry around in public makes a statement about you? Does leopard print, hinged aluminum, tire tread, or tapestry fit your style? Faux blue suede, rainbow n’ mountains, or camouflage? Amazing. I don’t get it, isn’t that making a fashion show of one’s piety?
Since I’ve worn out a few inexpensive ones, I do get the concept of a fine quality Bible meant “to last a lifetime.” You know, one of those big ol’ floppy Bibles bound in the luxurious leather with gilt-edged pages (which, remarkably, is only about five-eighths of an inch thick . . . New Testament only?) that an Armani-clad megatelevangelist with a gold-plated, cordless microphone in one hand always seems to be carrying in the other. Oooops, that’s just stereotyping and being judgmental. Now I get it, the moral is . . .
Don’t judge the person by the cover of his/her Bible.
[To visit J. Mark Bertrand’s fascinating blog Bible Design & Bindings, click HERE.]
