Review: CSB Worldview Study Bible
By Joel Settecase
Originally posted on April 14, 2019 here. Last updated on December 12, 2019.
Introduction
The generous folks over at B&H Publishers sent me a copy of their CSB Worldview Study Bible awhile back, after I requested one. This is the second Bible they’ve sent me, and I sincerely appreciate them for it. I told them I would be happy to write a review, and I did that tonight.
First of all, I really love the Christian Standard Bible. It’s an accurate yet highly readable translation: one I can do my in-depth study with and also read with my kids. Do I have a few quibbles with some of the choices? Sure. Really just one, but that’s hardly worth mentioning here.
Now about the Worldview Study Bible in particular.
First, the cons. I must say that I am a little disappointed with the extent of the commentary. It’s sparser than I was hoping for and expecting. There are some passages that are simply left out, that I think could have really benefited from commentary in a Bible explicitly aimed at guiding the Christian into the biblical worldview.
That being said, I can’t say enough good about the articles.
I do a lot of reading on worldview and apologetics, and I was not expecting the articles to give me much I didn’t already know. However, I was pleasantly surprised. I found them fresh and engaging; I’ve actually learned a lot from them.
I reiterate: it’s worth getting this Bible for the articles it contains. They are
Educational
Fair and balanced
Enjoyable to read
Well-researched
Well-written
Plentiful.
The articles are an element of this Bible that far outpaced my expectations. If you buy this Bible and read them, the articles, along with the commentary, will help you form your biblical worldview and stand more confidently on the foundation of God’s word in your life and conversation.
Is It For Apologetics?
I will say that this Bible is not strong on apologetics per se. That’s not what it’s for. If apologetics is what you’re looking for, CSB has Apologetics Study Bibles, and I understand those are very good (at least the original is. There are multiple versions now. I haven’t read them–although, if anyone from Holman ever reads this, I’d be more than happy to review one for you too. I’m at the same address (nudge).
The Worldview Study Bible is also not a standard study Bible, so again the commentary at the bottom of the page is not as thorough as I would have liked. I wonder if maybe the rationale was that there are a lot of other CSBs that have really good commentaries in them, so they wanted to hit the high points of the text from a worldview-specific viewpoint.
If that is the case, I get it. This one is focused on teaching the Christian worldview (not giving a complete defense of the faith or rigorously exegeting every verse of Scripture), and it does the job well, primarily through its numerous, robust articles interspersed throughout.
Final Word
I recommend the CSB Worldview Study Bible as a useful tool in the tool belt of believers looking to equipped themselves and sharpen their skill in communicating the Christian Message. Of course, that should be every one of us.