A couple of weeks ago, I had the honor of receiving a review copy of the ESV Jesus Bible for FREE from Bible Gateway. As part of Bible Gateway’s Blogger Grid, I sometimes get to participate in reviews of new products. Being a total Bible nerd, I jumped on this opportunity!!

As a reminder, I received this Bible for FREE, and all opinions of its contents are most definitely my own.

The name of this Bible says it all: its entire focus is on Jesus. The tag line reads:

sixty-six books.

one story.

all about

one name.

To that end, the editors have included contributions from renowned theologians and Bible scholars, including Louie Giglio, Max Lucado, John Piper, Ravi Zacharias, and Randy Alcorn. These contributions are:

• short feature articles
• side notes
• historical and thematic explanations of each book
• generous concordance for reference

Take a peek…

The biggest draw of this Bible, however, is that it is an artist’s Bible. The pages leave room for you to engage with Scripture through drawing, painting, journaling, etc. You can use the space to visualize and bring the word of God to life, capturing the ways in which God is teaching and leading you in your study.

Pages like this allow give you space and freedom to communicate with God the Creator by creating spiritual works of your own–a wonderful resource for those of you who love Bible journaling!!

I like that the focus is on Jesus, and the articles and commentaries allow the reader to further immerse themselves into the story of Christ. The contributors offer devotional-style words of wisdom and encouragement that are applicable in real-life situations. The Jesus Bible is a beautiful gift for those who want to dig deep into the life and teachings of Christ, and who love to express their spirituality through artistic interpretation or meditative writing.

In other words, this is a great Christmas gift for artsy friends and family!!

As with the Life Application Bible, the only drawback I have with this Bible is the lack of female voice among the contributors and developers. There are SO MANY amazing women who are teaching, leading, and delving deep into Scripture that I feel it is wrong to leave their voices out.

The Jesus Bible can be found wherever Bibles are sold. You can also find the link to it here, at Bible Gateway.

Finally, here’s a note from the publisher about the Bible:

Encounter the living Jesus in all of Scripture. From the Passion Movement, The Jesus Bible, ESV Edition, with exclusive articles from Louie Giglio, Max Lucado, John Piper, Ravi Zacharias, and Randy Alcorn, lifts Jesus up as the lead story of the Bible.

Profound yet accessible study features help you meet Jesus throughout Scripture. See him in every book so that you may know him more intimately, love him more passionately, and walk with him more faithfully.

Features:         

• Introduction by Louie Giglio
• 66 book introductions highlight the story of Jesus in every book
• Seven compelling essays on the grand narrative of Scripture by Louie Giglio, Max Lucado, John Piper, Ravi Zacharias, and Randy Alcorn guide you to treasure Jesus and encourage you to faithfully follow him as you participate in his story
• Over 300 full-page articles and nearly 700 sidebar articles reveal Jesus throughout all of Scripture
• Complete English Standard Version (ESV) text of the Bible
• A beautiful special edition featuring the art of Atlanta-based artist Britt Bass
• Room for notes and journaling throughout
• ESV concordance
• Two ribbon markers

Blessings and Peace,

Sara