The New Oxford Annotated Apocrypha: New Revised Standard Version

by Marc Brettler (Editor), Carol Newsom (Editor), Pheme Perkins (Editor)

For decades students, professors, clergy, and general readers have relied on The New Oxford Annotated Apocrypha as an unparalleled authority on the Apocrypha. This fifth edition remains the best way to study and understand the material at home or in the classroom. This thoroughly revised and substantially updated edition contains the best scholarship informed by recent discoveries and anchored in the solid Study Bible tradition.· Introductions and extensive annotations for each book by acknowledged experts in the field provide context and guidance.· Introductory essay on the Apocrypha gives readers an overview that guides more intensive study.· Maps and diagrams within the text contextualize where events took place and how to understand them.· A timeline, calendar, and essay on the Persian and Hellenistic Periods help to contextualize the books.A volume that users will want to keep for continued reference, The New Oxford Annotated Apocrypha continues the Oxford University Press tradition of providing excellence in scholarship for the general reader. Generations of users attest to its status as the best one-volume Bible reference tool for any home, library, or classroom.

Genres: Theology, Religion, Nonfiction

424 pages, Kindle Edition

Published March 1, 2018

About the author

Marc Brettler is an American biblical scholar, and the Bernice and Morton Lerner Professor in Judaic Studies at Duke University. He earned his B.A., M.A., and PhD from Brandeis University, where he previously served as Dora Golding Professor of Biblical Studies.

Reviews

[Dan Flood · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is probably my favorite version/edition of any Bible. The notes and headings are primarily from a scholarly perspective, which is useful both for academic/critical/and theological study of the text. The reputation of the NRSV itself needs no introduction. It is well organized, easy to read, easy to use as a reference. The supplementary content is relevant, worthwhile, without being overstuffed or stilted toward any one set of ideals.

[Zach Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well done translation. The books in this are really a hit/miss for me. I wasn't in love with Tobit, and the editions to Esther and Daniel, but I love 1 Maccabees and Judith. All of them were quite interesting, though.

[joe · Rating 4 out of 5]

yeah its alright

[Jake · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fantastic. I plan to incorporate these into my yearly Bible reading plan each year.

[Brandon · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is by far the best critical edition of the Christian Bible in English yet (though, by the looks of it, the newly released NRSVue will surpass it once Oxford puts out a new annotated edition which includes that work’s fascinating translation and manuscript updates). I own both the hardback and leather-bound versions of this Oxford Bible, and while the latter is certainly nicer to look at, the sturdiness (and, if I do say so, plainness of design) of the former makes it much more suited to marking up and carrying around for study.

Given that this includes the deuterocanonical/apocryphal books once used by most Protestants and still retained today by all Catholics and Orthodox, this truly is an ecumenical resource, though the recent NRSVue makes some smart improvements to this section by ordering and numbering the deuterocanonical works more in line with Orthodox and Catholic traditions (which is only right, given the greater importance accorded to these books by these Churches), as well as by relying on longer Greek manuscripts for Tobit and Judith. The only thing that might improve on that improvement is one day including the Ethiopian canon as well, which so far no major English translation has.

As far as the Hebrew Bible is concerned, Robert Alter’s translation is almost certainly superior in its attentiveness to the poetry of the original language(s), and David Bentley Hart’s New Testament is strange, refreshing, and also quite attuned to the original language (including bad grammar). But, overall, in terms of translation accuracy, historical-critical commentary, and sheer breadth of canons included, NOAB (NRSV) remains the gold standard and likely will continue to be until the Sixth Edition is completed. (For anyone interested in that update, I highly recommend Zondervan’s premier collection NRSVue with the Apocrypha, which is by far the most beautiful, durable, and readable Bible I’ve ever owned; if you prefer to separate reading from study, it’s certainly worth the price).

If, however, you’re not a Christian, or someone who is simply looking for more historical information and context regardless of faith, this is undoubtedly the best, most unbiased resource for understanding and navigating the Christian scriptures on the market.