FREE/BARGAIN — Christian Interest

[Difflugia]

When it rains, it pours.

I've been waiting for the updated CSB (which used to be the HCSB) to become available as an ebook. I got an email ad about it today and had a look around the website. It's still not available as an ebook, but there is a free mobile app for Android and iOS.

I installed the app on my phone and was fooling around with it when I realized that an epub of the Bible is embedded in the app and can be extracted with a little hacking.

First, you need to get the app's APK file onto your computer. There are a number of ways to do this. Here's one.

• Rename (or copy) the .apk file to .zip. For example, my backup app named the file CSB_1.2.6.apk, so I changed the name to CSB_1.2.6.zip.
• With Windows XP or later, you should be able to double-click the .zip file to open it. You should see a folder named "assets".
• Navigate to assets->www->content and you should see a folder named "CSBRev18".
  That folder is the unpacked epub.
• Copy that folder somewhere else (another folder or the desktop).
• Open that folder, and you should see META-INF, OEBPS, and mimetype. Select all three items, then right-click.
• Select "Send to"->"Compressed (zipped) folder". Windows will create a zip file in that directory, probably named mimetype.zip.
• Change the name and give it a .epub extension (I used "CSB.epub"). If all went well, the file should open in ADE or Calibre.

One annoying thing is that the file is an epub3 and uses a few features that aren't available in epub2. I tried a bunch of different Android readers to see if any worked and they either didn't or were slow. I ended up using Calibre to covert it to an epub2.

[GtrsRGr8]

It's great to have someone (you're not the only one on MobileRead) so savvy about the ins and outs of computers . . . .

I've got a confession to make. I actually acquired a dead-tree used book the other day. I'm so ashamed.

Got a CSB from the local library's ongoing used book sale. Free, as it turns out (I guess the librarian thinks that they shouldn't charge for Bibles. No word yet on the policy for the Quran, Bhagavad Gita, Book of Mormon/Doctrine and Covenants, et al.). I thought that it was a version that I never had heard about. It has a fairly recent copyright date (2011). I was so happy! I didn't realize that it was the same as the HCSB, of which I have enough copies. So, an updated version of the 2011 edition is in the works?

The change in titles is annoying; I saw no explanation for the change in the Preface, which I read pretty closely. I'm sure that I'm not the only one who thinks that this is a new version.

Frankly, I wasn't impressed with the "translation," which was more like a paraphrase than anything else, in more than a few places. There were several positives about the tranny. But maybe I can say more about those later.

Thanks for the information about hacking the app on your phone. Not a practical solution for me, unfortunately. I'll wait until the new version comes out in digital form. If it's like the HCSB (perhaps not the CSB, however), there should be free copies available repeatedly all over the place.

I hope that you limit your hacking to altruistic purposes.

[GtrsRGr8]

After a little thought, I wonder if the change in names is because the name "Holman" is basically synonymous, in the minds of many people, with "Baptist." I don't think that Holman (or B&H (Broadman and Holman)) is the official publisher for any of the conventions (Southern Baptist, in this case), but there sure is a strong connection--official or unofficial--between the two. Perhaps the name change was for ecumenical reasons--to make the translation more appealing to a wider audience--by disassociating itself from a publisher known as a denominational one.

[Froide]

Just ran across this page at Ligonier.org tonight. If a post about this expanded list has already been made here, then my apologies for repeating it!

Crucial Questions: 25 Free eBooks from R.C. Sproul
from Nathan W. Bingham Aug 09, 2016 Category: Reformation Trust

Here's the introductory paragraph. It's followed by the list of 25 free books.

To further help Christians know what they believe, why they believe it, how to live it, and how to share it, in May 2013 we made the ebook editions of R.C. Sproul’s Crucial Questions series free forever. We continue to publish new ebooks in this series and this year have added Are People Basically Good?, How Can I Be Blessed?, and How Should I Think about Money?

[Little.Egret]

Originally Posted by Froide

Just ran across this page at Ligonier.org tonight. If a post about this expanded list has already been made here, then my apologies for repeating it!

Crucial Questions: 25 Free eBooks from R.C. Sproul
from Nathan W. Bingham Aug 09, 2016 Category: Reformation Trust

Here's the introductory paragraph. It's followed by the list of 25 free books.

Amazon has about the same number (plus the same titles in Spanish to make 46 odd)


https://www.amazon.com/s/?url=search...hor=R+C+Sproul

https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/?url=sear...hor=R+C+Sproul

https://www.amazon.ca/s/?url=search-...hor=R+C+Sproul

[GtrsRGr8]

One additional reason, to the reasons that I gave in a previous post for buying through Amazon, instead of directly from Ligonier, is that you have to give your phone number to Ligonier (unless that has changed).

Of course, Amazon has your phone number, too. But, if my experience is typical, Ligonier will call you and want to talk. Seems like that they gave a low-pressure request for a donation in one call, maybe two.

After a while, they quit calling, I think. I say, "I think," because sometime shortly after their calls, I quit answering my home phone (and I don't have caller ID, either). I let the answering machine pick up. If it is someone whose voice that I recognize and I want to talk to, I talk. Otherwise, I ignore it. People from Ligonier may have called, and hung up when they got the recorded message.

[GtrsRGr8]

MobileRead doesn't have a dedicated Bible software thread, that I know of. Perhaps the mods won't kick me off for making this quick post. And, we had just been discussing the CSB.

I just noticed that WordSearchBible has the CSB for free (go to https://www.wordsearchbible.com/). I usually scan their emails fairly carefully, and never had noticed them bringing this up before. Of course, they could have just made the markdown . . . .

I don't know how well you can use WSB on mobile devices. I never have tried or researched it. Maybe you can, I just dunno. I'm pretty sure that Logos allows you to, or at least you can read the books that you have in the program in another FaithLife (the parent company, it seems, of Logos now) program, of which there are several.

Unfortunately WSB is a little behind many other Bible software companies in several ways. I use it a lot because their books tend to be much cheaper than Logos, at least, and right now I'm more interested in content than capability.

[Conan46]

The CSB is a very recent update to the HCSB. I grabbed a free ebook copy a few weeks ago, and noticed a few days later it had disappeared at Amazon and is still gone except for the older version (HCSB). You can check out the CSB on Bible Gateway website. I actually bought a giant print copy of it a few weeks ago. Holman makes nice print Bibles. I rarely buy anything print anymore but exception for books like this. As for the translation that can be very subjective. To me it appears they have brought it much closer to the NIV while yet being a bit more literal. Probably placing it somewhere between the ESV and NIV. I won't give it a full review so as not to get too far off topic. I will just say I really like it. My guess is they pulled the new CSB from Amazon as a few criticized the formatting. All the footnotes were stuck at the end of the chapters which some did not like in the digital version. The print version has the footnotes at the bottom of each page as typical with many Bibles.
Edit more info here:
https://csbible.com/about-the-csb/
Here is some info about what changed and why:
https://blog.logos.com/2017/01/inter...tandard-bible/

[Difflugia]

Thanks for the interview links.

For what it's worth, I'd like to read your thoughts about the CSB, either here or in another thread. As long as the discussions don't get too theological, I don't think it would need to be in the Politics and Religion forum.

[Difflugia]

Originally Posted by GtrsRGr8

MobileRead doesn't have a dedicated Bible software thread, that I know of. Perhaps the mods won't kick me off for making this quick post. And, we had just been discussing the CSB.

I'd like to see a spot (even if it's just a long-running thread) for generic Christian media discussions. I've previously posted in the "Reading Recommendations" forum for things like new Bibles in electronic format, but I also occasionally post in this thread just because (I assume, anyway) that most of the people interested would be here, anyway.

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by Difflugia

Thanks for the interview links.

For what it's worth, I'd like to read your thoughts about the CSB, either here or in another thread. As long as the discussions don't get too theological, I don't think it would need to be in the Politics and Religion forum.

In general I like the stronger, Tyndale-influenced version like the KJV, NASB, NKJV, ESV. Yet I gravitated toward the NIV for readability. I could not warm up to the earlier HCSB. It was jarring in many places and just felt strange to read and out of sync. But CSB seems to have removed the kinks of the HCSB and I find the text now flows nicely, is not jarring, and it feels fresh as it is not just a copy of the NIV but is a bit more literal and some passages give me a slightly expanded understanding. Overall:

The translation is a much updated version of the 2004 Holman Christian Standard Bible. They dropped use of Yahweh and went with the more traditional LORD. They also dropped caps for pronouns for God: He, Him, His, etc. This puts the CSB in line with other versions like the KJV and NIV. I like that the CSB has bold text for Old Testament quotes in the New Testament. It has useful footnotes but they do not overtake the text as in some versions. The CSB is easy to read, falling in place somewhere between the NIV and the ESV Bible versions. The CSB compared to the older HCSB reminds me more of the NIV now, yet is a bit more literal in places than the NIV while still being easy to understand and read. It is becoming my new favorite translation. And that is saying a lot as the original HCSB while good in places felt uneven overall.

I begin a new translation by reading all my favorite passages and quotes across the Bible. I then spend a good amount of time in the Psalms as that is one of my favorite books. For me the CSB is passing the test for both accuracy and readability.

Here is a passage from my favorite chapter in the Bible from the CSB. The end of Romans chapter 8:

31 What then are we to say about these things? If God is for us, who is against us? 32 He did not even spare his own Son but offered him up for us all. How will he not also with him grant us everything? 33 Who can bring an accusation against God’s elect? God is the one who justifies. 34 Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the one who died, but even more, has been raised; he also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us. 35 Who can separate us from the love of Christ? Can affliction or distress or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword? 36 As it is written:

Because of you
we are being put to death all day long;
we are counted as sheep to be slaughtered.[k]

37 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Another important thing for me is that the publisher has great print Bible support. The ESV has been lacking to some degree on that front. People need to be able to buy reasonably priced, good quality Bibles in a variety of formats. Zondervan does a good job with this, as does Nelson, and Holman is one of the bests publishers for quality Bibles at reasonable prices and wide vbariety of formats and study tools. So I am quite encouraged that their strange HCSB Bible has been streamilined to put it more in line with the other Bible versions while giving a fresh take on scripture.
Best Wishes and Happy Easter!

[Difflugia]

Sincere thanks.

I felt the same way about the HCSB being uneven. It also threw me that B&H seemed to "tinker" with the HCSB every couple years or so. At one point, I figured out that between paper and ebooks, I had something like five recognizably distinct versions of the HCSB. Not only that, my ebook version of The Apologetics Study Bible uses a different revision than the hardcover, but the copyright dates show as the same. The changes were minor (mostly just how many times LORD was replaced with Yahweh), but I found it annoying.

I'm disappointed that they removed the Yahwehs altogether. I really think "for I am Jehovah/Yahweh, your god" imparts a different feel than "for I am the LORD, your god". When I want to read the Bible that way, I'm stuck with either the ASV, which is often archaic, or the New Jerualem Bible, which isn't available electronically (except at Logos, and that's without notes). I spent some time with the Names of God Bible and I love the idea, but the God's WORD translation is too paraphrased for me.

It's funny, I hadn't noticed that the NIV didn't capitalize God pronouns before you mentioned it.

[Conan46]

Originally Posted by Difflugia

Sincere thanks.

I felt the same way about the HCSB being uneven. It also threw me that B&H seemed to "tinker" with the HCSB every couple years or so. At one point, I figured out that between paper and ebooks, I had something like five recognizably distinct versions of the HCSB. Not only that, my ebook version of The Apologetics Study Bible uses a different revision than the hardcover, but the copyright dates show as the same. The changes were minor (mostly just how many times LORD was replaced with Yahweh), but I found it annoying.

I'm disappointed that they removed the Yahwehs altogether. I really think "for I am Jehovah/Yahweh, your god" imparts a different feel than "for I am the LORD, your god". When I want to read the Bible that way, I'm stuck with either the ASV, which is often archaic, or the New Jerualem Bible, which isn't available electronically (except at Logos, and that's without notes). I spent some time with the Names of God Bible and I love the idea, but the God's WORD translation is too paraphrased for me.

It's funny, I hadn't noticed that the NIV didn't capitalize God pronouns before you mentioned it.

I had mixed feelings about them dropping the use of "Yahweh" and replacing with traditional "LORD". I think using "Yahweh" confused people who didn't understand what they were trying to do but it did make the translation stand out.
Their reasoning for dropping caps for pronouns for God makes sense to me. As explained in one of those links I posted earlier sometimes OT prophecies referred to two people, perhaps referencing God and a historic figure, so "He" would not make sense in that instance. Otherwise I like the caps in other versions like NKJV & NASB.
I think you will like the CSB much better now. It feels consistent and more conservative translation-wise than the HCSB. And Holman's print Bibles are awesome. Several of my favorite Bibles were published by Holman, a couple NKJV Bibles, and now this leather-touch CSB.

[Fluribus]

Fortress Press is having a sale in April at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. They have, for instance, the Bonhoeffer Works books on sale (most at $4.99). A PDF listing can be obtained from www.augsburgfortress.org/media/downloads/April-2017-Ebook-Sale.pdf. 20 pages worth.

[GtrsRGr8]

Originally Posted by Fluribus

Fortress Press is having a sale in April at Amazon.com and BarnesandNoble.com. They have, for instance, the Bonhoeffer Works books on sale (most at $4.99). A PDF listing can be obtained from www.augsburgfortress.org/media/downloads/April-2017-Ebook-Sale.pdf. 20 pages worth.

A little extra info . . . .

Prices are as low as $2.99. The sale is of 1,500 "select" titles. According to the email that I got from Fortress, B&N is also participating in the sale.

As you said, the sale is in April. It does, in fact, end April 30. A nice long time to peruse the huge number of offerings, especially considering that we got the email about this sale April 5.

However, sometimes I wish that these sales didn't include so many titles. It is almost overwhelming to research the titles and/or authors that I'm not familiar with. For this sale, I may just do a search of my want list for Fortress titles, and be done with it.

Thanks for posting the sale for everyone.