The World's Largest Bible

I have often referred to the Macklin Bible as the largest Bible ever printed.  It was very big:  7 volumes, 16 x 19 inches, over 100 pounds.  And as regularly published Bibles it is certainly one of the largest.  It is the largest massed produced Bible ever printed.

Louis Waynai & wife with press and Bible

But I just recently heard of a one-off Bible that is much larger.  It was printed by Louis Waynai, a Hungarian immigrant.  He used a home-made rubber stamping press to print each of the 8,048 pages of this King James Version Bible.  Just developing the press took him about two years.  When his press was ready, He then spent over 8,700 hours on the printing.  His work was ready to read in 1930.  Opened up it is 43 inches tall and 98 inches wide and 34 inches thick.  Waynai spent about $10,000 (USD) - a big expense for a carpenter!  It was constructed so that it could be disassembled into 31 sections.  Want to take this one to church?  You'll need help as it weighs 1,094 pounds.  There is a short video on Youtube (shown below) showing Waynai's Bible and demonstrating his press.

Waynai donated his work to a church in Fort Worth.  They eventually donated it to Abilene Christian University where it has been on display in the the Gaines B. Stanley Sr. Theological Reading Room.  In 2013 they sent the Bible off for restoration and to an exhibit.  There is another video on Youtube showing it being loaded onto a truck.  According to this page it is currently on display in Washington, D.C. (If you have a problem opening this link, right click on the link, copy it and paste it into your browser's address bar)

It appears that the Bible was restored at the Museum of the Bible in Oklahoma City, OK.  On their Facebook page they have a picture of what appears to be restoration work. 

Another video gives a different view of the Bible, again with Louis and his wife.  It is an old silent film but for some reason has an annoying thumping sound.  Turn the sound off by pointing your mouse cursor at the video.  In the lower left hand corner click on the speaker symbol.

 

Thanks to AM for bringing my attention to this incredible Bible.

New American Standard Bible, information update

Yesterday, on the Lockman Foundation Facebook page, there was this update about the coming changes to the New American Standard Version:

The whole text is being reviewed with more emphasis in the Old Testament.  The primary goal is to maintain accuracy and modernize English. As our base texts we use Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS) and Biblia Hebraica Quinta (BHQ) for the books available and for the NT we use NA28. We don't always agree with the editors of those texts and choose alternate or variant readings when we feel they are more accurate.  Our current estimated publication goal is to have a first release by early 2017.

Bible mini-reviews: 4 more NASB Bibles

Here are four more short reviews of some New American Standard Bibles.  Three are out of print but sometimes available in the used book markets.  The fourth is a currently available production.

Crown Reference Edition NASB (1977).  This Bible can be found fairly cheap used though it is out of print.  The copy I found is a rather flexible premium bonded leather with paste-down liners.  It measures 5.75 by 8.375 inches by 1 inch thick.  1 ribbon.  The paper is good with some ghosting.  It is a two column, verse by verse, cross referenced layout.  The 7 point font print is bold enough to help overcome ghosting.  It is a slightly brownish red letter that is very easy to read.  This has book introductions, a guide to pronouncing Bible names, significant Bible dates, a harmony of the Gospels, a concordance and maps.  This is an excellent portable reference Bible.

Cambridge Cameo Bible NASB (1977).  This Bible is hard to find.  The copy I have is stiff bonded leather with paste-down liners.  It measures 5.125 by 7.25 inches by 1.5 inch thick.  1 ribbon.  The paper is "ultra thin Bible paper" with limited ghosting.  It is a two column, verse by verse, cross referenced layout.  The font size is 7.25 to 7.5.  The red lettering is an unfortunate red (almost pink) color.  A concordance and maps are in the back.  It was typeset by Lehigh/Rocappi.  It was printed by Kingsport Press in 1979.  This is a sought-after edition due to its readability.  My copy has some variation in print darkness between pages.  The print is larger than Cambridge's Pitt Minion.  This is a wonderful Bible - another portable edition.  This may become my reference Bible that I keep by the computer.

The Outdoor Bible:  Sportsman's Edition NASB (1995).  ISBN 978-0-9792384-4-1.  While some sellers have horribly high prices on this little out-of-print gem, one can still find some reasonably priced copies.  This is one of Bardin & Marsee's waterproof Bibles - what they call the "DuraBook format."  This contains just the New Testament, Psalms and Proverbs.  It measures 4.5 by 7 inches by 0.75 inches thick.  The paper is a 100% plastic with almost perfectly opaque paper.  Ghosting is so minimal that it can just barely be seen in blank spaces.  Print is bold but very small - 6 points.  This is a two column, verse by verse format with no cross references.  For outdoor use or reading in the rain this can't be beat!

Zondervan Giant Print Reference Bible, Personal Size  NASB (1995).  ISBN 978-310-91913-1.  This is available on most book sellers for around $40 (USD).  The bonded leather on this copy is flexible.  It measures 5.625 by 8.875 inches by 1.5 inch thick.  1 ribbon.  The paper feels good but does have some noticeable ghosting.  The 9.5 pt, bold font helps overcome this fairly well.  It almost appears to have line matching, at least on some pages.  It is a two column, verse by verse, cross referenced Bible.  The red lettering is dark & bold - making it good for reading.  A concordance and Bible maps are included.  While the print is excellent in this Bible the ghosting may be a problem for some.

Bible Reading Plans

There are so many different Bible reading plans it can be hard to choose one.  Ligonier Ministries has a great article listing different styles and providing links to each one.  My personal favorite is a schedule that has one Old Testament and New Testament reading each day with the Psalms interspersed after finishing each book.  You can download that plan right here.

New American Standard Bible Update coming soon

The New American Standard Bible will be updated in 2016.  Currently it is expected to be ready sometime in the summer.  The translation committee is currently working on the update.  This news comes from Lockman's Facebook page.