👍🏻 Complete Jewish Bible: Readable, Educational, Hebrew Names (BIBLE REVIEW 1/2)

✨ PURCHASE: amzn.to/42BSYpy ✨ Easy to read. Original pronunciations of all Hebrew names. A real crash course in Hebrew and Judaism, especially the Study Bible. A pioneering work in its time, the Complete Jewish Bible is 100% Messianic and 100% Jewish.
Would you suggest this as a primary or a secondary Bible?
The CJB is ideal as a primary Bible to carry around and read from on a regular basis.
How's this version's relationship with the Jewish people, and with Judaism?
This Bible takes a very positive attitude towards the Jewish people, and towards Judaism. From its name as the "Complete Jewish Bible", to its overtly Jewish terminology and features, it "challenges both Jews and Christians to see that the whole Bible is Jewish", as is proclaimed in the introduction. The recently released Study Bible edition will be especially useful to Christians seeking to understand the Jewish roots of their faith, and Jews seeking to better understand Messianic Judaism. More on that when we talk about the "extras" in this Bible. The CJB was translated by a highly respected Messianic Jewish scholar. (More on him soon too!) Similarly, the contributors to the notes and articles of the Study Bible edition read like a who's who of Messianic Judaism, featuring leading minds from the UMJC, MJAA, IAMCS, and Tikkun. The CJB not only emerged from the Messianic Jewish world, but is also significantly shaping it, and is widely used in Messianic Jewish congregations. The simple act of reading from it is a celebration of the historic Messianic Jewish move of God in our time!
Who's the publisher, and when did it come out?
The pioneer Jewish New Testament first came out in 1989, followed by its companion Jewish New Testament Commentary in 1992. Both were published by Lederer Messianic Publications. The groundbreaking Complete Jewish Bible was released, also by Lederer, to widespread acclaim in 1998. And then in 2016 the Complete Jewish Study Bible was published, featuring an updated translation enhanced with rich notes and a colourful new look, this time by Hendrickson Publishing and edited by Rabbi Barry Rubin.
Who translated it, and what's their story?
Dr. David Stern is a highly respected scholar and pioneer in the Messianic Jewish movement. He was born in 1935, came to faith in Yeshua in 1972, and made aliyah (immigrated to Israel) with his wife Martha in 1979. In addition to the Complete Jewish Bible and Jewish New Testament commentary, Dr. Stern is also the author of the Messianic Jewish Manifesto, which was first published in 1998 and then republished as Messianic Judaism: A Modern Movement with an Ancient Past in 2007. Dr. Stern holds degrees from Princeton University and Fuller Theological Seminary, taught at UCLA as a professor, and also taught Fuller's first 'Judaism and Christianity' class.
Is the CJB more word for word, or thought for thought?
The New Testament (or Brit Hadashah as it's referred to throughout the Complete Jewish Bible) is Dr. Stern's translation direct from the Greek. The Tanach is his modern English paraphrase of the Jewish Publication Society's 1917 version, with some alterations based on the original Masoretic texts and comparisons with other translations. In both cases, the CJB makes for easy reading, and is more of a thought-for-thought "dynamic equivalent" than it is a word-for-word "formal equivalent" translation. To hear Dr. Stern's own description of his methods of translation, and his explanation for why he simply calls this a "version" rather than a paraphrase or translation, watch the video review here.
How are Hebrew personal names written?
One of the distinctives of this version is how personal names in both the Tanach and the New Testament retain their original Hebrew pronunciation. Examples from the Tanach would include Avraham, Yitz'chak, and Ya'akov, Rivkah, Moshe, Y'hoshua, Avigayil, Shlomo, and Yesha'yahu. Examples from the Gospels would include Shimon Kefa, Ya'akov, Yochanan, Y'hudah, Miryam, Elisheva, and Shoshanah. Of special note is Paul, who is always referred to by his Hebrew name Sha'ul, with the exception of Acts 13:9 which reads "then Sha'ul, also known as Paul, filled with the Ruach HaKodesh..."
How are Hebrew place names written?
Similarly, geographical names in both the Tanach and the New Testament retain their original Hebrew pronunciation. It's nifty that this is what these places continue to be called in modern Hebrew in Israel today. Examples from the Tanach would include Yerushalayim, Hevron, Beit-Lechem, and Bavel. Examples from the Gospels would include the Galil, Natzeret, K'far Nachum, Beit-Anyah, Ramatayim, and Shiloach.
How are Hebrew book names written?
The names of the books of the Tanach are written with their original Hebrew pronunciation, with the Anglicized versions of the book names in parentheses. For instance, B'resheet (Genesis), Sh'mot (Exodus), Tehillim (Psalms), and Mishlei (Proverbs)...
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