Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #1080978 in Books
• Published on: 2003-03
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: CD-ROM

Customer Reviews

Unsurpassed collection for bible study
There are some terrific books here, including old standards like the New Bible Commentary, which contains concise commentaries by some of the best evangelical scholars of the past century, the New Bible Dictionary, and the 4 volume New Testament Dictionary. But the volumes I find most useful are the innovative Dictionary of Biblical Imagery, the New Dictionary of Biblical Theology and the New Dictionary of Theology.

There are 18 volumes in the set. I could not have justified buying them separately, but in this format they are easily accessible, and less than 10% of what you would have paid in print form.

Referencing the information has been made easy: when you copy an extract, a footnote is added automatically with full bibliographical details of the book from which it has been extracted.

Highly recommended. Buy it, and you have a terrific Christian library at your fingertips.

Stunning quality and value
Note: I Am Reviewing Version 2 of this collection. Version 3 is available on the Logos website but `Version 2 and Version 3 are identical. The only difference is the version of Libronix [the user interface] that comes on the disk.' (And searching Amazon for this title was a nightmare!)

All the books the IVP Reference Collection contains are accessed through the unbeatable Libronix Digital Library System (LDLS) which the Logos Bible Software uses. This is easily the most powerful but easy to use interface for studying printed text I have ever used. This is even more important because there are a multitude of other titles - biblical and secular - which can be accessed through the same Libronix software (see the Logos website).

This is what's included on the IVP Reference Collection CD:

Dictionary of Jesus and the Gospels
Dictionary of Paul and his Letters
Dictionary of New Testament Background
Dictionary of the Later New Testament & Its Developments
Dictionary of Biblical Imagery

IVP Bible Background Commentary for The Old Testament
IVP Bible Background Commentary The New Testament

Hard Sayings of the Bible (not the 2009 edition)

New Bible Commentary
New Bible Dictionary
New Bible Atlas
New Dictionary of Biblical Theology
New Dictionary of Theology

Also included are the Pocket Dictionaries of:
Theological Terms
New Testament Greek
Apologetics & Philosophy of Religion
Biblical Studies

If you look for any of the first seven titles in Amazon you'll see what a stunningly high quality of material is included here. Each of the major works are magnificent achievements in their own right, but that IVP have included them all on one easy to use CD is nothing short of breathtaking. And even the "minor" works (i.e. the Pocket Dictionaries, etc.) are useful for more casual Bible study. I studied for a certificate in biblical theology and found this collection absolutely indispensable, but it is still easy and hugely beneficial to use for more casual Bible study - and both my wife and I do.

There are only two shortcomings: First, while this truly is an essential reference collection for biblical study, it is almost exclusively New Testament orientated, though the box gives little indication of this. (And the box for the 2nd edition is totally different from the first which is shown in the header of the Amazon listing.)

Second, only the King James Bible (or Authorised Version) is available as standard so other translations have to be purchased and `unlocked'. I paid an extra £20 for the New International Version (NIV), together with another £20 for a very old Thomas Nelson Reference Library CD which included a huge number of Bible versions, as well as several reference titles.

My Essential IVP Reference Collection cost £95 a few years ago so I have paid about £135 for the everything: And this is still an absolute bargain. I have used this collection extensively and would find it horribly hard to manage without it now. Though the initial outlay is high, when you consider the number of books you're buying, plus the amazing quality of scholastic insight being made available to you, it is quite literally irresistible. I can not praise this collection highly enough.

(Note that I am desperately hoping IVP will publish a similar collection on CD for the Old Testament - as soon as they do, I shall buy it!)

EDIT:
I have used this wonderful collection for nearly a decade now - and it's still just fabulous. The Logos Bible Software people have developed the Libronix software so well and now a gazillion titles are available. At the time of writing (2009) I note that the wonderful IVP OT dictionaries are now under development by the Logos people:

Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch
Dictionary of the Old Testament: Historical Books
(But not the Dictionary of the Old Testament: Wisdom, Poetry and Writings, yet...)

So my wish is coming true (at least partially)!

An essential collection for sure!
I am a Bible teacher who travels various places to teach. This CD set has been a complete god-send for me. It has just about everything I need to be able to gather information about the Bible, culture, background, commentary etc. Instead of lugging several heavy books around (which would take up my 20kg weight limit) I pack this in with my laptop and off I go. It is excellent value for money also - if you checked out the cost of all the books included in this package you will be pleasantly surprise. The software is easy to install and navigate. You can browse the library and open several books (windows) at once. You can print out portions of scripture and the dictionaries for your own reference or use. I think this is a brilliant package for any serious Bible scholar.