Christian Book Notes

The Word of Promise–NKJV New Testament audio Bible (unabridged). Thomas Nelson, 2007. $149.00. Purchase at Amazon for less than $95.00.  Purchase the MP3 for less than $55.

Introduction/Summary

One of the most viewed reviews on this website is my review of The Word of Promise – New Testament.  I have been asked if I have heard the Old Testament and until now, I have not.  Thomas Nelson was nice enough to send the entire dramatized audio Bible so as to be reviewed.  I will leave the original review published though this review will certainly stand alone and, I think, replace the review of the New Testament.

As for a Summary of this work, suffice it to say that this is an account of God’s creation of the world and man, man’s decision to turn from God in sin, and God’s showing His mercy and grace in sending His Son to live a sinless life so that we may be made right with God once again through faith in His Son, Jesus Christ.

Review

Aesthetic Appeal

First, the box that the entire Bible comes in is very attractive.  It has a glossy finish giving it a pleasing look to the eye as it sits on your mantle, near your stereo, or on a book shelf.  The lid opens at the top allowing the front panel to fold out revealing the five CD-books.  Each CD holder offers a quick index of what is on each audio CD.  The only issue I found is that pulling out cases 2-5 can be a bit difficult as there is nothing separating the five books.  While it may have raised the price some, having individual shelves within the case would have made this a non-issue.

Audio Quality

As I stated in my earlier review, the actors/actresses narrating the some of the men and women in the Bible leave me somewhat distracted.  That is, however, able to be overcome as you listen to the content and allow the different voices and sounds to take you to the land of the Bible.  You can play a game at the website that has you guessing the actor reading the Bible.  That does seem to be a bit too commercialized for me, though.

The most endearing effect of this audio book is that it takes you back to a simpler time when families would gather around the radio in the evenings to hear dramas like Lassie and The Lone Ranger which were all later made into television shows.  The Word of Promise Audio Bible offers the family to once again gather around the radio and to be flooded with audio that will engage the visual mind and nurture the soul.

Children will remain engaged and parents will find that they want to listen to more with their children.  The numerous actors and actresses offer unique voices to each character in the Bible so that every character has an identity all their own.  This is significant as it helps to bring to life the stories of the Bible.

Use in Family Devotions/Worship

The Word of Promise is an excellent resource to bring life to your family devotions.  Sadly, we live in a world where everyone needs (wants) to be entertained.  This makes family worship a bit more difficult as the children often find themselves disengaged because of boredom.  Fortunately, there is now a way to bridge that gap and do so in a way that does not mar the message of Scripture.  As stated above, your children will want to listen more and remain engaged longer.  Suddenly, family worship will be something that the whole family will look forward to.  You will even find that your children may begin asking to listen to The Word of Promise throughout the day!

Recommendation

There is so much more that can be said, but suffice it to say that you will not regret the purchase of this audio bible.  I HIGHLY recommend this resource to every Christian.  I absolutely love this resource and tell everyone looking for an audio Bible that this is the only one they need.  I have a copy for my home and my family car.  You can get the Old Testament or the New Testament though I recommend purchasing both.  Ultimately, if you are searching for an audio Bible, your search is over!

The Word of Promise–NKJV New Testament audio Bible (unabridged).  Thomas Nelson, 2007.  $49.99.  Purchase at Amazon for $19.50 or less!

Introduction

This is just the New Testament.  If you would like to see a review of the entire audio Bible, please go here.

While the Holy Bible needs no introduction, perhaps it would do well to explain this project in a bit more detail.

The cast of this particular audio Bible is breathtaking.  From Jim Caviezel as Jesus to Marissa Tomei as Mary Magdalene, they leave no character untouched.  Even Hank Hanegraaff makes an appearance as an angel in the book of Revelation.  The man who plays Matthew, John Heard, actually reads the gospel of Matthew.  The thematic music helps with the flow of the reading as well as the dramatization of it all.  The entire cast, both Old and New Testament, consists of over 600 people!  You can check out a highlighted list of cast members here.  You can access the website for more details here.

Critical Review

Ok, I am not going to review the Bible.  What I am going to do is offer a review of the audio as well as the cast of characters and such.

Cast

Obviously, the cast is star-studded.  Some of the actors make sense.  For example, Jim Caviezel playing Jesus makes a lot of sense with his role as Christ in The Passion of the Christ.  Hank Hanegraaff makes sense as an angel with the success of his apocalyptic series co-authored with Sigmund Brouwer.  The interplay of the various voices helps children to know that “real people” were in the Bible.  It also helps the Bible to “come alive” as it were to hear all of the different voices–it is very easy to get in a rut when reading the Bible.  This dramatized version does not allow for that to happen.

What I struggle to completely accept is Luke Perry as Judas and Stephen and John Schneider as James.  Whenever I hear them speaking, I hear Dillon of Beverly Hills 90210 and Bo Duke of the Dukes of Hazzard (I grew up with the Dukes, could’ve care less about 90210).  It is somewhat distracting to have visuals of the General Lee or bar room brawls when you are being exhorted to “let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God” (James 1:20-21). Or to think of Dillon and all of his escapades in Beverly Hills when you are listening to Stephen cry out to God to forgive those who are stoning him in Acts 7.

Audio

The original music is second to none insofar as dramatized Bibles are concerned.  Sometimes the background music takes away from the content of the story.  In the case of The Word of Promise, the background music greatly enhances the story telling.

Another quality of the audio found in The Word of Promise are the sound effects.  For example, when John the Baptist’s head is cut off in Matthew 14:10, you actually hear the sword being unsheathed, sliced through the air, down onto the chopping block and then moments later a thud.  It is quite graphic and that is a good thing.  You also can hear the people walking or the oars slapping the water as Christ and His disciples row out to sea.

Misc.

Perhaps the only other negative, in my estimation, is the break between chapters of the Bible.  It is not noticeable when the chapters in Scripture actually break along story lines, but when the chapter comes in the middle of a thought or story, it is quite annoying.  Regardless, that is easily overcome and dealt with given the quality of the production.

Recommendation

While there are some noted negatives, The Word of Promise is, without a doubt, one of the best audio Bibles I have come across.  I was blown away by the quality of the production.  I have used Max McLean for years, but my children have not found him as interesting as I have.

When playing Matthew for the kids on a drive, I found that my boys (5, 3, and 2) were enraptured by the audio.  The next day, my oldest drew the three crosses on Calvary with an earthquake (using arrows at the bottom of the picture) and storm clouds and lightening at the top because of the dramatization of the audio.  Too be honest, I didn’t even think he was listening at that point because it had already been 90 minutes or so of listening to the Bible.

I highly recommend The Word of Promise for anyone wanting to listen to an audio Bible.  You can listen to Darth Vadar read the Bible or you can listen to an entire cast of characters “live” the Bible.  The Word of Promise also makes for an excellent family worship resource as your children will undoubtedly want to listen to more!  Amazon has some seriously awesome deals on The Word of Promise from just the New Testament to the entire Holy Bible.