King James Version with the Apocrypha and non-Canonical books of 1 Enoch and The Assumption of Moses

11 months ago

Very impressive Paperback KJV

First of all, I didn't look at the measurements of this Bible, so I was so shocked at how big it is! This new 2023 edition has a very nice Celtic cross on the front cover, which looks aesthetically pleasing (along with the ancient look of the rest of the artwork). This also differs from the original 2018 edition by having a larger 9-point font, instead of a 8-point font (I've seen what the original text looks like on Amazon and it looks rather small) and it is also in a paragraph-format (rather than in a verse-by-verse format), which I prefer, as the text flows better that way and the poetry is also in poetic format (at least in the canonical books). I really like the way the pages have grey markings over the edges, as well as the art-gilding, as It gives them a more older feel. Having the Apocryphal books, as well as Enoch and the Assumption of Moses, is a nice bonus. I have never seen a KJV edition that contains the Book of 1 Enoch before, so that is unique! It certainly isn't canonical (which the front cover makes clear), but it certainly is a very interesting read (especially the portions that go into detail regarding the Sons of God passage in Genesis 6:1-4 and what happened there), although, being that it's not inspired, you have to take it with a pinch of salt. I read the Assumption of Moses from this edition and that was a good read too. The only thing that I wish was different about this particular edition (and is the main reason I'm not giving the book a 5 star rating) is if they separate the Apocryphal books from the Canonical ones. They do this with Enoch and the Assumption of Moses (by putting them both after the Book of Revelation), but books like Tobit, Judith, 1 & 2 Maccabees, etc are in the Old Testament itself, rather than being in a section called "Apocrypha" that was between the Old and New Testaments in the original 1611 KJV, so as to not confuse them with the canonical books of the Old Testament. Even the additions of Daniel and Esther are in the books themselves (Daniel having 15 chapters, rather than 12 and Esther having 16 chapters instead of finishing at chapter 10 verse 3). I wouldn't recommend this edition to a new believer, as when they come to these books and sections, they're going to assume that this supposed to be the inspired Word of God, when it's not, as these books are not part of the Hebrew or Protestant canon. The editor states that he's a Reformed Baptist, so I know that he doesn't consider the Apocrypha to be inspired scripture, but I still wish he put them either between the Old and New Testament or after Revelation. Also, despite the size of the font being bigger than before, it could still be bigger (although I can read it fine), but I know it won't be big enough for some people (especially older folk). The editor has mentioned this fact in the introduction to the book, so I'm sure we can expect a bigger font in the future. Overall, despite this being a great edition of the KJV (especially considering the fact that it contains Enoch), I do wish for a separate section that contains the Apocryphal books, so as to not cause confusion. I would still recommend it, but just be aware of this fact.

Joshua Thomas

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