NIV Popularity

I'm not really sure why it is so popular. I know back in 1984 after the Garden City Baptist Church was formed after a split from another church in Augusta, Georgia, it was given to all of the church members by the pastor as a Christmas gift. I tried then to read it, but was very KJV oriented at the time.

It wasn't until around 15 months ago that I started reading this translation. It was much easier for me to read, and seemed to make things come alive for me. I felt a new love towards the things of the Lord and towards His Word. The church we are in now uses the NIV and has the NIV as pew Bibles. I've since also started reading the NASB Updated in my devotions (re-reading the same passage that I had read from the NIV, but doing so for my evening devotions). The Word of God is quick and powerful, whether it's the NIV, the NASB or the KJV.

B.T.

 

IMHO, the NIV met a need when it was published. People were longing for a conservative Bible translation that was more literal than a paraphrase, yet more readable than some of the literal Bibles available.

 

The NIV is popular because it reads so well.
J. I. Packer has said it is a "brilliant"
dynamic equivalent translation and that
it possesses "vivid clarity." It has
a very nice and pleasant literary style
too, in my opinion. It is readable and
that is what people are looking for when
they pick up the Bible. The NIV speaks to
people in a contemporary idiom. That has
made it successful.

While the KJV still sells well there are
many people who desire to read the Bible in
their own language. The NIV has served the
church well in the last 20 years and will
continue to do so in the next twenty. I
recommend it more than any other translation
for people who want to read the Bible. I
still use it in my devotions along with the
ESV.

I have found it to be a great translation
to have beside the NASB, ESV, and RSV when
I am studying.

 

According to the CBA List, the top-sellers are:

General Versions and Translations - August 2002

1 New International Version
2 King James Version
3 New King James Version
4 The New Living Translation
5 Holman Christian Standard Bible
6 The Message
7 New American Standard Bible Update
8 New International Readers Version
9 Interlinear & parallel texts
10 The Amplified Bible

This list is based on actual sales in Christian retail stores in the United States and Canada during June. All rights reserved. Copyright 2002 CBA Service Corp. and Spring Arbor Distributors. Distributed by the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association.

 

I think another reason it is so popular is due to the "Study Bible" edition, which has some *really* good (and usually unbiased) study notes and tons of cross references. Very popular, and I think it resulted in the NIV's success similarly to Scofield's success with distributing the KJV in the earlier part of the century.

 

Brian, I agree. I suspect it was the quality of the study notes which boosted the sales of the NIV so high. I was delighted when Zondervon decided to publish a KJV with those same notes! (They also published an NASB with the same notes, which I was not as excited about.)

 

The Scofield Bible did more to spread Dispensational Theology then boast KJV sales. It first came out in 1907(?) so the KJV was already well in use by then. It did however set the format bar on how future study bible editions would look.

 

I agree. The NIV Study Bible did help
increase the popularity of the NIV.
One reason the notes are good is that
they were written by people who had
worked on the NIV. That is a real
plus.

BTW, the NIV Study Bible will be out
in a revised edition October 1, 2002.

 

I was interested to see the Holman Christian Standard Bible ranked number five. I didn't even know it had been finished yet. Too bad the ESV hasn't made it on the list.

 

Pete,

The HCSB is available only in a NT
edition.

The ESV made a quick appearance a
month or so after it was published,
but has not appeared on the CBA
list since then.

As much as I like the ESV I think it will
have a difficult time breaking into
the list again. This is merely my
opinion and I hope I am wrong.

 

I hope you are wrong as well...I really like the ESV, and believe it to be the most-accurate translation on the market.

 

Yes, you are right. That's what I meant. I was typing faster than I was thinking.

 

I feel that, in order for the ESV to break into the best seller list, there needs to be more publishers than just Crossway. My understanding ATTM is that this is not the case.

 

I'm new on this board and just came across this discussion on bible versions. I have been a Baptist for four years, having been a Catholic for more than 30 years. Until the last 10 years, I had not read the bible on my own at all. After trying out several versions (including KJV and NKJV), I settled on the NIV, simply because I found it easiest to understand. I am currently using an NIV Thompson Chain-Reference Bible. I still use other versions to clarify questions I have.

Did any of you begin studying the bible late in life? What version worked best for you? What is your opinion of the Thompson Chain-Reference Bible?

Priscilla Ann