Bible Study Resources

We live in amazing times.  Most of us have access via the internet or Bible study software to Bible study resources that would have easily exceeded most of the best libraries in Europe during the High Middle Ages and the Reformation.  We should be careful to thank God for that and make good use of what He has given us in our time.

To help us do that, the following is a list of Bible resources on the internet (many of them completely or at least partially free.)  The list is only partial because it reflects sites or software packages that I have used and would recommend.  As I find others that I think are interesting or helpful, I will update the list from time to time.

Christian Classics Etheral Library
In my opinion, this is the best Bible study database on the Internet.  It has an amazing amount of classic commentaries and other Bible study resources as well as numerous Bible translations.  In particular, as the name indicates, the sheer volume of classic sources from the early church fathers to the Reformation to the Puritans is amazing.  The Bible Browser is also a very useful tool that allows you to input a Bible passage and return a number of translations as well as resources dealing with the passage.  I highly recommend this resource.

Logos Bible Software
OK, this one is definitely not free.  There is a free online service associated with the website that you can visit by clicking here.  That is how it made the list.  The free online service is not expecially robust.  It mainly just gives you access to various Bible translations.  However, in my opinion, Logos Bible Software is the best on the market.  It is very expensive, but version 4 is wonderful.  It is cross-platform (meaning it runs on all of your computers, and even runs on a free iPhone app, all at no additional charge) and very well designed.  I use it almost every day of my life.  Obviously, it is highly recommended.  Finally, if you are a student or faculty member, you can get a discounted price many times up to 50 percent.  Just call the number and they can tell you what’s available.

e-Sword
e-Sword is a free Bible study software program that is quite good.  It has numerous classic resources available free of charge.  It also has some additional resources that can be purchased.  Further, there is a mobile version for windows mobile devices (which I used to have, but no longer use since I have an iPhone now.)  Recently a live service was launched as well that provides resources free online without the need to download the software.  You can visit it by clicking here.  While in my opinion not as good as Logos, I still highly recommend e-Sword because: (1) it is free, and (2) it has so many good, classic resources.

Bible Explorer
This is another free Bible study software package for download.  It has many free resources, and it has a bigger selection of resources for purchase than does e-Sword.  I do recommend it; however, I haven’t used it much since I got Logos 4.