Where can I get an authentic Bible without chapters and verses?

Q. Where can I get an authentic Bible without chapters and verses?

I would recommend Immerse, an edition of the New Living Translation that has no chapter or verse numbers or section headings. It does include book and section introductions. It presents the entire Bible in six volumes. You can order a copy at this link. (Full disclosure: I was a consulting editor for this publication. I receive no royalties or commission or other compensation from sales.)

This is certainly an “authentic” Bible. The New Living Translation is a leading and well-respected English version. Immerse was named Bible of the Year by the 2022 ECPA Christian Book Awards. I hope you enjoy reading it!

(In earlier posts on this blog, I discuss The Books of the Bible, an edition of the New International Version that similarly does not have chapters and verses or section headings. Unfortunately it appears that the publishers have not been keeping this edition in stock. However, it seems that you can still order it, in four volumes, through Christian Book Distributors at this link. I was also a consulting editor for this NIV edition, and similarly I do not receive any compensation from sales. I think you would have a good experience with this Bible as well!)

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Author: Christopher R Smith

The Rev. Dr. Christopher R. Smith is an an ordained minister, a writer, and a biblical scholar. He was active in parish and student ministry for twenty-five years. He was a consulting editor to the International Bible Society (now Biblica) for The Books of the Bible, an edition of the New International Version (NIV) that presents the biblical books according to their natural literary outlines, without chapters and verses. His Understanding the Books of the Bible study guide series is keyed to this format. He was also a consultant to Tyndale House for the Immerse Bible, an edition of the New Living Translation (NLT) that similarly presents the Scriptures in their natural literary forms, without chapters and verses or section headings. He has a B.A. from Harvard in English and American Literature and Language, a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Gordon-Conwell, and a Ph.D. in the History of Christian Life and Thought, with a minor concentration in Bible, from Boston College, in the joint program with Andover Newton Theological School.

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