Michael Waddell’s reviews of the various Bible translations posted at BSA are below, sorted by Orthodox Bias. All references here to “I” are referring to Michael.
| Translation | Abbr | Style | Gender | Orthodox bias | Reliab-ility | Readability | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Alter Bible | Alter | word-for-word | exclusive | none | A- | Challenging | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| New Revised Standard Version | NRSV | word-for-word | inclusive | minimal | A- | Challenging | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| New American Bible Revised Edition | NABRE | mixed | mixed | minimal | A | Intermediate | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| The Schocken Bible | Sch | very word-for-word | exclusive | minimal | A+ | Very hard | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Common English Bible | CEB | mixed | inclusive | minimal | A+ | Very Easy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| New Jewish Publication Society | NJPS | thought-for-thought | inclusive | low | B- | Challenging | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| New English Translation | NET | mixed | mixed | low | A+ | Easy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| Easy-to-Read Version | ERV | near paraphrase | inclusive | low | C+ | Absurdly Easy | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Revised Standard Version | RSV | word-for-word | exclusive | medium | B- | Very hard | ⭐⭐ |
| New International Version | NIV | thought-for-thought | inclusive | medium | B- | Easy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| New Living Translation | NLT | near-paraphrase | inclusive | medium | C+ | Very Easy | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| New International Readers Version | NIRV | thought-for-thought | inclusive | medium | B | Absurdly Easy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| BELOW WERE RATED “STRONG” ORTHODOX BIAS | |||||||
| King James Version | KJV | word-for-word | exclusive | strong | C | Very hard | ⭐⭐ |
| Legacy Standard Bible (1) | LSB | very word-for-word | very exclusive | strong | B | Very hard | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| English Standard Version | ESV | word-for-word | exclusive | strong | B | Challenging | ⭐⭐ |
| New American Standard Bible (1) | NASB | word-for-word | exclusive | strong | B+ | Challenging | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| The Living Bible | TLB | paraphrase | mixed | strong | F | Easy | ⭐ |
| Joseph Smith Translation | JST | recreation | exclusive | strong | F | Challenging | ⭐ |
| New King James Version | NKJV | word-for-word | exclusive | strong | C | Challenging | ⭐ |
| Christian Standard Bible by the SBC. (2) | CSB | mixed | mixed | strong | B- | Intermediate | ⭐⭐⭐ |
| Holman Christian Standard Bible | HCSB | word-for-word | exclusive | strong | B+ | Easy | ⭐⭐⭐⭐ |
| World English Bible | WEB | word-for-word | exclusive | strong | C | Challenging | ⭐⭐ |
| GOD’S WORD Translation | GW | near-paraphrase | inclusive | strong | C+ | Very Easy | ⭐⭐⭐ |
Key
The ratings are:
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Excellent. This translation is among the best available, and you can feel confident using it as your everyday Bible, whether in a faith gathering or in academic study.
- ⭐⭐⭐⭐ – Very good, but with a few flaws. Usually reliable, and may have something unique and interesting about it, but there are a few annoying problems that prevent a perfect score.
- ⭐⭐⭐ – Decent, but flawed. I wouldn’t use this a your primary Bible, but it could be useful as a secondary translation to see other ways people understand a given passage.
- ⭐⭐ – Has a few uses. This translation is not generally recommended, but it has a redeeming facet or characteristic that may make it useful in some situations.
- ⭐ – Worthless. Don’t bother.
To detemine the level of gender inclusivity or exclusivity, I looked at verses like Romans 1:13, 1 Corinthians 3:18, and James 1:12 to see whether the translations specifies a single gender. Translations listed as “very exclusive” use male-only language even when it makes no sense in context, such as when describing procreation in Exodus 1:7.
To determine the level of orthodox bias, I would note whether Isaiah 7:14 assumes the orthodox translation of “virgin”, whether Psalm 22:16 assumes the translation of “pierced”, whether Genesis 1:1 is translated to assume ex nihilo creation, and whether verses like Galatians 2:16 use the traditional “faith in Christ” or the more likely “faith of Christ”.
To determine the scores for reliability and readability, I used a blind test, wherein I would collect many different translations of a large sample of representative verses. I would then rate them (or have others rate them) without knowing which translation they had come from. To determine readability, ratings would be based on how clear and comprehensible each translation is. To determine reliability, these blind ratings would be based on knowledge of the underlying Hebrew or Greek, and comparisons to expert scholarly commentary on the verses in question.
Final ratings are my [Michael’s] own assessments based on all information available.
(1) Tabor ranks the NASB highest in the Most Literal (Formal Equivalence) group. As of 8/24/2026 in a video with Ross Nichols Tabor and Ross ranked the LSB (the updated NASB) best.
(2) Tabor ranks the CSB highest in the Moderately Literal (between formal and dynamic) group. From a post at BSA by Dan Woodring: “The CSB is published by the publishing arm of the Southern Baptist Convention, and in order to be on the translating committee, you had to sign a statement of faith that included, among other things, the inerrancy of Scripture. Dig a deep hole and bury it.”
