I've decided to start reading this Bible that everyone's been talking about but I need some help before starting. There are so many different versions that I don't know which one to pick, so I came here for advice. These are my criteria:
Authoratative: ie. relatively untampered with, not something that's been edited or changed to suit certain people or sects. (Is the KJV regarded as the most authoritative Bible?)
Accurate: in terms of translation.
Understandable: preferably a version that can be read by a modern reader, without too many archaisms.
Books: if I understand correctly (big "if"), different Bible's sometimes have different books in them. eg. some versions have books that other versions consider to be apocryphal. I guess it's simply a matter of opinion and none of the versions are "correct" in this regard, but is there a collection of books that the majority of Christians agree belong in the Bible.
I don't expect there is a "perfect" Bible, but what would you recommend and why?
Also, can you recommend any objective online guides that I could use to supplement my reading? The sort of thing I'm looking for is information about the Bible's history and composition, it's authors and editors, annotations to explain the meaning of obscure passages, relevant middle-Eastern history, etc.
Thanks in advance.
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