Books in Brief

Despite claims that the World Wide Web will make it as obsolete as vinyl records and 8-track tapes, CD-ROM technology still has a long and useful life ahead of it. This is especially true of CD-ROM programs for Bible study. These programs enable users to study various Bible translations, perform lightning-fast word searches (even in Greek and Hebrew), consult myriad reference works and take notes—without picking up a single book. And the number of texts offered by the various software packages has multiplied. Today there are hundreds—not just numerous versions of the Bible, but also dictionaries, reference works, historical documents and theological treatises.

Here we evaluate six of the leading Bible study programs, five of which run on Microsoft Windows and one Mac-based program. All are readily available in stores.

Bible Explorer 3: Premium Edition

Bible Explorer 3 is probably the most user-friendly of the five software programs. It’s easy to load from the installation CD-ROMs, and the window that appears on the screen is well organized. Browsing through books is easy, too. Like all the programs under review here, Bible Explorer 3 includes several modern English Bible translations (including the Revised Standard Version, the New International Version and the Bible in Basic English) as well as commentaries, dictionaries, devotionals and word study tools.