I have received Cambridge’s version of the KJV Westminster Reference Bible in both dark blue and black goatskin. Here’s a look at the new covers and at what’s different between the Cambridge and TBS editions.
What is the Same as TBS
First, the content printed on the Bible pages is the same. This includes:
- 33GSM French paper
- 2 columns of text
- 200,000 cross-references and translator’s footnotes in the margins
- Glossary on the page
- 9.6 font
- Chapter summaries
- Tables of Weights and Measures
- Word pronunciation guide
- 2-year reading plan
- Concordance
- Letter to King James/Translator’s to the Reader
- KJV and Westminster user guides
For content details, see the TBS Westminster review.
The Cambridge Westminster Reference Bible will be released on March 26th.
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Unboxing Video
Goatskin Covers
Both editions have a thick leather that’s flexible and elegant. They have a pebbly grain, perimeter stitching, Holy Bible printed on the front, text and the Cambridge logo printed on the spine, and five raised hubs. The printing on both covers is gold. Both covers have an edge-lined leather liner. The tabs were stiff out of the box, but I think they will break in well after enough use. And, of course, they have sewn bindings. Both have three 1/4 inch double-sided satin ribbons. They’re long enough to comfortably pull them to the corner to open the Bible easily. The overall size is 6.5 x 9.25 x 1.75 inches, and they weigh 2 lbs, 9.8 oz. Both editions include clamshell boxes that match the cover.
Black
The black goatskin has a black vinyl end sheet. The art-gilt is red under gold. The color is closer to salmon when opened. All three ribbons are the same shade of red, which looks great against the black and gold. The head and tail bands are striped in gold and red.
Dark Blue
The dark blue goatskin has a dark blue vinyl end sheet. The art-gilt is blue under gold. It’s more of a hint of blue. A few pages near the front and back have a darker blue than others. The ribbons are three different shades of blue. Two are a medium shade, and one is dark. The head and tail bands look to be black and white stripes.
Front Matter
Where the TBS edition contains pages with verses, the Cambridge has a few blank pages followed by their standard presentation and family pages. These include a “Belongs to” page, Family Record, Children, Marriages, Grandchildren, and Deaths. The page for deaths is outlined in black, while the others are outlined in red.
Cambridge Maps
Rather than the TBS’s 8 maps, the Cambridge Westminster has the standard 15 pages of detailed maps. They have bold colors, but they’re not as dark as the TBS edition. They’re printed on thick non-glossy paper, and include borders, import commodities, dates, routes, passes, settlements, distance, topography, mountains, cities of refuge, cities, tribes, vegetation, kingdoms, battle sites, satrapy, city walls, city gates, older city walls, seven Churches of Asia, and lots more.
The Cambridge Westminster also includes an 8-page color-coded map index printed on the same thick paper. They show the settlements, political (nations, provinces, and regions), physical land, physical water, travel, and Jerusalem. This is one of the best indices I’ve seen. I’m glad to see it included because it makes the maps much easier to use.
Maps include:
- The Ancient Near East in the Late Bronze Age
- Regions of Palestine and Surrounding Areas
- Sinai and Canaan at the Time of the Exodus
- Israel within Canaan
- The United Monarchy of David and Solomon
- Israel and Judah: The Divided Monarchy
- The Assyrian Empire
- The Babylonian Empire
- The Persian Empire
- The Hellenistic World after Alexander
- Jerusalem in Old Testament Times
- Jerusalem in New Testament Times
- Palestine in New Testament Times
- The Roman Empire
- The Eastern Mediterranean in the First Century AD
Conclusion
Cambridge improves my favorite cross-reference Bible. The Cambridge edition adds a premium cover and ribbons, but the greatest improvement for me is the 15 Cambridge maps with the map index. I like and recommend all versions of the Westminster, and it’s great to see a premium option with the maps upgrade while retaining the rest of the content that makes the Westminster such a good Bible for all-around use.
Where to Purchase
The Cambridge Westminster Reference Bible will be released on March 26th.
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Cambridge
Interior Photos
Cambridge provided these Bibles in exchange for an honest review.
I noticed in your video that the Cambridge edition has changed the definition for ‘firmament’ in Genesis 1. My TBS edition simply says, ‘sky’. This makes me wonder if the Westminster Reference Bible was finally proofread and corrected. As much as I love my WRB, it sadly happens to have more printing errors than any Bible i have ever seen.. Most of the errors are misplaced superscript numbers placing margin notes with the wrong words, but others are more serious. Since i discovered a misprint in my WRB over two years ago i have been diligently proofreading amd comparing to other editions and have compiled a very lengthy list of hundreds of errors in the WRB. I have notified TBS of this over a year ago and provided them with my list i had at the time. I was told that they would be fixing the errors but am not sure if they ever did. Could you please check the Cambridge edition in the following verses and let me know if these errors were corrected?
Ephesians 6:24 Margin note 9 is misprinted as “without incorruption”. It should read, “with incorruption”.
Acts 2:6 superscript 1 should precede ‘when’ rather than ‘was’.
Romans 1:12 superscript 4 should precede ‘with’ rather than ‘by’. Also, the margin note should read, “in you” rather than simply “in”.
2 Corinthians 5:19 margin note 4 should read ‘Gr. put in us’ rather than ‘Or, put in us’.
Galatians 5:16 superscript 2 should precede ‘ye’ rather than ‘fulfil’. ‘Walk in the Spirit, and (fulfil not) the lust of the flesh’. All of the editions of the AV I have consulted agree. Tyndale translated the verse as ‘I say walk in the Spirit and fulfill not the lusts of the flesh’.
1 Thessalonians 1:4 superscript 1 should precede ‘beloved’ rather than ‘brethren’.
1 Timothy 1:6 there is a superscript k preceding ‘having’ indicating a scripture reference, yet in the margin, k is a translators note, ‘Or, not aiming at.’ The superscript k should be a 1 and the margin note should have a 1 instead of a letter k.
Revelation 11:18 superscript 4 should precede ‘destroy the earth’ rather than ‘destroy them’.
Jonah 4:6 margin note 2 has a misspelling. The word should read ‘palmcrist’ not ‘palmerist’.
Amos 5:26 superscript 8 should precede ‘the tabernacle’ rather than ‘your Moloch’.
Daniel 2:25 is MISSING a marginal note that has appeared in all editions of the AV since 1611. There should be a superscript 10 preceding ‘captives’ and there should be a note in the margin reading, “10 Chald. children of the captivity of Judah”.
Jeremiah 48:19 superscript 8 and margin note 8 should both be changed to 9 since there is already a superscript 8 and margin note 8 in verse 15. This affects the remaining superscript and margin note numbers for the remainder of the chapter… 9 changed to 10, 10 changed to 11, etc all the way up to 16 which should be changed to 17. Oops.
Jeremiah 49:19 superscript 6 and margin note 6 should be changed to 7 since there is already a superscript 6 and margin note 6 in verse 9. Oops. This affects the numbering of all of the superscripts and margin notes for the remainder of the chapter. Also, this margin note 6 (which should be a 7) changes the AV translators note. The AV reads ‘Or, convent me in judgement ‘. WRB has changed this original translators note to read ‘Or, summon me to judgement’.
Jeremiah 50:44 margin note 15 has changed the original translators note. The AV translators have ‘Or, convent me to plead?’ WRB has changed this original translators note to read ‘Or, summon me to plead?’ This is not acceptable. This is not what the translators wrote. This is a modernization and should not occur in the margin notes especially when the preface to the WRB states that the margin notes are ‘as given by the translators of the original editions of the AV’.
Psalm 1:1 superscript 1 should precede ‘ungodly’ rather than ‘scornful’. The source of the error is Brown’s Self-interpreting Bible. It is the only Bible I have found that places the footnote with ‘scorners’.
Psalm 103:8 is missing an original translators note. Since 1611 there has been a margin note in this verse. The note here should have a superscript 1 preceding ‘plenteous’ and in the margin it should read ‘Heb. great of mercy’.
Hi Michael. Thanks for the list. Here’s how they appear in this edition:
Ephesians 6:24 Margin note 9 is ‘without corruption’.
Acts 2:6 superscript 1 is ‘when’.
Romans 1:12 superscript 4’by’. Margin note ‘Or, in’.
2 Corinthians 5:19 margin note 4 ‘Or, put in us’.
Galatians 5:16 superscript 2’not’. ‘Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh’
1 Thessalonians 1:4 superscript 1‘brethren’.
1 Timothy 1:6 superscript is k.
Revelation 11:18 superscript 4‘destroy them’.
Jonah 4:6 margin note 2 is ‘palmerist’.
Amos 5:26 superscript is 8‘your Moloch’.
Daniel 2:25 is missing 10.
Jeremiah 48:19 superscript and margin note are 8.
Jeremiah 49:19 superscript and margin note are 6. The margin note is ‘Or, summon me to judgement’.
Jeremiah 50:44 margin note 15 is ‘Or, summon me to plead?’
Psalm 1:1 superscript 1‘scornful’.
Psalm 103:8 is missing the note.
Thanks for checking those for me Randy… unfortunately for me, no matter how beautiful the binding and craftsmanship and paper and printing quality, the fact that the Westminster Reference Bible has been in print for 14 years or so and they still haven’t fixed the hundreds and hundreds of printing errors is beyond me. I’m not exaggerating or using hyperbole… there are literally several hundreds if not over a thousand instances in this Bible of misplaced superscript numbers, margin notes that have been changed from the original translators notes, inconsistent punctuation in the margins (some will be xxx, or, xxx others will be xxx or, xxx and others will be xxx or xxx), inclusions of margin notes that are taken straight from Brown’s and are not to be found in the long line of faithful official editions of the KJV, updated spellings in the margins, as well as questionable choices in the chapter headings (Genesis 9 says that Noah is mocked by Canaan, when the text says he is mocked by his son Ham… Isaiah 49 says “Christ complaineth of the unsuccessfulness of his mission to the Jews” …really? Christ was never unsuccessful!!! He accomplished everything He always intended from before the world began!) The Westminster Reference Bible WOULD be my absolute favorite and go-to daily use serious study Bible, but unfortunately I have to double check every superscript and margin note with faithful editions of the KJV and then pencil in corrections to my WRB. I would be more than happy to email you my extensive list of errors that can be substantially proven by comparison with faithful historic official editions of the KJV. Please please please TBS, Cambridge, anybody fix this mess! I can’t believe that I’m the only one to notice this since 2012. I am blessed with autism so maybe I’m just particularly aware of these things. Regardless, there is really zero excuse for a published Bible to contain so many misprints especially in our age where a computer could easily compare and fix. How are these multiple mistakes making it past proofreaders? Why aren’t other people catching these mistakes like I have? Sit down and start comparing WRB to the Concord. You will find your first error in Genesis 1:20 (superscript should be placed with ‘open’ rather than ‘firmament’) and it only continues to get worse and worse from that point forward. The marginal notes were important to the original translators and when they are inserted in the incorrect place in the text they only serve to confuse and corrupt what the translators intended. Someone please fix the Westminster Reference Bible and it would then truly be my forever Bible.