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Holman KJV Ultrathin Reference Bible – Review

Randy A Brown

Ultrathin reference Bibles are a staple in the market. If they have the right quality of tools they can be that one Bible that does everything: carry, reading, preaching, teaching, and even sermon or class prep. In this review I take a look at Holman’s KJV Ultrathin Reference Bible and see if it can be that one, Jack of all trades Bible.

Pros

Cons

Features

Cover and Binding

The cover is Classic Mahogany LeatherTouch. I love the look and feel. It is brown with a darker brown spine and corners. The cover is sewn around the perimeter. The liner is a brown pasted-down paper. The binding is sewn, but it’s very difficult it get it to lay open out of the box. Out of the box it would lay open somewhere in 1 Samuel. Now it will lay open in Joshua. Maybe after it’s been used for long enough it will lay open anywhere. The size is perfect for carry and handling. It’s easy to hold it in one hand for reading.

Paper

The paper is fairly opaque with very little show-through. The paper in my copy has a blue tint (I’ve heard this is from being recycled, but I haven’t been able to confirm this). I am not a fan of the blue tint. I would pay extra with white or off-white tint. It’s not as blue as other Bibles that I have, so it doesn’t aggravate me as bad as it could. I’ve seen this Bible without the blue, so you can get it with white paper.

Print

The print quality is excellent throughout the Bible. Both the black and red letter has about a medium boldness. It has an 8-point font with maybe a 9 point leading. There are no pronunciation marks of any kind. It does have supplied words in italics.

The columns are close to 2” (2” from line to end with the text being 1 15/16”) wide with 38 characters across. The margins is 5/16”. You can actually get to the inner margin fairly well. This might be enough space to draw a symbol.

At the top of the page on the outer column you will find the book name, chapter number, and verse number. On the left page is the first verse that starts on that page, and on the right page is the last verse that starts on that page. I like that it includes verse numbers as well as chapter numbers. This makes it easier to find verses when preaching or teaching. Books start on the same page the last book ended.

References

When they call this a reference Bible they actually mean it. References are placed in the center column and are keyed to the text with italic letters. The center column contains the chapter and verse numbers in bold text. If there are too many references to fit in the center column, the rest are placed under the last verse on the page above the notes.

The references cover both words and themes, and there are plenty of them. They tell where someone is called by another name, where something was fulfilled, other verses that can supply more information, and lots more. Here are a few that I looked up while using this Bible:

Notes

Translation notes are placed under the last verse on the page. They are keyed to the text with regular letters. The notes under the last verse show the verse number and then the letter. They give information on the original languages (Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek), literal translations, alternate renderings, parallel passages, historical explanations, and more. I am glad to see that footnotes are still being included. I’ve noticed a current trend of publisher going away from notes in the KJV. I think notes are helpful and should be included.

Concordance

The concordance is just over 62 pages and has 3 columns per page. It lists people, places, and terms. It actually has quite a bit of entries and would be suitable for general study or for finding something. Here are some entries that I looked at and the variations on the word:

This is one of the better concordances that I’ve seen in an ultrathin hand-size reference Bible.

Study Helps

There are 20 pages of helps in the back:

The helps are good for topical studies or trying to find something specific. Even just a few pages of helps makes a difference and adds to the value of study you can get by using this Bible. I would much rather have these type of helps because they’re basically lists of Scriptures.

Maps

There are 8 pages of full color maps on thick glossy paper. Something really interesting is a key to maps. This is similar to an index, but instead of having the names of places it shows which books and chapters of the Bible go with which maps. Here is a list of the maps:

  1. The Migration of Abraham
  2. The Route of the Exodus
  3. The Tribal Allotments of Israel
  4. The Kingdoms of Israel and Judah
  5. Palestine in the Time of Jesus
  6. The Ministry of Jesus Around the Sea of Galilee
  7. The Passion Week in Jerusalem
  8. Paul’s Missionary Journeys

Conclusion

There is a lot to like about this Bible. If I could change one thing it would be the blue tinted paper. The opacity is fine, but I find the blue tint to be highly annoying. The blue tint is the only thing keeping me from using this as my primary carry Bible. Not all editions have the blueish paper, so I might grab one of these as my carry Bible. If this was the only Bible I owned (with white paper) I would be happy with it. The size is perfect, the font is dark enough to be readable, the references and notes are excellent, and the concordance will help you find the majority of anything you need. The study helps are useful for topical studies. This would make a great choice for a primary Bible or just a Bible to carry around. I’d love to have this in a premium cover. I highly recommend the Holman Ultrathin KJV Reference Bible.

Holman Publishing provided this Bible free for review. I was not required to give a positive review – only an honest review. My opinions are my own.

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