The LSB Compact Edition is a small Legacy Standard Bible designed to be easy to take with you wherever you go. It has multiple cover options and I will be looking at the Midnight Camo Faux Leather and Soft Faux covers. Printed and Bound in Korea
Midnight Camo ISBN: 9781636642956
Brown ISBN: 9781636643755
Originally written by Lucinda in November 2023, updated by Randy in December 2024 to include the brown soft cover edition.
Three Sixteen Publishing provided this Bible in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review, only an honest one. All opinions are my own.
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This Bible is available at (includes some affiliate links)
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Table of Contents
Video Review
Construction and Materials
Midnight Camo
The midnight camo version of the LSB Compact Edition is black faux leather with varying textures arranged in a camouflage pattern. These varying textures reflect differently which makes the light and dark patches of the camouflage change depending on how the light hits it. It is one of the more different covers I have seen recently and I really like it.
The cover has perimeter stitching, a rounded spine, and rounded corners. It has a black paste-down liner and one black double-sided satin ribbon marker.
It has 28 GSM white paper that is fairly opaque. The text block is Smyth-sewn. The midnight camo has black-edged pages, most other covers have gilded edges.
It doesn’t stay open well on its own for most of Genesis or Revelation. Since it is a small Bible with smallish text I believe it will primarily be used in hand instead of on a flat surface so I doubt that will be a problem for most people.
The Bible weighs just 13.5 ounces. It measures just under 6.5″ x 4.5″ x 1″ so it is small enough to easily be taken with you.
This Bible is available in a total of 17 different cover options that include edge-lined goatskin, edge-lined cowhide, paste-down cowhide, and 9 other colors of paste-down faux leather. The other stand-out cover for uniqueness is the artist’s white. Its faux leather acts like an artist’s canvas, ready to receive paints, pens, or other mediums to make a one-of-a-kind Bible.
Brown Soft Faux
The brown soft faux feels like vinyl. It’s trimmed to the edge of the page and has no fold-over or liner. It has a nice color variation and enough texture that it looks like leather. This one is glued. The page edges are white. It does not include a ribbon. This one is excellent for carrying.
Typography and Layout
The text is laid out in a 2-column paragraph format. It is lined-matched to minimize show-through. There is a line down the center of each page to separate the columns. The header has the page number in the center and the book name and chapter number(s) in the outside corner.
The text is an 8.5-point font. It is a black letter edition. The black ink is a medium darkness that stays consistent throughout the Bible. I found it fairly easy to read but some people will find the text a bit small.
There are no references or footnotes. The only additional materials the LSB Compact Editon has are an alphabetical index to the books of the Bible and tables for weights, measurements, and monetary units.
One feature I like is the varying sizes of the verse numbers. Larger verse numbers at the beginning of paragraphs to assist in finding your place. Smaller verse numbers in the text mark the verses but interfere with reading less.
Final Thoughts on the LSB Compact Edition
The LSB Compact Edition is a nice small Bible if you want to be able to take the Legacy Standard Bible translation with you on the go. With 17 different cover options including one made to be customized, there is a binding for any budget or personal preference.
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This Bible is available at (includes some affiliate links)
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Photography by Lucinda Brown
Three Sixteen Publishing provided this Bible in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to give a positive review, only an honest one. All opinions are my own.
I bought one thinking I might get more for my children as we are all using the LSB from now on, but the text was too small even for them (ages 8-10). The text print is very light. Also, the inner margin is a bit too small for comfortable reading. I ended up getting the Children’s LSB for them, which though a lot bigger is very readable, and I continue to use the Handy Size.