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Thompson Chain Reference

I’ve used a Thompson Chain Reference for many years. This Bible is primarily a topical Bible.

It contains over 7000 topics that are chain referenced throughout the Bible. The margin contains the topics in each verse with a reference to the next verse in the chain. In the back is a topical index that gives you a number for each topic. Turning to the number in the back gives you all of the verses that Thompson lists for each topic. It also contains character studies, archaeology, etc., and one of the best concordances in any Bible available.

Thompson is widely used because it doesn’t contain any notes or commentary, allowing scripture to interpret scripture. It’s not 100% thorough in its topics (you won’t find the Rapture, or even much on the Millennium), but it’s still the best I’ve seen.

One thing I really like is that most of the time, when I go to write a topic in the margin it’s already there. For example, in Acts 2:38, I would write repentance, baptism in Jesus name, and filled with the Spirit. All three topics are already there. The Thompson Chain Reference Bible is available in several translations, sizes, and bindings.

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