Dartmouth Bible Appears In a Revised Edition

The second edition of The DartmouthBible, revised and enlarged by the Rev. Roy B. Chamberlin, A.M. '27, who prepared the first edition with the late Prof. Herman Feldman, was published by Houghton Mifflin, Boston (1309 pp., $10.00) on September 13.

When first published in 1950, after long years of scholarly effort, The DartmouthBible was praised by one reviewer as "far and away the best presentation of the Bible for the average reader yet produced." An abridgment, it reduces the King James text, including The Apocrypha, by half without changing its spirit, and makes it more readable and understandable by presenting its content chronologically, eliminating confusing repetitions, grouping the Proverbs as an anthology, and combining the four Gospels into a consecutive account of Jesus's life, all printed with modern paragraphing and typography. To the King James text are added introductory chapters, prefaces, maps by Prof. Van H. English of Dartmouth, and hundreds of explanatory notes about the Bible and about its historical and social background.

The extensive revisions in the second edition reflect the past decade's exciting developments in Biblical discoveries and research. Two entirely new chapters have been added. "The New World of Biblical Studies" summarizes the remarkable archaeological discoveries of recent years, most notably the Dead Sea Scrolls. "Biblical Interpretation Through the Ages" explains the ways in which the Bible has been understood and used in the past and surveys the most recent theological trends. Revised notes provide a much fuller historical commentary, "A Reading List on the Bible" has been entirely reset, and the appendixes have been brought up to date.

When first published The Dartmouth Bible subtitled itself as "an abridgment of the King James version, with aids to its understanding as history and literature, and as a source of religious experience." The first edition magnificently accomplished its purpose; the second raises the Chamberlin-Feldman achievement even higher.