The Orthodox Study Bible
A Septuagint Old Testament, a New King James New Testament, and the Fathers in the margins.
The Orthodox Study Bible, published in its complete form in 2008, is the most widely used single-volume English Bible among Orthodox Christians in North America. Its distinguishing feature is the Old Testament: translated from the Greek Septuagint rather than the Masoretic Hebrew text.
What is inside
- St Athanasius Academy Septuagint Old Testament.
- New King James Version New Testament.
- The deuterocanonical books read in Orthodox worship.
- Commentary drawn from the Church Fathers.
- A lectionary, a morning and evening prayer section, and topical articles.
Why the Septuagint matters
The Septuagint was the Bible of the Apostles and of the early Church; the New Testament quotes it directly. Differences from the Hebrew text are not errors but a distinct textual tradition, and Orthodox liturgical texts assume Septuagint readings and psalm numbering.
How to read it through the year
The most fruitful approach is to follow the daily lectionary alongside the calendar, so the readings arrive with the feast or fast they belong to rather than in isolation.