Legacy Standard Bible

First, a word on the translation itself: This is an excellent translation in the philosophy of formal equivalence translations. It is very faithful to the original languages. Perhaps, more so than any other English Bible translation ever produced. I think it surpasses the 2020 update to the NASB quite a bit. It is typically more literal and yet it seems to me to be of a better literary quality as well. It reads very well for a literal translation. It is perfect for in depth Bible study and exegesis of tough texts. Secondly, the app itself: This app is also an excellent resource. It is my go-to Bible app on my iPhone. Actually, I barely use any other now. It’s very simple and user friendly. To me, it’s perfect.

The overall performance is great. There are a couple of glitches in the settings (e.g. selection arrows that go nowhere when you choose them, etc.)…very minor stuff that does not impact reader functionality. The user interface is very intuitive. Ability to customize almost everything is a plus, but maybe too much for some; however, the functionality and default settings have been well thought out. While reading, it remembers other locations you navigate to so you can quickly move between them, as well as between adjacent chapters. Once you close it, it remembers the last location but not the rest of the history. Navigating is simple and quick enough that this is NOT inconvenient. It remembers the width of the reader and note panes you set in both the portrait and landscape modes (very convenient). The amplify and context functionality for the notes is a nice touch, as is ability to change text style and size of them. The verse numbering is great because it draws your eyes to the verse number for quick recognition (I cannot emphasize enough how great this is). They standout boldly against the text and all the other reference numbers and letters used for the notes; something the GTY Study Bible app does not execute well. A simple, classy, and well implemented presentation overall.

I have been thoroughly and consistently impressed by the LSB translation. Even though my first bible was a KJV bible, I was introduced to the NASB while attending bible classes many years ago being presented by a wonderful Lutheran pastor. I was seeking a translation other than the KJV (that I sometimes struggled with) that was literal, accurate, and consistent. The pastor encouraged me to consider the NASB. It was the one he used as a teaching pastor. Although down through the years I’ve read many translations, I always return to the NASB for serious and deep study of God’s Word. Instead creating a new translation, LSB takes an already great NASB translation as it base, enhances it, making it highly readable, while at the same time achieving an unparalleled accuracy and precision. That is a tough challenge for any bible translation team, and the LSB achieves it beautifully. The LSB has become my go-to study bible resource. My hope is that LSB smartphone app developers will continue to improve the smartphone app.