4.1 Stars Out Of 5
4.1 out of 5
(21)
(2)
(6)
(2)
(3)
Quality:
3.6 out Of 5
(3.6 out of 5)
Value:
3.5 out Of 5
(3.5 out of 5)
Meets Expectations:
3.4 out Of 5
(3.4 out of 5)
76%
of customers would recommend this product to a friend.
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Displaying items 1-5 of 34
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  1. Randy A Brown
    TN
    Age: 35-44
    Gender: male
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Excellent quality for a great price
    January 13, 2013
    Randy A Brown
    TN
    Age: 35-44
    Gender: male
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    Crossway has filled the ESV large print void with their recently released ESV Large Print Thinline Reference Bible. It's a true thinline at one inch thick, but still has a 10.5 font and manages to find room for 80,000 cross-references. The unique layout sets the cross-references away from the text, improving readability.

    Cover and Binding

    The cover of this edition is an imitation leather known as TruTone. I really like Trutone. It has a great look and feel. I like how they press designs into the cover. The cover feels soft to the touch. It has a smooth grain- kind of like calfskin. The edges of the cover are stitched. This helps improve the quality of the cover construction, making the Bible last longer. It is paper lined, which makes the cover slightly stiff. The binding is Smyth sewn but it does have some difficulty lying flat in Genesis and Revelation. I suspect it will be OK once I've used it for a while and broken it in. I've already noticed it's softening up as I use it. It's available in several colors and styles.

    Paper

    The paper is thin and does have some show-through but it's not as bad as I expected. Some show-through is to be expected in a slim-line of only 1 inch thick, but this paper is more opaque than many Bibles with thicker paper. The paper is white without any tinted shade (such as cream).

    Text

    The font is a sharp and readable 10.5. In my opinion it has just the right amount of boldness to be comfortable to read for long periods of time. It's about a medium darkness.

    This is a red-letter edition. The red letters continue throughout the New Testament, on into Revelation. I wish all red-letter texts would do that. The red text is about a medium shade. I found it easy to read.

    The text includes the time-honored line-matching printing style of the renaissance. I love this printing style because there're no distractions between the lines of text. This gives the page a cleaner look and improves readability.

    Verse numbers are smaller but just a little bolder than the text. They're not bold enough to be distracting, but just enough to make specific verses easier to find in the paragraphs.

    Headings

    The headings are in italics. To my eye they look slightly bolder than the rest of the text. Not much- about the same as the verse numbers.

    References and Notes

    This edition has over 80,000 cross-references. References and notes are located in different locations, away from the text. This helps make the page more readable. References are placed in the right column after the last verse on the page. The references have bold verse numbers and then the standard letters keying the reference to the text. If I were to voice one complaint it would be the size of the fonts of the references. The font is tiny compared to the large print font of the Bible text. I didn't have any trouble reading it, but it was smaller than I would have liked; especially when you go from reading a nice comfortable-sized text to the small font of the references.

    The translation notes are located at the bottom of the page and span both columns. They are keyed to the text with numbers, keeping in line with standard Bible publishing. The fonts for the translation notes are larger than the references and are much easier to read.

    Concordance

    The concordance is 60 pages and has 3 columns per page. There are more entries than I expected. It has 52 entries for "God".

    Maps

    There are 8 color maps on thick glossy paper. The colors are more like earth-tone shades. One addition I would like to see would be an index to maps. This would map the maps more functional. The maps are labeled really well and I didn't have any trouble finding anything I was looking for.

    Ribbon

    There is one ribbon. It is burgundy, .25 inches wide, and sticks out about 3.5 inches. It's plenty long enough to be useable.

    Conclusion

    Crossway's Large Print Thinline Reference Bible has a great layout. By placing references and notes in specific locations away from the Bible text they've made the text more readable. The fonts look great. If you only have one ESV edition in your library, the Large Print Thinline Reference is a great choice to consider. It's my favorite size for a Bible. It would make a fine reading and carry Bible.

    Pictures for this review can be seen on Bible Buying Guide.

    Crossway provided this Bible free for review. I was not required to give a positive review- only an honest review.
  2. Nom De Plume
    California
    Age: 35-44
    Gender: male
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    What a privilege
    August 26, 2013
    Nom De Plume
    California
    Age: 35-44
    Gender: male
    I tend to be very picky (unnecessarily so at times) when it comes to Bible selection; the font size, type face, feel of the bible, weight of the book, page thickness and more all come into play when I consider purchasing/using a Bible.

    If you're looking for a thin-line Bible, with an easy-to-read format and font, that will serve as your plain, daily reading text, this Bible is for you.

    And, I can only speak from my own experience, but I found the craftsmanship to be excellent.

    I think you'll be highly delighted. It is a privilege to own such an edition.
  3. C A
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Comparing ESV Large Print Bibles
    February 10, 2022
    C A
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 5
    I bought 5 different LARGE PRINT ESV Bibles (not study Bibles) for my family and to compare things that I couldn't easily tell from descriptions online. I'm comparing:

    (1) Value Thinline (navy with mosaic cross) "Large Print Value Thinline Bible"

    (2) Thinline (olive cross) "Large Print Thinline Bible"

    (3) Thinline Reference (one olive, one purple) "Large Print Thinline Reference Bible"

    (4) Full size tan ornament (not thinline, a thicker Bible) "Large Print Bible"

    They all have a CONCORDANCE, but the Thinline Reference (3) and the full size (4) have a longer concordance (60 pages) than the others (43 pages).

    The BINDING seems identical on all (but see note at bottom). Same FONT in all; font size is 11 point in the full size (4), 10.5 point in the Reference (3), and 10 point in the others (1) and (2).

    The Value (1) has no MAPS, the Thinline (2) has maps on dull paper, and (3) and (4) have glossy, nice maps (all the same maps).

    The Thinline Reference (3) not only has the many REFERENCES noted within the verses (which the other Bibles don't have), but also has more NOTES AT THE BOTTOM of the pages (one or more per page) than the other Bibles, which had very few (most pages have no notes).

    The VALUE THINLINE (1) and THINLINE (2) have identical pages. The words and page numbers match up throughout the book. The pages appear the same texture and thickness (can see through to back of pages similarly). The covers appear to be similar quality. The only difference between the two (other than the Value has no maps) is that the Value has white page edges and no ribbon marker, while the Thinline (2) has gold page edges and a ribbon marker. (See note at bottom about page quality)

    The Thinline Reference (3) and the full size (4) Bible are EASIER TO READ than (1) or (2) because there is not as much "bleed through" where you can see the words on the back of the page (but you still can, just not as much). The Reference (3) also has wider pages than (1) or (2) and the words are a slightly larger font (10.5). The full size (4) is even nicer with the again slightly larger font (11). The covers of Bibles (1) and (2) measure almost 5-3/4" wide and 8-3/4" high and just over 1" thick. The Reference (3) measures about 6-1/2" x 9-1/2" x 1", and the full size (4) measures about 6-3/4" x 9-5/8" x 1-1/4".

    Other differences:

    Of the two Thinline REFERENCE Bibles (3) I got, the purple one has white page edges and the olive one has gold page edges (otherwise they seem the same quality). The purple one has an imprinted (indented) design, and the olive one has a gold branch design that is flush with the smooth cover. The page numbers and words of these 2 Bibles match up identically.

    The Reference (3) and full size (4) Bibles both have pages to record marriages, births/adoptions, and deaths, which Bibles (1) and (2) do not have.

    Both the Value Thinline (1) and Thinline (2) Bibles have a lesser quality feel on the inside than Bibles (3) and (4). The covers of all the mentioned Bibles feel like very nice quality. However, if all the Bibles are opened up to somewhere in the middle, and you run your finger up and down in the center where the pages meet, the Reference (3) and full size (4) Bibles are smooth. But the Value Thinline (1) and the Thinline (2) feel bumpy/crinkly and make a crinkly sound when you move your finger up or down. They are still fine Bibles, but feel a little cheaper because of this and how you can see the writing from the back side more than the others.
  4. Bob D
    Chicago, IL
    Age: Over 65
    Gender: male
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Good transportable Bible with large print.
    November 15, 2013
    Bob D
    Chicago, IL
    Age: Over 65
    Gender: male
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 4
    ESV is best translation I have found. The Thinline Bible offers true large type in a compact format. Small enough to carry or keep in briefcase and light enough to hold comfortably. Paper is thin, which allow highlighting color to peek through, but it is not bleed through -- it is just that paper is thin enough to be slightly translucent.
  5. Lynn
    5 Stars Out Of 5
    Cross references
    July 2, 2017
    Lynn
    Quality: 5
    Value: 5
    Meets Expectations: 4
    I do not like the cross references being at the bottom corner in a lot smaller text. very difficult to find the verse number and then the reference letter number for the reference. bad format.

    the premium brown leather binding is perfect and the size is right for carrying and personal devotion time. easy to follow the text during a sermon.
Displaying items 1-5 of 34
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