Does anyone know if there is such a thing as a Universalist Study Bible? If so, please tell me where I could get one. Or let me know if one is in the works. If not, why don’t we write one? There are all kinds of Bibles—Archaeological, Dispensationalist, Reformed, Life Application, Holy Spirit, etc. How about one that shows God’s plan of restoration from Genesis to Revelation? If John MacArthur can write a study Bible, why not someone who sees the beautiful thread of redemption throughout Scripture? It’s disheartening to see promises of ultimate reconciliation explained away over and over, as in the NIV Study Bible (see “Presuppositions and Interpretations,” Parts 1 [Presuppositions and Interpretations, Part 1 of 3), 2 [Presuppositions and Interpretations, Part 2 of 3), and 3 [Presuppositions and Interpretations, Part 3 of 3)). Wouldn’t it be great to be able to read the Bible and see how it all fits together and points to God’s final victory?
That would be really cool, Diane 
Only mainstream Christian bookstores wouldn’t sell it. 
But then that’s not really a big deal since most people buy their books online anyway 
Finding, or making, a good translation would be the first thing… then you could get a bunch of Universalist authors from different backgrounds to write the commentary. Maybe even some people on this site, including yourself.
That would certainly be cool, would love to see that.
Great idea. I don’t know of any so far.
I’d buy it.
Diane, I’ve thought this too! But getting together a team of translators with UR leanings might be tricky, and convincing the copyright holders of a pre-translated version to let us use theirs for a universalist study bible (gasp) presents similar problems.
Maybe writing a study guide to be used alongside any preexisting Bible would be more feasible and a good stop-gap? I know I find that I come across passages and think “hang on, how does that work with universalism?” and can’t always figure it out or find what I’m looking for online. A resource that had everything in the right order would be really helpful, rather than having to keep searching the forum for references to Matthew 25 (or whatever).
Before our holidays I had actually started going through Matthew and writing a bit about any (apparent) references to hell, the afterlife or judgement etc that I came across, on a blog set up purely for that purpose, just so I have stuff where I can find it easily later. As soon as the kids get back to school I’ll be carrying on with that, but if anyone here would be interested in writing with (or instead of) me, I think I can add contributors so it becomes a community blog, kind of like a wiki, and that would be pretty amazing. 
I’m sure lots of you are better qualified to write commentary than I am!
Just a thought. But I would definitely buy a UR Study Bible if there was one!
Susan, I’m afraid you’re right about some of the problems involved in trying to publish a UR study Bible, but that’s a great idea to do a study guide to be used alongside any Bible, and it sounds like you’re off to a good start! In my “Presuppositions” series I wrote what amounted to my own notes to counter those in the NIV Study Bible. I’m reading John Noe’s Hell Yes / Hell No, and it is packed with Scriptures and notes about each one, and there are many other books and resources that have the information. It would just be nice to have it all in one place so you could read the Bible and see the whole story unfold. Once my eyes were opened to this story I started seeing it everywhere. What better way to get the big picture than to see it as you read the Bible!
Ooh, I haven’t heard of John Noe’s book before. That sounds good, I’ll add it to my (rapidly growing) wishlist!
The Rotherham version (1901) is in the public domain and so is available for use and publication by anyone. I haven’t read it through, but I do refer to it frequently as one of my alternates to help me understand difficult passages. It does not contain the words “hell” or “eternity” or “forever.” It contains “eternal” one time as a translation of “aidios,” and this refers to God’s enduring power and Godhead – so I’d agree with him there.
It’s available on Kindle (I just discovered this and purchased it because of your question – thanks!) for $3.99. It has loads of cross-references in the Kindle version, all of which are clickable. I don’t see any commentary, but maybe I’ll discover some as I look through it more.
There is a hardcover and softcover edition available; I ordered a used hardcover one for a total of $26 including postage to the USA. The new one is $40 and comments say it’s very nicely bound. Some comments note that the typesetting needs to be redone as some letters aren’t complete (bottom curve of an s missing, etc.)
It is also available for E-Sword at no cost. I don’t remember where I got it, though. Tentmakers, I think.
So if anyone knows how to get the files, it could be re-published by anyone who wants to, as far as I know, with commentary or without, with some slight modernization or without. I don’t find it difficult to read as it is, but the old verb forms do put some people off.
What do you think?
Cindy, thanks for this information! The Kindle version is a real bargain!