A New Devotional Bible for Men

I have never been a fan of devotional Bibles. Most of them pertain to a particular type of person. We have a sports devotional Bible along with one for hunters and even for teenagers. I felt devotional Bibles tend to lure people away from the text and only feast on the devotions, which the same can be said about Study Bibles.

Crossway has released a new devotional Bible for men that has me excited about, The ESV Men's Devotional Bible. Here is a brief video about it:




Why should there be this kind of Bible for men? Sam Storms writes:

The author of the epistle to the Hebrews reminds us that “it is good for the heart to be strengthened by grace” (13:9). The ESV Men’s Devotional Bible is uniquely designed for men to achieve that very goal.

This resource does more than inform the mind. Its aim is to equip and encourage men who long to experience spiritual and moral transformation in the depths of their heart. More than 50 men who serve as pastors, professors, and Christian leaders have contributed 365 daily devotional studies and a wide array of articles on biblical themes of practical importance to the lives of men today.

Perhaps never before in the history of the church have men faced the intensity of temptation and relentless assault from the world, the flesh, and the Devil that we are witnessing in our day. The essence of biblical masculinity is being undermined as we are repeatedly told that a “real man” must be wealthy, influential, autonomous, self-made, sexually liberated, and self-reliant. The result is that marriages are being destroyed, families are in crisis, and countless men are increasingly losing their sense of identity in Jesus Christ. The ESV Men’s Devotional Bible speaks pointedly to men who long for lives of integrity, self-sacrifice, love, and passionate devotion to their families and, above all, to the Lord Jesus Christ.

Our goal is to strengthen and transform the hearts of men through the power of the Spirit-inspired Word of God. Based on the acclaimed English Standard Version of the Bible, the ESV Men’s Devotional Bible provides daily insights into Scripture that not only enlighten the mind but especially feed, nurture, and empower the hearts of men to enjoy all that God is for them in Jesus Christ. Each daily devotional study has been freshly created for this project, and each is tied to a particular biblical passage that speaks to the most pressing needs and concerns that men face today. The contributors are themselves men who understand the unique challenges we encounter in today’s world, and they have written with an eye to the application of Scripture to our most practical needs. Their insights are theologically rich, honest, vulnerable, penetrating, and always gospel-centered.

The devotionals included in the ESV Men’s Devotional Bible are not arranged topically or thematically, but rather are tethered closely to the text on which each is based. Every book of the Bible contains at least one devotional, connected with the passages that most clearly capture key themes of that book. If the 365 devotionals are read consecutively throughout the year, along with the passages on which they are based, beginning in Genesis and ending in Revelation, the reader will have gained by the end of the year an extensive overview of Scripture and the history of salvation.

The devotionals are therefore not explicitly tied to specific dates on the calendar. This is deliberate, and is meant to free the reader to use the devotionals in a variety of ways. Whether read sequentially, occasionally, or as a supplement to the study of a particular book, the devotionals are designed to enhance your study of God’s Word by reflecting deeply on the biblical text and its meaning for us today.
In addition to the daily devotional readings, we have provided brief introductions to each book of the Bible that will orient the reader to what God is saying to us through that particular portion of his Word. We have especially focused in these introductions on the way any given book of the Bible speaks to a man’s heart.

Finally, 14 special articles address issues of greatest interest to men and provide spiritually rich, biblically rooted, heart-strengthening guidance to enable the believer to more faithfully love his wife, his children, the church, and our Lord.

May the Lord’s grace strengthen and encourage you as you immerse yourself in his life-changing Word.