We are please to announce that the FIRST EDITION of the NET BIBLE is now available. For those people who may be asking "What's New", we'd like to share with you some of the improvements available in this FIRST EDITION:

• The First Edition represents a steady and substantive improvement over the 1st and 2nd Beta Editions. It is the culmination of the NET BIBLE project which began in 1995.
• There are a number of improvement in the translation itself and the team has worked to remove duplicate notes and add new ones. Several Old Testament books have had their translation revised and updated for consistency with parallel passages. And substantial editing work has resulted in an elegant translation that is both accurate and readable.
• There are now 60,932 translator's notes, up from 60,237 in the Beta 2 release - There is no other Bible anywhere with translator's notes like those in the NET BIBLE. They are so much more than traditional study notes.
• The printed NET BIBLE is the same comfortable size as the 2nd Beta Edition, roughly 6"x9".
• In this First Edition, we've kept the stunning satellite images and the Journeys of Paul maps. Plus we've added 6 new Old Testament Maps. You can see them online here.
• The new NET BIBLE First Edition Companion CD has been redesigned to include several teaching videos (from The Theology Program) on How we Got our Bible and Bible Study Methods as well as several other study tools. We think you will really benefit from this new CD.
• The new First Edition NET BIBLEs have Smyth-Sewn bindings and is a substantial improvement over glued bindings.  This will greatly increase the life of your Bible. Sewn bindings are typically only found in the most expensive books due to the increased costs of manufacturing. 

• Also, we've used slightly thicker paper to reduce bleed-through.

The most significant improvements and the greatest amount of changes are contained in the Old Testament.  There were substantial edits in both the OT text and notes.  The names for God used throughout the Old Testament were reviewed and changed where needed to bring more consistency and accuracy in translation.  The translators and editors worked to capture more of the beauty and elegance of the Old Testament writer's style while balancing readability and accuracy in the English translation.

It is critical to know as well that the text of the NET BIBLE will be "locked" (unchanged) for a minimum of 5 years.  This allows any use of the NET Bible text that will be quoted or contained within other works to remain consistent for years to come.  This is especially important for those who desire to memorize scripture from the NET BIBLE translation.

One of the new features to the NET Bible First Edition is an addition of maps. We have added 6 Old Testament maps to the Journeys of Paul maps to make 10 black&white line drawing maps covering the Mediterranean and Middle-Eastern regions described in the Bible.
  Of course, we still have the 12 full color satelllite images available online. (More views of these maps are printed in the NET Bible First Edition print version, bringing the total map pages to 42).
Check it out!

We hope you will find the new FIRST EDITION of the NET BIBLE to enrich your personal Bible study and understanding of scripture.  May God speak to you clearly, deeply and intimately through His precious Word.