Proper Bible study should employ different Bible versions and Bible tools. While using outside commentaries is helpful at times, it is extremely important to stay within the confines of Scripture as much as possible, using Scripture to interpret Itself.

 

We use Bible versions that use the "formal equivalence" translations (also known as "word for word" translations), which are KJV, NKJV, NASB, ESB, and CLV. We find that NKJV is great for daily Bible readings because the English rendering flows very well, and the NASB works well for comparisons when studying, especially utilizing its use of capital letters when an OT passage is quoted in the NT. (We primarily use NKJV on this site and occasionally NASB.)

 

Strong’s concordance (based on KJV) and CLV (Concordance Literal Version – a concordance and hyper-formal translation in one) are extremely useful for even deeper studies. They help you find the original language of the English word you're searching, it's definition (though many times these definitions are faulty), and every other place in the Bible it is used. Seeing where and how God's Word uses specific words is an excellent way to determine scriptural definitions - thereby more accurate definitions - of a word.

 

Having access to the original languages using an interlinear is important, as well as tools that explain Greek and Hebrew grammar and parsing, which can help with getting more accurate translations. The Complete Word Study New Testament (and its counterpart for the Old Testament) by Spiros Zodhiates is an excellent resource for this, as well as The Englishman’s Greek Concordance of the New Testament by George V. Wigram, and the website scripture4all.org. PowerBible software is also invaluable.