There’s a certain irony in the publication of The Case for Christ Study Bible.

Lee Strobel, general editor of the study Bible which carries the sub title Investigating the Evidence for Belief, was so annoyed that his wife had come to faith that he set out to prove the Bible was a fraud and Jesus had been a myth.

“I have to admit it: when I first opened the Bible, I thought it was a collection of myths and legends, of inaccurate history and wishful thinking, of fanciful exaggerations and hopeless contradictions,” Strobel, a former legal editor of The Chicago Tribune, wrote.

He put all his legal and journalistic skills to the test, interrogating world renowned experts in scores of fields and concluded there was a watertight case for Christ. He published The Case for Christ in 1998 which was followed by The Case for Faith, The Case for a Creator and The Case for the Real Jesus.

Strobel has drawn on all these books and written 170 Case for the Bible study notes which are published alongside the New International Version (NIV) translation of the text. The notes are packed with evidence gathered from outside of the Bible which backs it up.

“In these pages, you’ll discover the facts that pointed a cynic like me to the life-changing and eternity-altering reality of Jesus Christ,” Strobel promises.

The first such note appears alongside Genesis 1 and is called How Do The Sun And Moon Facilitate Life? “. . . the factors that contribute to life on our planet are unusual – unusually ideal.”

The second note, How Are We Made In God’s Image, is on the next page and concludes: “It cannot be overstated just how different humans are from the rest of creation. The vast chasms separating consciousness from unconsciousness and morality from amorality speak to the strong evidence that we are indeed made in the image of God”.

This is a great Bible for new believers, or for anyone who wants to be up with the latest and best scholarship.

SIDEBAR 1: Questions

In the Gospel of Matthew alone Strobel, with help from experts, answers:

Why are the genealogies different in Matthew and Luke?

Did Herod’s massacre of babies really occur?

What does Jesus’ emphasis on God’s kingdom reveal?

Why is Jesus famous for the Sermon on the Mount?

Why do Matthew and Luke present the same story differently?

Where did the demons and pigs story really occur?

Can Jesus’ exorcisms be explained by psychology?

Did Jesus claim to be God?

What perspective do the Dead Sea Scrolls add to our understanding on Jesus?

How does Jesus fulfil the messianic prophecy of the servant healer?

Why did Jesus teach in parables?

How did Jesus’ actions support his claims of divinity?

The lost sheep of Israel.

What was Jesus’ self-identity?

Why did Jesus need to die?

God absorbs our debt.

Our desire for fairness.

Is there reason to question Jesus’ mental stability?

Why did Jesus’ focus on true faith shock the religious leaders?

Was Jesus really omniscient?

Eternal separation.

Is the darkness at Jesus’ crucifixion a literal reference?

Was Jesus’ tomb secure?

Were the women credible witnesses?