Reform sits in the gap between the academic library and the verse-of-the-day app: a study desk for anyone who reads the Bible seriously without being a scholar. The first thing you see is the text. Signed out, that is the BSB and the WEB, two public domain translations; signed in, the CSB, ESV, NASB, NIV and NLT as well. Scroll through the Bible continuously or chapter by chapter. The reference pill at the bottom changes the layout, jumps to another reference, pins the one you are on, or reads the chapter aloud, in your own translation with the device voice or in the BSB with a recorded one. Tapping a verse opens a sheet to mark it, copy it, hear it, or see its cross references drawn as a map. Below that are your notes on the text, the translation notes, the cross references, the original language word by word, the other translations, and a shelf of commentators, creeds, confessions and church fathers tucked away at the bottom. Reform keeps track of where you have been with Trails, so when you go down a rabbit hole studying a verse or an idea or a historical narrative, everything you walked through to get there is kept for later. Search works best online but works offline too. A topic, a question or a word comes back as direct matches in the text, verses that match by meaning, your own writing, and the rest of the shelf. When the shelves come back thin, the one thing the model does is name places to read, each checked against the shelf before you see it. It writes nothing, so your reading stays your own. Beyond the reader is where Reform holds up over the long term. The home page carries a catechism question, a verse to start from and a biblical prayer, new each day. Start a study on a single passage or a whole book, take loose notes, and if you are on a team, read your team's sermons and discussions. A study keeps your thoughts, references and searches in one place, centered on a passage or a book and a notes file. Share one with others to write in together, or publish it for wider reading. What you gather on a book is kept with the book, and comes back wherever you open it. Everything you do on the phone is on the desk on your computer and the web too. Teachers on a team can read a sermon and write in its notes, review a colleague's, and take part in the discussions around them. Leaders see each week's resource sheet with the answers filled in, and members can send questions about it for their leaders and teachers to take up. Reform Study on iOS is the whole desk's companion, so you can be in the Word wherever you are.
Reference · iPhone, iPad · Free
Rating: 5.0 out of 5, based on 5 user ratings.
