Buyer's Guide: Logos 6 Silver editions

Since the launch of Logos 4, I've tried to write Buyer's Guides to Logos Base packages. Here are my belated opinions on Logos 6 Silver packages. Silver is best suited to students and pastors wanting to dig deeper. (There are also guides for Starter, Bronze, Gold and Platinum editions.)

Silver contains all the resources in Bronze, and is a worthwhile upgrade. The two main highlights are undoubtedly the 41-volume New American Commentary Series [$509.95], Calvin's Commentaries [$149.95] and the 37 volume Early Church Fathers [$229.95]. Also worthwhile are Hebrew/English interlinear Bible [$99.95], some Greek/English editions of the apostolic fathers, and the rather optimistically priced Lenski's NT commentary [$299.95] and Horae Homileticae [$489.95]. Most of the tools missing from Bronze are also added, including Ancient Literature, Clause Search, and Reported Speech.

Anglican Silver feels very different from Silver, with none of the noted highlights from Silver (except the Church Fathers which were also in Anglican Bronze). Most of the additions from Anglican Bronze are aimed squarely at middle-of-the-road Anglicanism, such as the 12-volume Feasting on the Word lectionary commentary [$247.95] and the 10-volume New Library of Pastoral Care [$189.95], rather than the more evangelical NAC in standard Silver. Other useful additions include Black's New Testament Commentary [$249.95], a number of patristic works including the 10-volume Popular Patristics [$129.95]. The Baker Encylopedia of the Bible is also added [$139.95].

Baptist Silver retains Silver's New American Commentary Series, and the interlinear Hebrew Bible and the apostolic fathers. The other highlights are replaced with all 63 volumes of Spurgeon's Sermons [$249.95] and several 'Works Of' collections, including A. T. Robertson [$249.95], Edgar Young Mullins [$144.95], and D. L. Moody [$119.95].

Lutheran Silver keeps Silver's Lenski NT commentary set, the interlinear Hebrew Bible, and the apostolic fathers, and obviously retains the Church Fathers from Lutheran Bronze. There's no NAC, but it can boast 16 volumes of Bonhoeffer's works [$529.95].

Pentecostal/Charismatic Silver has none of Silver's highlights, but it does have David Guzik's Commentaries [$249.95] the Life Application Commentary [$199.95] and the useful IVP New Testament Commentary Series [$289.95]. Also included are some useful dictionaries, including the New Dictionary of Biblical Theology [$49.95], Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible [$79.95], and the Exegetical Dictionary of the New Testament [$139.95] and some of the works of Elmer Towns [$109.95] and Charles Finney [$99.95].

Reformed Silver also misses out on most of Silver's highlights, though it does include the Early Church Fathers and Calvin's Commentaries are, of course carried up from Reformed Bronze. The 41-volume Focus on the Bible Commentaries [$409.95] together with the 19th-century Lange's Commentary [$299.95] and 17th-century Poor Man's Commentary [$126.95] together take the place of NAC. Like most of the other denominational packages, there's a fair smattering of theology and history, too.

Verdict: Silver is not quite as compelling as the upgrade from Starter to Bronze, but nonetheless it represents excellent value for money, as the two main highlights are expensive, multi-volume works, which are both very useful. Baptist Silver is worth considering if you'd prefer Spurgeon's sermons to the Early Church Fathers. The NAC is a big loss to Reformed Silver, and its replacements lack the NAC's up-to-date scholarship. Pentecostal/Charismatic Silver is worth considering if you prefer good quality modern commentaries that centre on application. Both Lutheran and Anglican Silver have little general appeal beyond their own denominational boundaries in my opinion, although the inclusion of Bonhoeffer's works in Lutheran Silver might attract those more interested in theology than commentaries. But for most users Silver is probably the best option.

Want more? You can read the entire guide to 37 base packages at my website: http://www.logosbiblesoftwaretraining.com/documents/logos-6-buyers-guide/