Laura said: "I personally consider such to be detailed commentaries rather than actual translations, and while I do consult them on occasion, I tend to avoid them. I believe the NIV is another version that uses the same translation philosophy. "

I too consider this more of a commentary although some good points may be derived from the context. This commentary should be viewed as a commentary and as Laura pointed out, it is biased to the author's point of view. You are correct in that the NIV is another of these "thought for thought" 'commentaries'. I personally use the U-NASB but have the KJV, NKJV, ESV and others to cross reference scriptures. You have to be careful with these types of "Commentary Bibles" because they can lead in directions that are not scriptual. Max Lucado uses an issue of "The Message" and it is very liberal and self serving for that group. The Internet has copies of nearly all the Bibles in use and while it may not be convenient to try and study using this method, it can be used for cross reference if you do not want to purchase multiple Bibles.

__________________
For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. 1 Tim 2:5 (U-NASB)