The Oxford Annotated Bible (OAB) is a study Bible published by the Oxford University Press (OUP). The notes and the study material feature in-depth academic research from non-denominational perspectives, specifically secular perspectives for "Bible-as-literature" with a focus on the most recent advances in historical criticism and related disciplines, with contributors from mainline Protestant, Roman Catholic, Jewish, and non-religious interpretative traditions.
Some editions of the OAB also include the apocryphal and deuterocanonical books used by the Roman Catholic Church and the Greek and Slavonic Orthodox Churches, as well as churches of the Anglican Communion (including The Episcopal Church). The Apocryphal books are also available in a separate volume.
The first edition of the OAB, edited by Herbert G. May and Bruce Metzger, was published in 1962. In 1965, a matching edition of the apocryphal books was published, as well as a version of the OAB including them. In the same year, the OAB received the official imprimatur of Cardinal Richard Cushing for use as a Roman Catholic study bible. Later, the NOAB was also warmly welcomed by Orthodox leaders.
The original OAB and the first edition of the New Oxford Annotated Bible (NOAB), published in 1973, were based on the Revised Standard Version (RSV) of the Bible. After the release of the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV) of the Bible in 1989, OUP published a second edition of the NOAB based on that translation. The NRSV was also the basis of the third edition (2000), edited by Michael Coogan, which is considered to be much more ecumenical in approach. For example, it calls the Old Testament the "Hebrew Bible" out of consideration to Jewish readers.