I’m really interested in The Bible as a historical document, but don’t speak Ancient Greek, Hebrew or Aramaic. Is there a version of either The Bible or any individual books, that includes an explanation of WHY things were translated the way they were, includes a “literal” translation, context on word usage, differences in interpretation, etc?
If not, which version is best to read if your primary interest in the Bible is in Bronze and Iron Age mythology and not religious docterine? What other resources would you recommend for a hobbiest academic? (Things written in an academic format are totally fine, in fact preferred over things written for a general audience.)
For the record, my interest is primarily the pre-Roman parts and extends to the Apocrypha and other contemperary but rejected texts as well.
As a general rule, the New Revised Standard Version is considered the most "academic" Bible. It is often the required Bible in introductory courses on the subject in universities. Often professors select the New Oxford Annotated edition of the NRSV with Apocrypha. The introductory sections and commentary are produced by many leading scholars in the field, who approach the text from a critical perspective. This is probably a decent starting place for a one volume work. However, this volume is focused on the Bible as a religious document and may not be exactly what you want. I mention it only as a one volume starting point.
What I think you really want is the Anchor Bible series, especially the older editions. The Anchor Bible started as a translation series with commentary that focused primarily on translation issues. It has evolved since then into a more traditional commentary series with attention to doctrinal/religious issues. However, it has retained its emphasis on translation and the newer volumes still give linguistic issues a good amount of attention.
Note: Oxford just published the 5th edition of their Bible. I haven't seen many significant improvements in it over the fourth edition. For now, my little university is sticking with the fourth edition. So you could probably save some money and get the fourth edition used. Just don't get the third edition. The older Anchor Bible volumes are usually fairly affordable on Amazon if you buy used.
You may want to crosspost in /r/AcademicBiblical if you do not receive a good answer here.