Biblically Speaking
I love the New Jerusalem translation, mostly because it combines study notes1 with an accessible and often lilting language. Taking Deut 6:5-9 as an example, the RSV has it:
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And you shall love the LORD your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your might.
And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart;
and you shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise.
And you shall bind them as a sign upon your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes.
And you shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. - RSV
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While the New Jerusalem has it:
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You must love Yahweh your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength. Let the words I enjoin on you today stay in your heart. You shall tell them to your children, and keep on telling them, when you are sitting at home, when you are out and about, when you are lying down and when you are standing up; you must fasten them on your hand as a sign and on your forehead as a headband; you must write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates.
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I realize the choice of "Yahweh" over "Lord" is off-putting to some, but I think it sounds more personal2, emphasizing to Israel how unique her God is. "Lord", even though it's usually represented in all caps, has connotations of an earthly lord while Yahweh refers to God alone.
I like the use of "You must love Yahweh..." instead of "You shall love...". "Shall" is a little weaker and I do better with commands, disliking free will. Woody Hayes used to dislike the forward pass, saying "there are three things that can happen when you pass, and two of them ain't good." I feel similarly about free will; lots of bad things can happen that ain't good because it's man exercising it. Poetically speaking, I like "Let the words I enjoin on you today stay in your heart" better than "And these words which I command you this day shall be upon your heart" although perhaps theologically one could read the latter as more of God's work and the former more as man's, and God is obviously more dependable so in that sense the RSV is better. And I'm not real fond on the "headband" thing. This isn't Welcome Back, Kotter.
I don't have a clear favorite between the Douay-Rheims and KJV. The KJV is a little inaccessible, and the "sittest" is distracting. But how poetic is "they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes"! This is cryptic language that is paradoxically clear - "frontlets", whatever they are, imply a permanence, like bumpers on a car. This drives home the permanent nature of this command and how it is to be ever before us.
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And thou shalt love the LORD thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might.
And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart:
And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up.
And thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand, and they shall be as frontlets between thine eyes.
And thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates. - KJV
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Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with thy whole heart, and with thy whole soul, and with thy whole strength.
And these words which I command thee this day, shall be in thy heart: And thou shalt tell them to thy children, and thou shalt meditate upon them sitting in thy house, and walking on thy journey, sleeping and rising. And thou shalt bind them as a sign on thy hand, and they shall be and shall move between thy eyes. And thou shalt write them in the entry, and on the doors of thy house. - Douay-Rheims
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The NAB, is a bit more prosaic and mechanical (see 'drill'). May the repeated quoting of this passage drill it into our heads!
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Therefore, you shall love the LORD, your God, with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your strength.
Take to heart these words which I enjoin on you today.
Drill them into your children. Speak of them at home and abroad, whether you are busy or at rest.
Bind them at your wrist as a sign and let them be as a pendant on your forehead.
Write them on the doorposts of your houses and on your gates. - NAB
1 - (I've been surprised how often I look up something in Scott Hahn's new RSV-CE version and there aren't notes on the verse in which I'm interested. Nothing beats the Catena Aurea or Bernard Orchard's Catholic Commentary on Holy Scripture - I like how they aren't afraid to take a wild stab concerning unclear passages.)
2 - It seems appropriate Pope JPII so emphasizes a personalistic philosophy given that our age is so atomistic and individualistic.
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