Biblica

Last updated
Biblica
Biblica Logo for Public Web Use.png
Founded1809;214 years ago (1809)
Founders Henry Rutgers, William Colgate and Thomas Eddy
Country of origin United States
Headquarters location Palmer Lake, Colorado
Official website www.biblica.com

Biblica, formerly International Bible Society, was founded in 1809 and is the worldwide copyright holder of the New International Version of the Bible (NIV), licensing commercial rights to Zondervan in the United States and to Hodder & Stoughton in the United Kingdom. Biblica is also a member of the Forum of Bible Agencies International and Every Tribe Every Nation.

Contents

History

Biblica headquarters in Palmer Lake. Biblica Headquarters Palmer Lake CO.png
Biblica headquarters in Palmer Lake.

Biblica was founded December 4, 1809, in New York City as the New York Bible Society by a small group including Henry Rutgers, William Colgate, Theodorus Van Wyke and Thomas Eddy. [1] [2] [3]

Biblica experienced its first merger in 1819 when it merged with the New York Auxiliary Bible Society. It was renamed New York International Bible Society in 1974, International Bible Society (IBS) in 1988. The organization moved to Colorado Springs from New York in 1988 and moved into its current facility in 1989. [4] It merged with Living Bibles International in 1992 and International Bible Society and Send the Light (STL) in 2007, forming a new organization called IBS-STL. [5] [6] In 2009, it adopted the name Biblica. [7] [8]

Translations

Biblica's international ministry began in 1810 with its sponsorship of William Carey’s Bible translation work in India. [9] The worldwide work expanded in 1992 following the merger with Living Bibles International, through which Biblica developed its global translation ministry. The reach of Biblica around the world again expanded through its merger with Send the Light (STL) in 2007. [5] [6]

Biblica is perhaps best known for its New International Version (NIV) version of the Bible, the best-selling contemporary English translation. [10]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New International Version</span> English translation of the Bible

The New International Version (NIV) is a translation of the Bible into contemporary English. Published by Biblica, the complete NIV was released in 1978 with a minor revision in 1984 and a major revision in 2011. The NIV relies on recently-published critical editions of the original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Today's New International Version</span> Updated translation of the Bible

Today's New International Version (TNIV) is an English translation of the Bible which was developed by the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT). The CBT also developed the New International Version (NIV) in the 1970s. The TNIV is based on the NIV. It is explicitly Protestant like its predecessor; the deuterocanonical books are not part of this translation. The TNIV New Testament was published in March 2002. The complete Bible was published in February 2005. The rights to the text are owned by Biblica. Zondervan published the TNIV in North America. Hodder & Stoughton published the TNIV in the UK and European Union.

A study Bible is an edition of the Bible prepared for use by a serious student of the Bible. It provides scholarly information designed to help the reader gain a better understanding of and context for the text.

The New International Reader's Version (NIrV) is a translation of the Bible in contemporary English. Translated by the International Bible Society following a similar philosophy as the New International Version (NIV), but written in a simpler form of English, this version seeks to make the Bible more accessible for children and people who have difficulty reading English, such as non-native English speakers. The authors describe it as a special edition of the NIV written at a third grade reading level.

Zondervan is an international Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan, United States. Zondervan is a founding member of the Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA). They are a part of HarperCollins Christian Publishing, Inc. and has multiple imprints including Zondervan Academic, Zonderkidz, Blink, and Editorial Vida. Zondervan is the commercial rights holder for the New International Version (NIV) Bible in North America. They are owned by one of the largest conglomerates in the mainstream media, and according to the Zondervan website, they are the largest Christian publisher.

The NIV Study Bible is a study Bible originally published by Zondervan in 1985 that uses the New International Version (NIV). Revisions include one in 1995, a full revision in 2002, an update in October 2008 for the 30th anniversary of the NIV, another update in 2011, and a fully revised update in 2020 named "Fully Revised Edition". Its publisher and distributors claim over nine million sold, and claim that it is the world's bestselling study bible.

The New International Version Inclusive Language Edition (NIVi) of the Christian Bible was an inclusive language version of the New International Version (NIV). It was published by Hodder and Stoughton in London in 1995; New Testament and Psalms, with the full bible following in 1996. It was only released in the United Kingdom and British Commonwealth Countries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bible society</span> Non-profit organization devoted to translating the Bible

A Bible society is a non-profit organization, usually nondenominational in makeup, devoted to translating, publishing, and distributing the Bible at affordable prices. In recent years they also are increasingly involved in advocating its credibility and trustworthiness in contemporary cultural life. Traditionally Bible society editions contain scripture, without any doctrinal notes or comments, although they may include non-sectarian notes on alternate translations of words, or variations in the different available manuscripts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">BibleGateway</span> Website for reading the Bible

BibleGateway is a Christian website designed to allow easy reading, listening, studying, searching, and sharing of the Bible in many different versions and translations, including English, French, Spanish, and other languages. Its mission statement is "To honor Christ by equipping people to read and understand the Bible, wherever they are". The website is free to use, but also offers Bible Gateway Plus, a membership program with enhanced services. It is currently owned by Zondervan.

Koorong is a Christian bookstore chain operating across Australia. It is the largest retailer of Bibles, Christian books and media in Australia. Koorong currently operates online and at 15 stores across the country.

Send the Light (STL) was a British Christian book distributor which had absorbed other Christian publishers and bookshops, and eventually merged with the International Bible Society to become one of the largest non-profit book distributors in the world under the title of IBS-STL Global, now known as Biblica.

Although Christianity became the state religion of Ethiopia in the 4th century, and the Bible was first translated into Ge'ez at about that time, only in the last two centuries have there appeared translations of the Bible into Amharic.

<i>The Books of the Bible</i> (book) Bible with chapter and verse numbers removed

The Books of the Bible is the first presentation of an unabridged committee translation of the Bible to remove chapter and verse numbers entirely and instead present the biblical books according to their natural literary structures. This edition of the Bible is also noteworthy for the way it recombines books that have traditionally been divided, and for the way it puts the biblical books in a different order.

Ronald F. Youngblood was an American biblical scholar and professor of Old Testament. In addition to being one of the original translators of the New International Version of the Bible, he was the general editor for Nelson's New Illustrated Bible Dictionary, and on the editorial team for the Zondervan NASB Study Bible, both of which earned the ECPA Christian Book Award for their respective publication years.

Kenneth Lee Barker is an American biblical scholar and professor of Old Testament and Hebrew. In addition to writing several books, he was also one of the original translators of the New American Standard Bible and the New International Version of the Bible.

Mark Lehman Strauss is an American biblical scholar and professor of the New Testament at Bethel Seminary San Diego, which is part of Bethel University, Minnesota. His areas of expertise include New Testament Gospels and Bible translation.

Living Bibles International (LBI) (1968–1992) was an American religious publisher dedicated to producing modern language translations of the New Testament in around 100 languages worldwide.

Barry J. Beitzel is an Old Testament scholar, geographer, cartographer, and translator of the Bible. He currently resides in Mundelein, Illinois.

The Forum of Bible Agencies International is an alliance of more than 25 international Bible Agencies and other missions organizations which provides access to the Bible and encourages its use worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Evangelical Heritage Version</span> Translation of the Bible

The Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV) is a translation of the Bible into the English language. The translation project was called The Wartburg Project and the group of translators consisted of pastors, professors, and teachers from the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod (WELS) and Evangelical Lutheran Synod (ELS), both based in the United States.

References

  1. "Our History: Biblica". The International Bible Society. Retrieved 13 October 2017.
  2. Kurian, George (2016). Encyclopedia of Christianity in the United States, Volume 5. United States: Rowman & Littlefield. pp. 613–614. ISBN   978-1442244313.
  3. Daniel G. Reid, Robert D. Linder, Bruce Shelley, Harry S. Stout, Craig A. Noll, Concise Dictionary of Christianity in America, Wipf and Stock Publishers, USA, 2002, p. 170
  4. Places of Faith: A Road Trip Across America's Religious Landscape. Oxford University Press. 2012. ISBN   978-0-19-979152-1.
  5. 1 2 "International Bible Society, Send the Light Merge". www.christianpost.com. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  6. 1 2 "IBS, STL announce merger plans". Christian Retailing. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  7. "IBS-STL Changes Name to Biblica". www.christianpost.com. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  8. "International Bible Society and Send the Light (IBS-STL) become Biblica - Mission Network News". Mission Network News. Retrieved 2017-10-13.
  9. Fant, Reverend David J. (1948). The Bible in New York, from 1809-1947.
  10. Nicola Menzie, NIV More Popular Than KJV, NLT Bibles; 11 Million Copies Sold Worldwide, christianpost.com, USA, March 26, 2013