Who Owns the Bible?

Some time ago I was seeking a freely distributed electronic Bible translation. I really wanted to create a database with all the verses of the Bible. That way I could pull any group of verses at will and load them into my pages, especially here on EsoBlog. After much searching and communication with some nice people at the largest Bible translation association, I learned it probably isn't going to happen. The King James Bible is freely distributable in a format I could work with, but I just don't think the King James cuts it anymore. The verbage in that translation just has no connection with most people of my generation and younger. It may as well be Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic!

For a while it really bothered me that the Bible has all sort of limitations of use and copyrights. I thought, "It's the Word of God for goodness sake! Why limit its use or lay claim to the very words found there?" I still kinda think that way, but I have come to realize the importance of a Bible free from error that might well creep in if the text was free and distributed all over the place.

So soon after my search was over I relinquished my desire to find a free Bible database and now link to Bible Gateway whenever I need to display verses. Bible Gateway is an awesome site for anyone looking to read or search through the Bible in a large number of popular versions and languages. Click here to check them out.