Blue Letter Bible
Encyclopedia
The Blue Letter Bible Project is an initiative of Sowing Circle—a non-denominational Christian ministry—to create a Study Bible
in both CD format and for the internet. It was founded in November 1995. The Project supports 12 English Bible translations
, Hebrew and the Septuagint for the Old Testament
, and the Greek Textus Receptus
and Westcott-Hort
versions for the New Testament
. Integrated study tools include Gesenius' Lexicon
for the Old Testament, and Thayer's
Lexicon for the New Testament, as well as English and Strong's Concordance
s for the entire Bible
. Over 2000 Bible Commentaries are also present.
A series of free instructional videos entitled "Introducing the Blue Letter Bible" is available on YouTube
.
There is a Blue Letter Bible iPhone app.
The BLB Project is administered by the Sowing Circle ministry, which is a California 501(c)(3) Private Operating Foundation
.
which is a common form of printed Bible.
Study Bible
A study Bible is an edition of the Bible prepared for the use of a serious student of the Bible. It provides scholarly information designed to help the reader gain a better understanding of the text.-History:...
in both CD format and for the internet. It was founded in November 1995. The Project supports 12 English Bible translations
Bible translations
The Bible has been translated into many languages from the biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Indeed, the full Bible has been translated into over 450 languages, although sections of the Bible have been translated into over 2,000 languages....
, Hebrew and the Septuagint for the Old Testament
Old Testament
The Old Testament, of which Christians hold different views, is a Christian term for the religious writings of ancient Israel held sacred and inspired by Christians which overlaps with the 24-book canon of the Masoretic Text of Judaism...
, and the Greek Textus Receptus
Textus Receptus
Textus Receptus is the name subsequently given to the succession of printed Greek texts of the New Testament which constituted the translation base for the original German Luther Bible, the translation of the New Testament into English by William Tyndale, the King James Version, and for most other...
and Westcott-Hort
The New Testament in the Original Greek
The New Testament in the Original Greek is the name of a Greek language version of the New Testament published in 1881. It is also known as the Westcott and Hort text, after its editors Brooke Foss Westcott and Fenton John Anthony Hort...
versions for the New Testament
New Testament
The New Testament is the second major division of the Christian biblical canon, the first such division being the much longer Old Testament....
. Integrated study tools include Gesenius' Lexicon
Lexicon
In linguistics, the lexicon of a language is its vocabulary, including its words and expressions. A lexicon is also a synonym of the word thesaurus. More formally, it is a language's inventory of lexemes. Coined in English 1603, the word "lexicon" derives from the Greek "λεξικόν" , neut...
for the Old Testament, and Thayer's
Joseph Henry Thayer
Joseph Henry Thayer , US biblical scholar, was born in Boston, Massachusetts.He studied at the Boston Latin School, and graduated from Harvard in 1850...
Lexicon for the New Testament, as well as English and Strong's Concordance
Strong's Concordance
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible, generally known as Strong's Concordance, is a concordance of the King James Bible that was constructed under the direction of Dr. James Strong and first published in 1890. Dr. Strong was Professor of exegetical theology at Drew Theological Seminary at...
s for the entire Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. Over 2000 Bible Commentaries are also present.
A series of free instructional videos entitled "Introducing the Blue Letter Bible" is available on YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
.
There is a Blue Letter Bible iPhone app.
The BLB Project is administered by the Sowing Circle ministry, which is a California 501(c)(3) Private Operating Foundation
Foundation (charity)
A foundation is a legal categorization of nonprofit organizations that will typically either donate funds and support to other organizations, or provide the source of funding for its own charitable purposes....
.
Etymology
The Blue Letter Bible is so called because of the blue color of the hyperlinks. The name "Blue Letter Bible" also contrasts with the term red letter BibleRed letter edition
The term red letter edition is used to describe Bibles in which words spoken by Jesus, commonly only while he was on the Earth, are printed in red ink...
which is a common form of printed Bible.
BLB content
The Blue Letter Bible (BLB) Project has three ongoing initiatives as of November 2006:- The BLB CD for gratisGratisGratis is the process of providing goods or services without compensation. It is often referred to in English as "free of charge" or "complimentary"...
distribution to missionaries, pastors and students, with over 100,000 CDs distributed. - The BLB website for online Bible studyBible study (Christian)In Christianity, Bible study is the study of the Bible by ordinary people as a personal religious or spiritual practice. Some denominations may call this devotion or devotional acts; however in other denominations devotion has other meanings...
in an advertising-free environment. Over 3,500,000 hyperlink cross-references are present, and over 375,000 pages viewsWeb trafficWeb traffic is the amount of data sent and received by visitors to a web site. It is a large portion of Internet traffic. This is determined by the number of visitors and the number of pages they visit...
are distributed (daily average 3rd quarter 2006). - The BLB Institute for structured Biblical studiesBiblical studiesBiblical studies is the academic study of the Judeo-Christian Bible and related texts. For Christianity, the Bible traditionally comprises the New Testament and Old Testament, which together are sometimes called the "Scriptures." Judaism recognizes as scripture only the Hebrew Bible, also known as...
, under free registration, with over 28,000 registered students in 3rd quarter 2006.
Distribution of BLB content
- BLB CD
- Calvary Chapel Magazine, a publisher and affiliate ministry of Calvary ChapelCalvary ChapelCalvary Chapel is an evangelical association of Christian churches with over one thousand congregations worldwide. Calvary Chapel also maintains a number of radio stations around the world and operates many local Calvary Chapel Bible College programs. It presents itself as a "fellowship of...
, has distributed over 45,000 BLB CDs to their readership (missionaryMissionaryA missionary is a member of a religious group sent into an area to do evangelism or ministries of service, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care and economic development. The word "mission" originates from 1598 when the Jesuits sent members abroad, derived from the Latin...
emphasis), with worldwide distribution. - Koinonia HouseChuck MisslerCharles "Chuck" Missler is an author, evangelical Christian, Bible teacher, former businessman and US Navy officer. He is the founder of the Koinonia House ministry based in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.-Biography:...
, publishers of Personal Update, (distribution over 100,000 monthly) offers free distribution of the BLB CD to their subscribers.
- Calvary Chapel Magazine, a publisher and affiliate ministry of Calvary Chapel
- BLB Website
Reviews of the Blue Letter Bible
- Blue Letter Bible review by Philip Wilson of the University of Southampton
- Blue Letter Bible review by USC (University of Southern California) Libraries
- The Blue Letter Bible by Rubén Gómez, webmaster, Bible Software Review
- Koinonia House Online - Your Personal Library
- Sight Magazine, Blue Letter Bible, by James Crook