Filed under: App Store
Bible: 19 translations on your iPhone
When I was going through a minor existential crisis a few years ago, I read the Bible from cover to cover. The copy I had was the rattiest, oldest paperback version I could find: I got it for two bucks at a library booksale.
The Bible app for iPhone and iPod touch, however, beats even that, because it's free. Bible is published by YouVersion.com, a social website for people reading the Bible that allows annotation and discussion of passages in the book.
Bible includes 13 English translations, three Spanish translations, and one translation each in French, German, and Simplified Chinese. It's searchable by term or location (chapter and verse), and includes a "daily read" tool that -- if you stick with it -- you can use to read the whole kit and kaboodle in a year.
There are more than 20 other Bible applications available in the App Store, costing as much as $30. The upshot is that some don't require an internet connection to view the text. (Thanks, commenters, for that one.) For example, Acro Bible NIV is $28.99, and includes only the New International Version. In this crowded category, there is also another app identically named "Bible," but it's $14.99.
There is also a free version of the Qur'an, called iQuran, available too. For the devout, there are web apps to help with prayer times as well, but no native iPhone app yet. As yet there isn't a full version of the Torah in the App Store, but there are both KosherMe (the mealtime blessings for $6.99) and Pocket Luach Lite (Jewish calendar conversion for $3.99).
Bible -- the YouVersion (uh) version -- is free, and available at the App Store.
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Reader Comments (Page 1 of 3)
Kevin Miller said 1:11PM on 8-06-2008
Hadn't thought about it - couldn't an iPhone app point the way to Mecca for our Muslim amigos? Or does it not have a way to determine your orientation?
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Robert Palmer said 1:22PM on 8-06-2008
I think that would work great for iPhone 3Gs that include a GPS. First-generation iPhones and iPod touches that use either the cell network or WiFi location data I don't think could benefit, because both those systems aren't that precise.
dukrous said 1:43PM on 8-06-2008
Not sure how you would do it. Does the GPS in the phone know your orientation as well or just location? It would be hard to get a fix on the direction you're facing.
Robert Palmer said 1:50PM on 8-06-2008
@dukrous There are GPS-based compasses in the app store: http://bit.ly/1iqFjJ
Tim said 6:13PM on 8-06-2008
Good idea. I think there's an easy option. Standing still may get imprecise orientation, but say you start the app and start walking while the GPS has a fix. By following your route, the iPhone should get an idea of how you stand within a block or so. This is better than a simple compass app, because it gives you your heading to a specific location based on where you currently are. The app could be made more versatile by having the option to set other points to face, which could be useful for finding your way in a place which doesn't have roads, i.e. the woods or desert.
Dave said 1:19PM on 8-06-2008
I gave this free Bible program a shot and it works really well (very fast). My biggest problem is that it requires an Internet connection. Not really feasible for those who use the iPhone on prepaid with no data.
I'm hoping Laridian(.com) will release something soon, but if not I'll be picking up the Acro NIV Bible. It's pricey, but that's mostly because of the licensing.
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Cam said 1:20PM on 8-06-2008
The i-Ble. Nice.
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David Jones said 1:26PM on 8-06-2008
Um.... the Torah is actually just the first five books of the Hebrew Bible which Christians call the Old Testament and change up the order. Perhaps you meant to say a Jewish/Hebrew translation, but this bible app contains the Torah 19 times (13 English, 3 Spanish, 1 French/German/Chinese.
At least my degree prepared me to comment on TUAW, if nothing else.
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Robert Palmer said 1:33PM on 8-06-2008
And this is where my history starts to get fuzzy: Is there not an Oral Torah and a Written Torah, with the written version being the first five books of the Bible. The oral version ("Mishna," I think) is somewhat different than the written version, but considered part and parcel of the larger Torah.
Please, someone with more knowledge about this correct me if I'm wrong.
Zoli said 1:57PM on 8-06-2008
Robert:
Written Torah is the 5 books (Genesis, Exodous...), Prophets, and Writings (is considered the Old Testament)
Oral is Mishna, Talmud, Commentaries, adn pretty much anything based off of the written torah.
I find it very funny that they'll offer the bible in 19 languages, but fail to include the original language.
Michael Rose said 2:42PM on 8-06-2008
David/Zoli --
I was the one who edited Robert's post to say 'Torah' even though I meant "Tanach" or "Chumash" -- it's the familiar but non-triumphalist word if you choose not to say "Old Testament" and I assume that non-technical readers know that we mean the Pentateuch, in Hebrew & English. (Might be an erroneous assumption, clearly.)
In this case, to be more specific, there is no Tanach currently available on the iTunes store in either English or Hebrew, although of course the translation is part of any Christian Bible.
I do wonder what will become of all the iPhones that cannot be discarded because they include the Divine Name... that will be a pretty interesting genizah.
-- Mike "Mr. Rebbitzin" Rose (yes, my wife is a rabbinical student)
LeftOfProspect said 1:29PM on 8-06-2008
You who are knowledgeable about such things should point out that this version requires online access. As someone remarked, this is more of a web-app. If you go offline (as you might with an iPod, for example, or while in a plane), the app is worthless.
I also think you should point out that both the NIV and the NRSV translations require royalties. These versions are not free. The approx $30 price pays in part for royalties. Comparing the free apps to, for example, Bible Xpress, is comparing apples to oranges.
How about a review of all the iPod Bible apps, pointing out the different criteria by which these apps might be judged?
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Robert Palmer said 1:35PM on 8-06-2008
My understanding is that we're not supposed to do the judging, lest we be judged.
Just kidding. I'm not a Biblical scholar by any stretch, nor do I use a Bible on a regular basis, so I feel somewhat unqualified to write up such a post.
JasonL said 1:30PM on 8-06-2008
How many bible apps does the iPhone/iPod need?
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Joshua said 6:08PM on 8-06-2008
Only one that does it right... ;)
NNTPgrip said 1:42PM on 8-06-2008
For some reason the iQuran asked if it was OK to use Location Data. I wonder what they need tha
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doolybug said 1:49PM on 8-06-2008
Here's one of my favorite quotes about the matter ....
"Men will never be free until the last king is
strangled with the entrails of the last priest."
[Denis Diderot, "Dithyrambe sur la fete de rois"]
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mkellner said 1:56PM on 8-06-2008
The best program, by far, is BibleXpress, which stores texts on the iPhone and thus is accessible off-line.
Check out http://www.biblexpress.com/Home.html
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Joel said 1:58PM on 8-06-2008
I use this application in lieu of my leather bound bible and take notes on the Notes application while listening to teachers. The multitude of versions is a great feature. I use the ESV. I'm looking forward to the day when some of my favorite study bibles and commentaries are made into applications or integrated into existing ones as well. Between this and the multitude of podcasts available, there are yet more ways to use technology for God's glory!
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Jay said 1:55PM on 8-06-2008
Just FYI, YouVersion is an online ministry of Oklahoma City-based mega-church Life Church.
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