Category: News

For many translations that we offer, YouVersion’s Bible app requires you to be connected to the Internet or to your service provider. But the list of free Bible versions we have available offline keeps growing. Today, we’re happy to announce the addition of the New Living Translation (NLT), available free for download for Bible App users on iPhone, iPad and Android. But don’t wait: This offer is only available until January 31, 2011!

Download the Bible App with NLT!

Downloading the NLT will give you constant access to it, even when you can’t get on your network. The last time the NLT was available offline, thousands of people downloaded it. Now that opportunity is back, and we hope the same thing happens again. We’d love for even more of you to have the NLT directly on your device, so you can engage with your Bible anytime, anywhere. You can learn more about the NLT on their website.

How to get it:
For iPhone or iPad: If you’re using the Bible app for iPhone, first go to the App Store and check Updates [link], and make sure you have the most current version. Then:

1. Tap on Read, then the blue arrow to view available translations
2. Scroll to the one you want and tap the green download button

That’s it! From that point on, when you view your translation list, your downloaded versions display with a unique gray arrow icon.

For Android: We recently added offline support to Android and you can read about it here. Downloading the NLT works the same as downloading any other Bible version.

We’re grateful to Tyndale House to be able to offer you this additional version for download for a limited time. Be sure you take advantage of this great opportunity to connect with God’s word!

One mission drives us here at YouVersion: Helping people worldwide engage with God’s Word. We do that by making the Bible available digitally in as many versions and on as many devices as we can. So when the online store for Microsoft’s smartphone platform, Windows Phone 7, launches in the U.S. on November 8, 2010, our Bible app will be there.

Industry analysts predict Microsoft may spend up to half a billion dollars to promote Windows Phone 7, so you’ll likely start hearing a lot about it soon. To us, all that advertising and press represents a tremendous opportunity to connect even more people with the Scriptures. While the special features for our initial release of the Bible app on Windows Phone 7 will focus on social networking and connections, we’re still actively developing it, so we’ll continue rolling out more and more of the functions that YouVersion users on other platforms have come to count on. We’ll keep you posted about new Windows app features as soon as we release them—stay tuned here and on Twitter!

For those of you who choose Windows Phone 7 as your phone, we want you to know… We’ll be there.

Screen shots of the forthcoming Bible app for Windows Phone 7:

Offline Bible Versions Available on Android
The #1 feature that Android users have been asking for is finally here! To date, offline Bible versions have only been available for iPhone and iPad, but now millions of Android users can also read the Bible anywhere, anytime—whether they’re connected to the Internet or not. As the Android platform grows, literally hundreds of millions of people worldwide will be able to engage with the Bible, even offline. The Bible app for Android was already fast, but versions stored directly on your device now make it faster than ever. (Read more here…)

Multiple Bible Versions Now Available Offline
Several copyright owners of different translations of the Bible are now partnering with YouVersion to allow our awesome users to download their Bible versions to your device. With any of these offline versions, as long as you first download that particular version, then you’ll be able to read it anywhere, anytime—whether you’re connected or not.

Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) – Thanks to the partnership of Broadman & Holman, for a limited time (until January 31, 2011), you can download the Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB) for use offline on iPhone, iPad, and Android. Learn more about HCSB here, here, and here. (Read the original announcement here…)

English Standard Version (ESV) – Crossway is allowing us to make the English Standard Version (ESV) available for use offline in your Bible app on iPhone, iPad, and Android. Learn why ESV is so popular at http://www.esv.org/. (Read more here…)

Contemporary English Version (CEV) – Through the continued partnership with the American Bible Society, now you can enjoy the CEV, a version “easily read by grade schoolers” and marked by “uncompromising simplicity,” anywhere, anytime on your device. Use it to help children or second-language English speakers engage with the Bible more easily. (Read more here…)

Reina-Valera 1960 (RVR60) – Also from the American Bible Society—and from the United Bible Societies—we can now offer you the Reina-Valera 1960 Bible for offline access on iPhone, iPad, and Android. The Reina-Valera 1960 is one the best-known Spanish versions of the Bible in the world. (Read more here…)

Good News Translation (GNT) – The fruit of another generous partnership with the American Bible Society, we’ve also added the Good News Translation (GNT)—also known as the Good News Bible—to the list of versions you can access offline on iPhone, iPad, and Android. (Read more here…)

Czech Bible21 – Just two months ago, Biblion first made the Czech Bible21 available for Bible app users, and already they’re allowing us to offer it to you for offline download on iPhone, iPad, and Android. Learn more about the Czech Bible21 here. (Read more here…)

So as you can see, it was a crazy week for YouVersion… and we wouldn’t have it any other way. We’ll keep doing everything we can to help keep you engaged with God’s Word. Happy reading!