Category: Partnerships

Having the opportunity to engage with God’s Word in your own heart language is one of the most powerful ways you can experience it. YouVersion would never be able to practically translate the Bible into all of the many languages people ask us to. We’re fortunate to be able to partner with Bible publishers and societies from around the world, organizations who graciously join with us to make their translations of the Bible freely available to our YouVersion community.

As you might imagine, translating the many different pieces of the global YouVersion experience—interfaces, menus, websites, blogs, tech support, and more—is a huge undertaking. That’s why we thank God every day for our passionate community of extraordinary volunteers. Thanks to them, we’ve already seen YouVersion translated from English into Norwegian, Spanish, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Russian, Korean, Brazilian Portuguese, German, Dutch—and of course now into French! We couldn’t do what we do without the help of these amazing people.

Bible Societies

Generous partners have provided the YouVersion community with several beautiful translations of the Scriptures into French, with more still to come:

• Bible Segond 21 (S21). Offered by the Geneva Bible Society, the Segond 21 required 12 years of translation from original Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek texts, while also incorporating more recently available research. Billed as “the original with the words of today,” it’s been a top-selling Bible among French speakers—even making an appearance in the top 200 books sold at Amazon France!
• La Bible Du Semeur (BDS). Provided by the International Bible Society (now Biblica), La Bible Du Semeur was translated from the original Biblical languages using a thought-for-thought, meaning-based philosophy. Completed in 1999, the BDS presents the Scriptures in contemporary, easy-to-read informal French.
• …And 3 More Brand New Additions. We’re excited to announce that thanks to the Alliance Biblique Française, we have just been able to release for the first time on YouVersion the Français Courant 1997 (FRC97-FR), Nouvelle Bible Segond 2002 (NBS-FR), and Parole de Vie 2011 (PDV-FR). Each of these are well-known, widely read translations among French speakers. Keep checking under Français on the Bible App’s list of available translations and on YouVersion.com’s Versions page!

The Geneva Bible Society Bible also provides the Nouvelle Edition de Genève 1979 (NEG79). In addition to all these contemporary translations from publishing partners, YouVersion also offers more “classic” versions from the public domain, including the Martin 1744 (FMAR), the Bible Louis Segond 1910 (LSG-FR), and the Ostervald (OST).

Volunteers

Wonderful French translations are critical to helping French readers and speakers engage with the Bible, but that’s just one part of YouVersion. Bible App users also need to be able to read its controls, buttons, and menus. People passionate about sharing God’s Word, gifted in translation, volunteer to make all of these tools just as accessible for French users. We never stop making the Bible App better, so there’s always translation to do. And now that we’re offering technical support in French for requests which come to us through email, there’s even more to do. We deeply appreciate our French-speaking volunteer community, so we’d love to get more help for them. If you can assist with any French translation—particularly in responding to requests on Facebook or Twitter—please join us. We need you!

If you’ve ever wondered what it’s like to help YouVersion reach the world, we asked a few of our awesome French language volunteers to share their experiences with you:

“I was involved in translation at church and in other areas, when I received YouVersion’s email requesting volunteers. I saw the opportunity to sow in a ministry that was helping me so much through the Bible App, so I jumped straight in! Volunteering with YouVersion has connected me to Christians from different parts of the globe, interacting, working, and learning together while having the opportunity to bless people we don’t even know. This is an awesome privilege!”
—Ramelle S., Villeneuve-Saint-Georges, France

“I stumbled upon YouVersion while searching for a Bible App. I fell in love with how simple it was to connect with God’s Word on a daily basis. Then I noticed an invitation to become a volunteer. How thrilled I was to see that I could be part of the translating team, and use this ability with language to help people just like me engage with God! This opportunity is truly a rewarding and blessed experience.”
—Vanessa R., Montreal, Canada

“I began volunteering for YouVersion a few months ago under the prompting of the Holy Spirit. This ministry is so fulfilling because I know it is impacting many people all around the world.”
—Maria-Rosa C., South Jordan, Utah, USA

“The Bible App has been very strategic in my walk with Christ. I am able to tap into Reading Plans and just rest in God’s grace as I read His Word. It was important to me that I share with others by volunteering my time, skills, and talents. It is humbling to know that I am part of a team that comes together to help others out of love and obedience to the Lord. Each day in the Lord is a journey in service—serving God and others. Volunteering at YouVersion is a daily reminder to me of that.”
—Vera S., Jackson, Mississippi, USA

For a limited time, you’ll be able to download the New International Version (NIV) for offline use in the Bible App:

Starting 12:00 AM Thursday, December 1 Central Time U.S. (GMT -6)
Ending 11:59 PM Monday, December 12 Central Time U.S. (GMT -6)

Once again, you’ll be able to download the NIV. If you missed your chance last time, or if you know someone who did, spread the word and make sure you take advantage of this opportunity. Special thanks go to Biblica and Zondervan for making the NIV available to the YouVersion community!

Note: When you look at the available versions on your device, remember to hit the “Refresh” button, to ensure that the list you’re seeing is the most current.

Downloading offline versions:

What does offline mean? Many versions in the Bible App™ are available to download to your mobile device, generously provided by Bible publishers free to the YouVersion community. (And several of these are available all the time—not just during promotions.) When you download a version, you can read it literally anytime, anyplace, even when you can’t connect to your service provider or to the Internet.

Below are links to detailed instructions on how you can download your free copy once the NIV becomes available again on Thursday, December 1. Mark your calendar, and be sure you don’t miss this opportunity!

• iPhone/iPod touch
• iPad
• Android
• BlackBerry

It’s easy to get so caught up in the busyness of the holiday season that we lose track of what it’s actually about. YouVersion.com and the Bible App offer several topical and devotional Reading Plans specifically designed to help us remember the true meaning of Christmas. Many of us in the YouVersion community participate in Advent, the period beginning four Sundays before Christmas, using this time to purposefully refocus our hearts toward celebrating the miracle of God coming to earth in human form. Please consider joining us with one of the following plans:

• Countdown to Christmas is a fun Advent activity calendar, designed to help the whole family learn about the significance of Christmas. Presented by Focus on the Family’s online magazine, Thriving Family. 29 days
• Christmas Begins with Christ is a devotional focusing on the light, joy, peace, and hope surrounding the birth of Jesus. Brought to you by Tearfund, an international aid agency working to end poverty. 28 days
• Rediscovering the Christmas Season features selected Scriptures and practical reflections to help you center each day on Christ. Developed specifically for the YouVersion community by LifeChurch.tv. 25 days
• Carols: A Christmas Devotional is a brand new Reading Plan that looks into the biblical origins of songs written to celebrate the true joy of the season. Developed by LifeChurch.tv for the YouVersion community. 25 days
• The Christmas Story first presents context for Jesus’ birth from Old Testament prophecy about Him, then turns to the Gospels to chronicle His humble beginnings. Brought to you by YouVersion. 5 days

While each of these plans are directly related to the Christmas season, YouVersion now has more than 200 other Reading Plans you can choose from—some even in different languages. So you can always find a plan that’s just right for your goals.

We’re pleased to announce two new audio versions of the Bible, available in the Bible App™ right now. Try the New Testament of the popular Reina-Valera 1960 (RVR60) in Spanish, or the modern Chinese New Version (CNV and CNVS) in Mandarin.

Because it’s such a popular translation among Spanish-speaking Christians worldwide, we’re very excited to offer a New Testament audio version of the 1960 update of the Reina-Valera. The Chinese New Version of the Bible is a similar story. First available in 1992, the CNVS and CNV have grown in popularity ever since, particularly among readers seeking a more modern translation in common, “everyday” language.

If you haven’t experienced an audio Bible in your heart language yet, we’d encourage you to explore the versions list in the Bible App. Just look for the speaker icon for audio versions you can listen to as you commute, work, or exercise.*

*Audio Bibles use streaming audio, so be aware of your service provider’s data restrictions. For the best audio Bible experience, we recommend a Wi-Fi connection.

Here’s How to Listen…

Inside the Bible App:

1. Go to the Bible Reader.
   (In most versions, you get there by selecting “Bible” from the main dashboard screen.)
2. Tap the “short code” abbreviation for the currently-selected Bible version. The list of all available Bibles displays.
3. Reina-Valera 1960: Select Español for the language, then select “Reina-Valera 1960.”
   CNVS: Select 简体中文 for the language, then select “CNVS 新译本（简体字版）.”
   CNV: Select 繁體中文 for the language, then select “CNV 新譯本（繁體字版）.”
4. Back in the Bible Reader, tap the speaker icon.
5. When the audio controls display, tap the play button.

To learn more, visit YouVersion’s support site and select your platform (left) and language (bottom). Look under “Other Features” for “How do I listen to audio?”