The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it.
- Psalm 68:11 (KJV)
The Lord announces the word, and the women who proclaim it are a mighty throng:
- Psalm 68:11 (NIV)
“In 1781, publisher Robert Aitken petitioned Congress for permission to publish an edition of the Bible, and Congress voted to endorse Aitken’s plan, leading to the first English Bibles printed in America.
“Resolved, That the United States in Congress assembled highly approve the pious and laudable undertaking of Mr. Aitkin, as subservient to the interest of religion as well as an influence of the progress of arts in this country and being satisfied from the above report [by the congressional chaplains] … recommend this edition of the Bible to the inhabitants of the United States and hereby authorize him to publish this recommendation in the manner he shall think proper.
“Aitken’s Bible became the Bible of the American Revolution.
“Still, after the War, Bibles were in short supply. On May 11, 1816, a who’s who of statesmen and clergymen met in New York City and formed the American Bible Society to publish and distribute Bibles across the new nation. Elias Boudinot, who had been president of the Continental Congress, gave $10,000 to launch the society and served as its president until his death in 1821, whereupon John Jay, the first chief justice of the US Supreme Court, became president. Francis Scott Key, author of the National Anthem, was vice president until his death in 1843.”
- Robert J. Morgan, 100 Bible Verses That Made America
In my recent trip to visit the grandchildren, the oldest of them went with me to Nashville, to sell used books and games. One of the books that I purchased in return was 100 Bible Verses That Made America by Robert J. Morgan. As we approach the 250th anniversary of the birth of the USA, I thought I would do a condensed mini-series on some of these verses, four posts per week for a few weeks – maybe not all 100 verses.
People wanted to get copies of the Bible for their churches and themselves. In 1777, the Continental Congress sent out a request for 20,000 Bibles from various European countries, but the Bibles never arrived. Aitken’s request to Congress was in response to their effort of getting Bible shipped to the colonies failing.
There is no Aitken translation of the Bible. He used the King James Version and then published the Bible from the existing version.
Later in 1829, the American Bible Society undertook a challenge to put a Bible in the hands of every American family. By 1839, they thought of providing Bibles to the entire world. Millions of copies were published and sent around the world in many different languages.
These days, even in the New KJV, the word is not published, but proclaimed.
May we all proclaim the Good News, at home, in our communities, and worldwide.
Soli Deo Gloria. Only to God be the Glory.
Thoughts from Mark "Hat" Rackley 
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