The Eternal Impact of Bible Proofreading

“Thank you for proofreading my Bible.”

Imagine our surprise to get an unexpected, unsolicited word of gratitude from a man named Arlyn. He found out that, among our varied services, Peachtree proofreads Bibles for many of the world’s top Bible publishers. Arlyn then proceeded to do something very few people do. He reached out with a message of heartfelt gratitude. This is what he said:

I’ve had my Bible for twenty years, and I read it every day. Until recently it never occurred to me that someone read these pages before me—to make sure that my Bible was free from errors. Over the years I’ve found many truths in these pages. I’ve found God’s care for me. I’ve found conviction. I found faith. But the one thing I never found was a typo.

Want to guess how much that simple, short message encouraged our team?

Our Bible proofreaders work daily to ensure every Bible we work on is free of error. Compared to a global disaster, a typo seems inconsequential, doesn’t it?  But that’s not the case. 

Remember how frequently Jesus emphasized the importance of small things—toddlers, a poor woman’s meager offering, faith the size of the miniscule mustard seed? His point seemed to be that more often than not, it’s the littlest, most overlooked things that God uses in the most powerful ways. 

Take, for example, the Christian restaurant worker at the franchise up the road. She’s only making minimum wage—why is she so joyful? Because she knows she’s not merely making sandwiches. She’s making it possible for a dad to meet his college-aged daughter for a quick lunch and an important conversation. She’s helping a frazzled, single mom feed her two kids on a busy school night. 

In the same way, Peachtree’s Bible proofreaders know that they’re doing much more than circling mistakes with red pens. They’re finding and eliminating avoidable distractions so that Bible readers can engage God Almighty. And that’s a big, important mission.

The thoughtful message we received from Arlyn confirmed that our work matters. Catching errors makes an eternal difference. Because we carefully proofed his Bible, he has been able to meet with God every day for twenty years. Never once did he find a mistake that hijacked his thoughts or undermined his ability to trust what was printed on the page.

And consider this: In the United States alone, more than twenty million Bibles are sold and distributed each year. Each one of those copies of God’s Word ends up somewhere—in a bedroom or dorm room, a hotel room or prison cell. God only knows how many lives, how many Arlyns, will be touched by all those copies and versions of the Holy Scriptures. 

How can we help you print your next Bible free of distracting errors? Contact us.