For the first time since its original imprint in 1982, the New King James Version of the Bible is in the top spot of a publishing best-seller list thanks to an evangelical initiative called the Million Bible Challenge.
The challenge paired Thomas Nelson Inc., one of the country's largest Bible publishers, with CBA-formerly known as the Christian Booksellers Association-to exclusively sell the New King James Version for $1 per copy at all CBA stores.
“From day one, our objective was to make it affordable and easy for people to spread the word of God to as many people as possible,” said Wayne Hastings, senior vice president and publisher of Nelson Bibles.
The campaign's goal was to get the NKJV to more than 1 million people by the end of 2005. Two weeks after its March launch, Nelson sold more than 500,000 units.
According to the CBA best-seller list for May, based on March Bible sales in the United States and Canada, the New King James Version trumped the former top spot holder, the New International Version, which is now No. 2. The King James Version-written in 1611-is third.
The company's Web site encouraged people to give the Bibles to “friends, family, co-workers, or even people they don't know-like the teen at the drive-through, the lady at the dry cleaners, or the person who checks you out at the grocery store.”
The New King James Version is an attempt to make the language of the King James Version more common, with fewer “thees” and “thous,” according to Georgetown University theology professor Anthony Tambasco.
Religion News Service