Why isn’t the TNIV available on BibleGateway?

Q. Do you know why BibleGateway does not have the TNIV?

The TNIV (Today’s New International Version) was officially “folded into” the updated NIV in 2011. The TNIV, published in 2005 and produced by the same translation committee as the NIV, was essentially the third edition of the NIV, after the 1978 and 1984 editions. Previously Biblica and Zondervan were publishing the TNIV alongside the 1984 NIV, but now only a single edition of the translation, the 2011 update, is being published.

Harper Collins, which owns Zondervan, also owns BibleGateway, and in keeping with this policy it does not make the TNIV available on line. For those who still want to use the TNIV online, however, it can be found at BibleStudyTools. [Update: Unfortunately the TNIV is no longer available at this site, either.]

I have to admit that the translation remains a favorite of mine for its accuracy, readability, and especially its careful work in the area of gender accuracy, and I use it often. The Books of the Bible made its debut in the TNIV in 2007 before being reissued in the latest update to the NIV. The TNIV was used for other notable projects such as The Bible Experience, an audio recording of the Scriptures by leading actors. The 2011 update to the NIV incorporates most of the changes the TNIV made to the 1984 edition.

Author: Christopher R Smith

The Rev. Dr. Christopher R. Smith is an an ordained minister, a writer, and a biblical scholar. He was active in parish and student ministry for twenty-five years. He was a consulting editor to the International Bible Society (now Biblica) for The Books of the Bible, an edition of the New International Version (NIV) that presents the biblical books according to their natural literary outlines, without chapters and verses. His Understanding the Books of the Bible study guide series is keyed to this format. He was also a consultant to Tyndale House for the Immerse Bible, an edition of the New Living Translation (NLT) that similarly presents the Scriptures in their natural literary forms, without chapters and verses or section headings. He has a B.A. from Harvard in English and American Literature and Language, a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Gordon-Conwell, and a Ph.D. in the History of Christian Life and Thought, with a minor concentration in Bible, from Boston College, in the joint program with Andover Newton Theological School. View all posts by Christopher R Smith

8 thoughts on “Why isn’t the TNIV available on BibleGateway?”

david etheridge says:

January 30, 2016 at 6:01 pm

It seems that it’s been removed from Bible Study Tools as well. Is it available anywhere online today?

Reply
1. Christopher R Smith says:
  
  January 30, 2016 at 6:50 pm
  
  Apparently the disappearance of the TNIV from Bible Study Tools is in keeping with the “there’s only one NIV” philosophy that Biblica (the copyright holder) has been pursuing since the release of the “latest update to the NIV” in 2011. Sermon Central still “offers” the TNIV online, but when you follow any of the chapter links on its site, they take you to the latest NIV instead! A Google search did turn up an online-readable PDF of the TNIV on a local church’s website. Maybe that’s what we’re down to these days! (The TNIV is still a big favorite of mine.)
  
  Reply
  1. Paul Calin says:
    
    February 13, 2017 at 8:32 pm
    
    Mine as well! Although mine has no chapters or verses (great for devotionals but not so great for academic study due to the fact that I can’t cite chapters or verses!).
  2. Christopher R Smith says:
    
    February 14, 2017 at 9:02 am
    
    You can probably find a TNIV with chapters and verses somewhere online in the used book market. I think it’s important to bear in mind that chapters and verses are for reference or academic purposes. We miss out on a better experience of the Bible when we use them for devotional purposes as well (reading a chapter a day, treating individual verses as “precious promises,” etc.). Devotionally, the Bible is meant to be read, long, deeply, and well.
  3. David Haseldine says:
    
    December 29, 2021 at 5:00 pm
    
    That link didn’t work for my pc. But this did: http://www.chinesebibleonline.com/software/TNIV_Bible.pdf
2. Dr. William Conley Th.D., Ph.D. says:
  
  October 30, 2020 at 7:43 am
  
  You can download and use the full TNIV at > http://www.chinesebibleonline.com/software/TNIV_Bible.pdf
  It is free for personal use and study.
  
  Reply
Amy D says:

June 17, 2017 at 2:03 am

Very useful blog. Thanks. Fyi the two links in the last pargraph are not working anymore.

Reply
1. Christopher R Smith says:
  
  June 17, 2017 at 9:10 am
  
  Thanks for your encouragement, and for letting me know about these outdated links. I’ve now replaced them with ones that work.
  
  Reply