The Bible and Copyright Law

Overview

Some versions of the Bible are copyright-free, including the King James Version (KJV) and the World English Bible (WEB).

Copyright-free versions

King James Version (KJV): The KJV is in the public domain outside of the United Kingdom. It predates the concept of copyright by almost a century.

World English Bible (WEB): The WEB is in the public domain and is published by eBible.org.

Other versions that are in the public domain

American Standard Version (ASV)

Darby Translation (DARBY)

Douay-Rheims 1899 American Edition (DRA)

Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

Reina-Valera Antigua (RVA)

Biblia Sacra Vulgata (VULGATE)

Copyright-protected versions

Many modern translations of the Bible are copyright-protected because they are new creative works.

Modern Bible translations often have "fair use" clauses in their copyright statements. This means that the text can be used in limited ways without special permission.

____________________________________

References

Google search results