Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Winter 2013 | Page 33

R

on Beers ’79 led that first meeting in the
fall of 1984. Dave Veerman ’65 remembers
it was an exploratory discussion about
publishing prospects; Ron mentioned the idea of a
new study Bible. As concepts flew, Bruce Barton
’65 pointed out that application was the missing
link in people’s lives. “We still see the application
void today,” says Bruce. “Many sermons only have
a sentence or two suggesting how to put biblical
concepts into practice.”
Not long after that meeting, Ron, Dave, Bruce,
2 Timothy 3:16-17 (NIV)
and Jim Galvin ’76 began work on a five-year
project. Ron led the editorial process. Dave wrote
book introductions and charts, and Bruce wrote “megathemes” for each
book. All four contributed to the notes.
“We had no idea what we were getting into,” says Dave.
Their work, the Life Application Study Bible, became the best-selling
study Bible in the world. To date, it has sold more than 10 million copies in
seven English translations and has been translated into 44 languages.
In 1988, Bruce, Dave, and Jim formed Livingstone Corporation to help
roll out the new Bibles and to develop a family of supportive products with
Tyndale House Publishers. Over the next 24 years, Livingstone produced
more than 190 editions of the Bible in 14 different translations for almost
every major Bible publisher. Livingstone’s team works on 12 to 14 Bibles
per year.
One of Bruce’s and Dave’s favorite projects includes the Praise and Worship
Bible, edited by the late Dr. Robert Webber hon, professor of theology
emeritus. The Student’s Life Application Study Bible holds a special place for
Dave, as he, Bruce, and Jim all served in executive positions with Youth for
Christ and are passionate about youth ministry.
Livingstone also provides consulting, design, editorial, and production
services for many notable Christian publishers, including B&H, NavPress,
Thomas Nelson, Tyndale, and Zondervan.
“Our mission is to serve Christian publishers, so we work behind the
scenes,” says Dave. Livingstone has a hand in many of the products that
Christians use at home and in church— from Bibles and devotional books
to Family1 Entertainment movie discussion guides and the latest Lauraine
Snelling novel. —by Ruby Thomas

“All Scripture is
God-breathed
and is useful...
so that the
servant of
God may be
thoroughly
equipped...”

Nicholas Perrin NKJFB
Leland Ryken hon ESV
Richard Schultz HCSB, NLT
Samuel J. Schultz hon NIV
J. Julius Scott ’56 ESV
Mark Talbot ESV
Merrill C. Tenney hon NASB, NIV
John Walton M.A. ’75 FIASB, NCB, NLT, TM
G. Henry Waterman b.d. ’48, m.a. ’53 NIV
Herbert Wolf ’60 NASB, NIV, NIVSB
Robert Yarbrough ESV
Ronald Youngblood hon NIV

Key to Bible
Abbreviations

I

n North America, Bibles are available in countless niche versions,
catering to everyone from teens and grandmothers to sports aficionados.
Yet Africa’s 400 million Christians have access to less than a handful of
study Bibles written with their culture uniquely in mind.
To help fill the void, Dr. Matthew Elliott ’90, M.A. ’92, president
of Oasis International, is overseeing the creation of the Africa Study Bible,
to be published in 2014. Written by Africans for Africans, the Africa
Study Bible will be the first-ever comprehensive study Bible ministering
to the specific needs of Protestant Christians in Africa.
The team includes Matthew’s colleagues at Oasis, 15 project scholars/
editors, and as many as 300 African writers. A healthy contingent of
Wheaton College graduates are represented, including consulting editor Dr. Gregg A. Okesson ’88, M.A. ’94, M.A. ’98, associate professor of leadership and development at
Asbury Theological Seminary; Gideon
“For the word of
Para-Mallam, M.A. ’99, a contributing
God is alive
writer from Nigeria; and Tanya Thomas
and powerful.”
’99, M.A. ’99, Oasis’ chief of operations.
Hebrews 4:12 (NLT)
The African writing team also features
about a dozen Wheaton Graduate School
alumni.
The Africa Study Bible seeks to help
make Scripture more accessible to Africa’s
vast numbers of multilingual communities
using the clear language of the New Living Translation. The first version
will be in English; subsequent versions are planned in French, Portuguese,
and Arabic.
The Africa Study Bible also aspires to a culturally relevant, discipleshipfriendly focus. Planned and written by African pastors and scholars, the
Bible’s study tools will contain insights and applications targeted at the
culture of African readers, helping them connect biblical principles to
life transformation.
Matthew, who earned a doctorate in New Testament from the
University of Aberdeen in Scotland, cites his business/economics major
at Wheaton and his participation with Wheaton in Israel as formative
experiences that helped shape his vision for international Christian
publishing. He and his wife Laura Nelson Elliott ’91, M.A. ’92 live in
Winfield, Illinois, with their three children. —by Dawn Kotapish ’92

ASB Archaeological Study Bible
CEB The Common English Bible
ESV English Standard Version
FIASB Faith in Action Study Bible
HCSB Holman Christian Standard Bible
NASB New American Standard Bible
NCB New Century Bible
NETS New English Translation of
the Septuagint
NIV New International Version
NIVSB New International Version Study Bible

NKJFB New King James Version
Family Bible
NKJWSB New King James Version
Woman’s Study Bible
NLT New Living Translation
NLSB New Living Study Bible
NSB Nelson Study Bible
TM The Message
TNIV Today’s New International Version
WOB World’s Oldest Bible (Codex
Sinaiticus) [web-based]

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