The mysterious origins of those Gideon's Bibles! (thrifted Bible review)

The Gideon Bible is not some special version or translation of the Bible that hotels really like (the books are usually plain old King James Versions); they're named for the group that distributes them.
Gideons International got its start in 1898, when two traveling businessmen, John H. Nicholson and Samuel E. Hill, arrived at the crowded Central Hotel in Boscobel, Wisconsin, for the night.
The two had never met, but there was only one double room left, so they decided to share it. The men got to talking and found they shared a common faith and had both toyed with the idea of creating an evangelical association for Christian businessmen.
They decided to give it a shot together. They called a meeting the following year for men who were interested in joining together for “mutual recognition, personal evangelism, and united service for the Lord.” Only one other person showed up to that meeting—William J. Knights, who suggested they name their organization after Gideon, an Old Testament judge who led a small band of men to defeat a much larger army.
As the group expanded in its first few years, most of the new members were men who frequently traveled for work and spent many of their nights in hotel rooms. They wondered how they might be more effective witnesses for Christ on the road, and hit upon the idea of providing Bibles to hotels. They could be used not only by the Gideons’ members as they traveled around the country, but also borrowed by other guests in need of them. They started with the Superior Hotel in Superior, Montana, then set out to put a Bible in every hotel room in America. Since 1908, they’ve distributed more than 1.7 billion Bibles, expanding beyond the U.S. to more than 190 other countries.
PASSING THEM OUT
The Gideons don’t go room to room themselves, slipping the books in nightstands like Bible elves. When a hotel opens, local Gideons members will present a Bible to the hotel's general manager in a small ceremony and then give enough books for each room and some extras to the housekeeping staff for distribution. In addition to hotel rooms, the Gideons also give Bibles to military bases, hospitals, nursing homes, prisons and to students on college campuses.
Each Bible handed out is free of charge, and the project is funded entirely by donations to the group. The Gideons will also replace any books that go missing or get worn out, and the group says that the books have a six-year life expectancy, on average. They don’t get bent out of shape when people ignore the “thou shalt not steal” rule when it comes to the Bibles, either. They’d rather you just take the book if you need it that badly.
Based on the success of the Gideons’ Bible project -- the group’s own statistics claim 25% of the people who check into a hotel room will read the Bible placed there -- other religious groups have begun distributing their own free literature to hotels. The Marriott hotel chain, founded by a Mormon, places the The Book of Mormon in many of its rooms, and many hotels also offer Buddhist, Hindu, Christian Scientist or Scientologist books along with the standard Gideon Bible.

The full history of the Gideons...

Gideon Bible cover color chart...

**********

If you would like to support this channel and/or my ministry you can visit and shop our Etsy shop at...

Amazon Wish list for channel...

...or make a one time donation via PayPal at...

Homeless Outreach Ministry Amazon list to purchase clothing and camping items for people experiencing homelessness...

Praise Yeshua Hamashiach! All glory goes to YHWH!
Shalom chaverim.

[anthonynegron]

I'm in a hotel this week found the bible in the drawer and wanted some extra info no The Gideons, thank you for sharing the info!!

[kennorris]

Fun video. Keep on Keepin' on! May God open doors for you daily. God Bless!

[donblosser]

Thanks for the plug for Gideon Bibles. If any of your viewers are motivated to get God's Word out to the public you couldn't do better than to join the Gideon's organization. I did a few years ago. Regarding thrift stores, technically Gideon Bibles are intended to NEVER be sold. I wouldn't make a big deal over one or two copies but if they have a bunch for sale you should contact your local Gideon's. When we supply a hotel with new Bibles every five or six years, we come back and pick up all the old Bibles ( Gideon property) when housekeeping staff has put the new ones in the rooms.. We then put a soft paperback cover on them for re-use in prisons. I guess the chaplains don't want them whacking each other upside the head with hardcover Bibles.

[thomasdreyer]

Just a clarification comment as you said early in your video, "what's the difference between a "Gideons Bible" and a KJV Bible? Nothing, but "this" Bible is placed by the Gideons. Close, but not quite right. There is no such thing as a "Gideon" or "Gideon's Bible", though it's not a terrible thing to call it that. Actually there are many "Gideon placed Bibles" (Bibles placed by the Gideons) and they can come in a variety of translations. A Gideon placed KJV Bible would be no different than a KJV Bible bought at Walmart or a book store, except you would see mention of the Gideons, their emblem, a unique helps/where to find section, and in many of the New Testaments you would see a plan of salvation in the back inside cover, AND we don't sell the Bibles. We actually give them away, but only to certain "authorized" places. The Gideons International is not a denomination, but instead an association of like minded Christians who qualify by virtue of their occupation and spiritual situation, and having been approved by their pastors, members of evangelical churches, fellowhips or assemblys. We place these Bibles and NT's all over the world, about 80 million a year, over 2 1/2 billion since 1908. We are a ministerial arm of the local church and partner with them to bring people to Christ.

[BAbivaJr]

The Gideon bible that I have (I believe it was from my hospital stay over 10 years ago) is in English Standard Version(ESV). Thank you for enlightening us on this "Gideons" bible. God bless you, brother!

[misty]

you're in Arizona? me too, looking to find others seeking God and humanity, the lowly. Amen to you by the way for the reach out in YouTube and the homeless my heart is for the homeless now I'm tight roping being one myself

[clamshell]

The Gideon has more modern text and updated speech compared to the King James Versions. They are alot more easier to understand.

[badang]

I am still reading this Berkeley version Bible that you are holding..it's my favourite Bible

[EcouragingGodStories]

Have you ever shared and posted your full length testimony on the Internet?