Crossway Books & Bibles and The British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS) have announced an expanded long-term agreement for international publication and distribution of the ESV Bible (English Standard Version). The agreement enables BFBS and its affiliates to publish and distribute special editions of Crossway's more than 120 current ESV text Bibles and future text editions in the countries where they operate.

BFBS will continue to champion the ESV as its primary, essentially literal translation throughout the worldwide network of Bible societies.

"We want to see the Bible's life-changing message known and loved by people everywhere, and this agreement will mean many more people have access to the ESV's clear, contemporary translation," said Derek Hill, director of resources for the BFBS.

The partnership has already produced the Chinese government approval of the bilingual Chinese (CUV)-English (ESV) Bible.

"I can think of no better way for the next generation of leaders who want to learn English-in China and other countries-than to do so by using a bilingual Bible," said Crossway President Lane Dennis.

Spanish, Thai, Khmer and Swahili diglots are already completed; and Russian, German, Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam and others are in process.

Bible distribution projects are a vital component of the partnership, which recently facilitated the printing and distribution of more than 14,000 ESV Bibles in remote parts of Tanzania. Other distribution projects are planned, focusing on regions where English is spoken, Bibles are scarce and resources are limited.