Searching for Out of Print Editions?
Are you on the hunt for an out-of-print Bible? If so, you're not alone. If I had a penny for every e-mail I received asking for tips on how to find vintage and out-of-print editions ... well, I'd have a lot of change. Unfortunately, there are no secret methods. Or if there are, no one's revealed them to me. Once a book goes out of print, you're only hope is to find either a bookstore or a private seller who has one and is willing to part with it.
Online Sources
The two sources I frequently recommend are eBay and AbeBooks.com. Plug your information into these two, and you'll get a snapshot (admittedly incomplete) of who has what at the moment. As books trade hands, this is always changing ... which means if you don't find what you're looking for, check back regularly.
Publishers
Sometimes you have not because you ask not. Or at least, you ask the wrong person. One of the first sources I'd check with when looking for an out-of-print edition is the publisher. You never know what they have in reserve, and even if they can't hook you up, they might be able to offer more information. It's worth a shot.
Bricks + Mortar
Whenever I travel, I make a point of hitting any independent bookstores on the map. You never know what's been sitting on the shelf for the past ten years, waiting for you to come along. Sadly, bookstores that stock nice Bibles are fairly rare. I've had decent luck at Half Price Books.
You may never find what you're looking for. And if you do, the seller might want more than you're willing to spend. The key is patience. If you keep checking over time, the odds in your favor increase quite a bit. If anyone has tips to share or just stories of fulfilled (or unfulfilled) quests, let's hear about them in the comments.
J. Mark Bertrand is a novelist and pastor whose writing on Bible design has helped spark a publishing revolution. Mark is the author of Rethinking Worldview: Learning to Think, Live, and Speak in This World (Crossway, 2007), as well as the novels Back on Murder, Pattern of Wounds, and Nothing to Hide—described as a “series worth getting attached to” (Christianity Today) by “a major crime fiction talent” (Weekly Standard) in the vein of Michael Connelly, Ian Rankin, and Henning Mankell.
Mark has a BA in English Literature from Union University, an MFA in Creative Writing from the University of Houston, and an M.Div. from Heidelberg Theological Seminary. Through his influential Bible Design Blog, Mark has championed a new generation of readable Bibles. He is a founding member of the steering committee of the Society of Bible Craftsmanship, and chairs the Society’s Award Committee. His work was featured in the November 2021 issue of FaithLife’s Bible Study Magazine.
Mark also serves on the board of Worldview Academy, where he has been a member of the faculty of theology since 2003. Since 2017, he has been an ordained teaching elder in the Presbyterian Church in America. He and his wife Laurie life in Sioux Falls, South Dakota.