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How the BibleProject Brings Scripture to Millions Worldwide

Screenshot from the BibleProject’s YouTube

How the BibleProject Brings Scripture to Millions Worldwide

By Movieguide® Contributor

Stemming from a passion project by two college friends, BibleProject has grown to impact millions of people’s understanding of scripture across 56 languages.

“None of us were smart enough to think we would create this big nonprofit out of this. This really was a passion project of two friends who thought, ‘I think this would be helpful to not only just us, but some of our friends,’” Michael McDonald, Chief Global Focus and Strategic Relationships Officer at BibleProject, told CBN. “And the crowd just caught up so fast in not only watching the videos but wanting more of them.”

“And they started helping fund them with, you know, five bucks here, ten bucks there. And then we had enough funds to make another video and away we went,” McDonald continued.

Starting with two videos in 2014, BibleProject has grown to create over 180 videos and 350 podcast episodes in less than 10 years. Its work has garnered over 620 million views across 200 countries worldwide.

The company’s founders, Tim Mackie and Jon Collins, draw on their backgrounds in pastoring, seminary and videomaking to create engaging and accurate videos.

“This is just basically our workflow for one of our fully animated videos,” Collins said while drawing on a large whiteboard. “So, some products are illustration, some are an animation, some are writing, some are storyboarding.”

“Then I meet with the artist and we go through all this in detail,” Mackie added. “And then the artist goes and draws a beautiful version. So, by the time I sit down to record, I’ve got this in my head and every line and all the wording is connected.”

The goal of BibleProject is to help people find a deeper appreciation for scripture and understand that it is the inspired Word of God rather than an unapproachable tome.

“It’s pretty neat to see kids from like the age of ten who are even writing in saying just how engaged they are in the Scriptures. And then we’ve got like 85-year-old folks that are writing and saying, ‘I thought this one was for my grandkids. At 85, I never thought I would go back and read the Bible with new eyes,’” McDonald said.

BibleProject is also helping people from different faiths come to know Jesus.

“And so you find people in Tunisia watching the Arabic videos and sending in comments of, ‘I’m Muslim who has been interested in the Bible and I don’t know how to, you know, engage or read it. And I found your videos on YouTube because they’re free,’” McDonald said, “and now they’re opening up the scriptures in a unique way and understanding what it’s saying about Jesus.”

The BibleProject aims to “help people experience the Bible in a way that is approachable, engaging, and transformative.”

“We do this by showcasing the literary art of the Scriptures and tracing biblical themes from beginning to end,” they explained.

Most recently, the group launched a new series that dives into the Sermon on the Mount.

“Most of us have probably heard sayings from Jesus’ famous teaching, commonly called the Sermon on the Mount. It’s only 100 verses, but the sermon has created an enduring legacy that has shaped countless lives throughout history,” the BibleProject wrote.

Movieguide® previously reported on BibleProject:

In less than 10 years, BibleProject has gone from an idea between college friends to a multi-million-dollar nonprofit that makes the Bible approachable and engaging. 

Tim Mackie and Jon Collins always wanted to make something that would get more people to read the Bible. In 2014, they experimented with two animated videos about the Bible. Donning the experiment, BibleProject, they posted the animations online with no expectations of where they would lead. 

Mackie and Collins’ experiment has grown into a nonprofit that makes the Bible, for many, more engaging than ever. BibleProject has created over 180 animated videos and 350 podcast episodes. Its efforts have garnered over 620 million views and reached over 200 countries.


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