Use Emoji to Search the Bible

As it says right on this site, I'm a member of the Bible Gateway Blogger Grid. This week I was sent a news release from Bible Gateway, which I'm republishing verbatim as I found this so fascinating. Searching the Bible from your phone with emoji!

In Time for World Emoji Day July 17, Use Emoji to Search the Bible on Bible Gateway

3% of public Bible notes and 2% of Tweets linking to Bible verses contain emoji

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (July 13, 2016) – Bible Gateway, the Internet’s most visited Christian website, is now providing its millions of visitors the ability to use more than 330 emoji in keyword searches to find their favorite Bible verses and passages in more than 50 English Bible versions.

“We’re not changing any words in the text of the Bible – we’re simply letting people search using emoji that they type themselves,” says Stephen Smith, senior director, digital products for Bible Gateway. For example, when the emoji for “clapping hands” and “tree” are entered into Bible Gateway’s keyword search box using the NIV translation, the search results display Isaiah 55:12 — “You will go out in joy and be led forth in peace; the mountains and hills will burst into song before you, and all the trees of the field will clap their hands.”

Bible search using emoji on Bible Gateway can be achieved by using the emoji keyboard on iPhone or Android smartphones while accessing Bible Gateway’s website or mobile app (when connected with the Internet).

Social sharing statistics show Bible readers use emoji while they read Scripture. About 3% of public Bible notes and 2% of Tweets linking to Bible verses contain emoji, with the percentages increasing each year. The most-common emoji associated with Bible verses include: “praying hands,” “heart,” “praising hands,” and “open book.” A collection of emoji can be found at Emojipedia®.

For more information see the Bible Gateway Blog post.