Creating a Study Bible for OpenLP

By default the Bibles in OpenLP are Presentation Bibles. A presentation Bible has all the Books and verses in the Bible in a format that makes it easy to present during a Church Service.

What if you want to use OpenLP to present a section of the Bible in a Bible Study class? Would it help to have Chapter titles, sub titles, notes and commentaries?

Sure it would! I will explain how you can do this. But first a warning!

Check the Bible Copyright to see if you are allowed to make any changes to the Bible! Bibles are either in the Public Domain or the copyright is owned by the folks that created the translation. Some copyrights will allow you to write notes in the margins and some don't even want you to do that! All copyrights do not allow you to give copies of the Bible to anyone after you modify the bible! So check out the copyright so the copyright police don't come and knock on your door!

For the rest of this page I am going to use the English Standard Version of the Bible...This Bible is in the Public Domain so there are no copyright restrictions to worry about. I am also starting with the Bible already loaded in OpenLP.

OpenLP allows you to add a Bible, remove a Bible, edit the metadata of a Bible...it does not allow you edit the actual Bible or export it.

Step 1 is to make a copy of the OpenLP ASV Bible.

Locate the OpenLP data directory.
Open the Bible directory.
Copy the ASV.sqlite file.
Create a new directory in your Documents directory.
Paste the copied file into the new directory.

Step 2 is to export the OpenLP Bible to a Comma Separated Value(CSV) file. OpenLP uses SQLITE databases. To export a SQLITE database you will need to use a database browser.

Open the online SQLITE browser.
Use the File->OpenDB menu option to open the copy of the database.
Double Click on the table titled 'book' in the left column. The center of the SQLITE browser window should now show the columns of the 'book' table with a few rows of data.
Enter 'SELECT book_reference_id, testament_reference_id, name FROM book' as the sql command and press the 'run' button.
Select the Export drop down menu to select 'Table to CSV'
Verify the settings for the export are: Type = CSV Delimiter = , Escape = " Column Name = NONE
Click on the 'OK' button and a file will be downloaded to your PC.
Move the file from your download directory to the directory with the copied database.
Rename the file to 'books.csv'
Switch back to the database browser and go through the same process choosing the 'verse' table, using 'SELECT book_id, chapter, verse, text FROM verse'as the SQL command and renaming the downloaded file to 'verse.csv'
Close the database browser window.

Step 3 is to cleanup the exported file. The export is plain text and we will need all text inside quotes.

Open the 'books.csv' file using your spreadsheet program of choice.
Enter the book name abbreviations in the column to the right of the book names.
Save the file as a spreadsheet. You will find that saving the file as a spreadsheet allows you to choose the options when saving as a CSV.
Save the file as a CSV with quotes around the text and the separator needs to be a comma. I suggest you put the number 1 at the start of the filename....this keeps the original export from the database as a backup just in case something goes wrong!
Open the 'verse.csv' file using your spreadsheet program of choice.
Save the file as a spreadsheet. You will find that saving the file as a spreadsheet allows you to choose the options when saving as a CSV.
Save the file as a CSV with quotes around the text and the separator needs to be a comma. I suggest you put the number 1 at the start of the filename....this keeps the original export from the database as a backup just in case something goes wrong!

Step 4 is to verify your csv files are able to be uploaded into OpenLP

Start OpenLP
Select Bible from the 'File->Import' menu.
Use the Wizard to import a CSV Bible using the two files you saved from the spreadsheet program. The files should upload without any errors....if you have errors you will have to troubleshoot until you get a clean upload.
Shut down OpenLP and remove the bible sqlite file you just created from the Data/Bibles directory.

Step 5 is to add the Chapter and Verse numbers to the verses and stop OpenLP from showing the chapter and verse numbers. You can skip this step, but your output will have duplicate verse numbering....
1:1 Chapter 1 The Creation of the World 1:1 In the beginning

Create a new sheet in the verses workbook.
Copy columns A,B,C from the original sheet and paste them into the new sheet.
Enter the following formula into cell C1: =B1&":"&C1&" "&$'1-Verses'.D1 This formula is from LibraOffice Calc and will be different for every spreadsheet program. The idea is to combine the chapter number in the B column with a colon(:) and the verse number in the C column. Then combine that information with the actual verse.
Drag the formula so it populates all of the rows that have a number in column C.
Save the workbook.
Save the sheet as a CSV file.
Use the steps above to upload this bible to OpenLP.
Change the Settings for Bibles in OpenLP so the Bible verse number is not shown.

Step 6 is to modify the verse file to add different attributes to the Verses. You have two possible paths when editing the verse file. You can use a "dumb" text editor like VI on Linux or Notepad on windows to edit the verse file or you can use a spreadsheet program to edit the verse file. If you use a spreadsheet program to edit the verse file remember to save your output file as a CSV file as described above.

Adding Chapter Titles

How you want the Chapter Titles to look will vary depending on how you want the Title to look and on how the bible verses are being displayed. This example works when only one verse is displayed on each slide. If the verses are being displayed in a continues fashion you may want to add a blank line before the Chapter Title to separate it from the previous verse. For each chapter you want to add a Chapter Title to do the following steps:

Place the cursor at the start of the verse 1 just inside the quotes
Type Chapter then the chapter number.
Type the Chapter Title.
Type  
Type the book number, a colon and the number one. Here is an example of Chapter 1 of Genisis:
"Chapter 1 The Creation of the World 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
If you are using a spreadsheet program press the Enter key to save your changes and save your spreadsheet.
Save the CSV file of the verses.
Import your modified bible into OpenLP as described above.

Adding sub titles

Sub titles are titles between verses within a Chapter. How the sub titles are displayed varies based on how the verses are being displayed. This example is for a sub title for verses that are displayed in continues verse format:

Place the cursor at the start of the verse 4 of Chapter 2 of Genesis just inside the quotes
Type  The Creation of Man and Woman .
Type the book number, a colon and the verse number. Here is an example of Genesis 2:4:
" The Creation of Man and Woman 2:4 2:4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven."
If you are using a spreadsheet program press the Enter key to save your changes and save your spreadsheet.
Save the CSV file of the verses.
Import your modified bible into OpenLP as described above.

Adding Verse Notes

Verse Notes are short explanations of words following a verse. This example is for a Note that works in most verse formats:

Place the cursor at the end of Genesis Chapter 1 verse 6 just inside the quotes.
Type  |Note: firmament - land, also verses 7, 8, 14, 15, 17, 20 
If you are using a spreadsheet program press the Enter key to save your changes and save your spreadsheet.
Save the CSV file of the verses.
Import your modified bible into OpenLP as described above.

Adding Commentary

Commentaries are commonly longer than the bible verses they are about. Check out the Commentary for Genesis Chapter 1 verses 1 and 2. You could use the methods above to add the pages of text to the verses. Be careful because most spreadsheets have limits to how much text you can type into a single cell!

You could create a new book to hold all the comments. Here too I suggest caution! If a new book is added to the Bible and we use each Chapter to relate to the original books of the Bible and we start each Verse of the new book with what Chapter and Verse the commentary applies to, then we would be able to add the commentaries as we need them. The hard part will be figuring out what verse you need!

The very simplest way to add the commentaries is to use a "Song". This really isn't adding commentaries to a Bible, but is simply a way to present the commentaries.

This example will create a new book called commentaries and add the commentaries for Verses 1 and 2 of Genesis:

Create the New Book

Open the book name spreadsheet.
Select the First row of data and insert a new row above the selected row.
Select cell A1 and enter the number 67
Select cell B1 and enter the number 1.
Select cell C1 and enter "Commentary".
Select cell D1 and enter "com".
Save the workbook using a new filename.
Save the sheet as a CSV file using a new filename.

Add Commentary to the Verse file

Open the Verses spreadsheet.
Select the First row of data and insert a new row above the selected row.
Select cell A1 and enter the number 67
Select cell B1 and enter the number 1.
Select cell C1 and enter the number 1.
Copy the commentary from the web page and paste it into a dumb text editor.
Add   at the end of each line of text and for each blank line.
Join all of the text so the text is one very long line of text. Below is an example of the commentary for Genesis 1:1-2:
Genesis 1:1, 2 . THE CREATION OF HEAVEN AND EARTH. 1. In the beginning--a period of remote and unknown antiquity, hid in the depths of eternal ages; and so the phrase is used in Proverbs 8:22 Proverbs 8:23 . God--the name of the Supreme Being, signifying in Hebrew, "Strong," "Mighty." It is expressive of omnipotent power; and by its use here in the plural form, is obscurely taught at the opening of the Bible, a doctrine clearly revealed in other parts of it, namely, that though God is one, there is a plurality of persons in the Godhead--Father, Son, and Spirit, who were engaged in the creative work ( Proverbs 8:27 , John 1:3 John 1:10 , Ephesians 3:9 , Hebrews 1:2 , Job 26:13 ). created--not formed from any pre-existing materials, but made out of nothing. the heaven and the earth--the universe. This first verse is a general introduction to the inspired volume, declaring the great and important truth that all things had a beginning; that nothing throughout the wide extent of nature existed from eternity, originated by chance, or from the skill of any inferior agent; but that the whole universe was produced by the creative power of God ( Acts 17:24 , Romans 11:36 ). After this preface, the narrative is confined to the earth. 2. the earth was without form and void--or in "confusion and emptiness," as the words are rendered in Isaiah 34:11 . This globe, at some undescribed period, having been convulsed and broken up, was a dark and watery waste for ages perhaps, till out of this chaotic state, the present fabric of the world was made to arise. the Spirit of God moved--literally, continued brooding over it, as a fowl does, when hatching eggs. The immediate agency of the Spirit, by working on the dead and discordant elements, combined, arranged, and ripened them into a state adapted for being the scene of a new creation. The account of this new creation properly begins at the end of this second verse; and the details of the process are described in the natural way an onlooker would have done, who beheld the changes that successively took place.
Copy the long single line of text and paste it into cell D1
Save the workbook using a new filename.
Save the sheet as a CSV file using a new filename.
Import your modified bible into OpenLP as described above using the modified file

While importing you will be asked what Bible Book the new book corresponds to. I know the ASV Bible does not have a book named Wisdom, so this is the book I selected when asked.

Step 7 Adding Font Color and Bold/Italic formatting

The CSV Bible importer strips all formatting except the line break(>br>) from the input file before creating the verses. The only way to add Bold formatting or text color is to modify the database after it has been created.

Adding Bold Formatting to a Chapter Title

Open the online SQLITE browser.
Use the File->OpenDB menu option to open the copy of the database you have uploaded to OpenLP.
Double Click on the table titled 'verse' in the left column. The center of the SQLITE browser window should now show the columns of the 'verse' table with a few rows of data.
Type update verse set text = ' as the start of the sql command.
Place your pointer over the 'Text' column for the row that you want to edit. In my case this is Genesis 1:1.
Right click and select 'Copy to SQL Text' from the pop up menu. The text in the 'Text' column will be added to your SQL command.
Add the following to the end of the SQL command: ' where book_id = 2 AND chapter = 1 AND verse = 1 Please use the information from your screen for the row you are working on....Be careful to get the values right as you will be updating the database in a few more steps!
Place the cursor on the SQL Command between the single quote and the word 'Chapter' and type .
Place the cursor on the SQL Command between the word 'World' and the start of the line break(
) and type  Your SQL Command should look similar to:
update verse set text = 'Chapter 1 The Creation of the World 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.' where book_id =2 AND chapter = 1 AND verse = 1
Press the 'run' button. The Row you were working on should now be updated to include the  and  tags.
Save the database.
Start OpenLP and display Genesis 1:1. You should see a Bold Chapter heading with the verse in normal text.
Close OpenLP. You can't make any changes to the database if OpenLP is running!

Adding Italics Formatting to a Sub Title

Locate the Row for Genesis 2:4. You can look through the verses or you can create a SQL command to show you the verse...The SQL command for my database would be Select * from verse where book_id = 2 AND chapter = 2 AND verse = 4.
Type update verse set text = ' as the start of the sql command.
Place your pointer over the 'Text' column for the row that you want to edit.
Right click and select 'Copy to SQL Text' from the pop up menu. The text in the 'Text' column will be added to your SQL command.
Add the following to the end of the SQL command: ' where book_id = 2 AND chapter = 2 AND verse = 4
Place the cursor on the SQL Command just before the word 'The' and type .
Place the cursor on the SQL Command just after the word 'woman' and type . Your SQL Command should look similar to:
 The Creation of Man and Woman 2:4 These are the generations of the heavens and of the earth when they were created, in the day that Jehovah God made earth and heaven.
Press the 'run' button. The Row you were working on should now be updated to include the  and  tags.
Save the database.
Start OpenLP and display Genesis 2:4. You should see a Italics sub heading with the verse in normal text.

Adding Red Text Color to the words of Jesus

Locate the Row for Matthew 3:15.
Type update verse set text = ' as the start of the sql command.
Place your pointer over the 'Text' column for the row that you want to edit.
Right click and select 'Copy to SQL Text' from the pop up menu. The text in the 'Text' column will be added to your SQL command.
Add the following to the end of the SQL command: ' where book_id = 41 AND chapter = 3 AND verse = 15
Place the cursor on the SQL Command just before the word 'Suffer,' and type .
Place the cursor on the SQL Command just before the word 'Then' and type . Your SQL Command should look similar to:
But Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer [it] now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffereth him.
Press the 'run' button. The Row you were working on should now be updated to include the  and  tags.
Save the database.
Start OpenLP and display Matthew 3:15. You should see red text and normal text in the verse.