Douay-Rheims Challoner Bible

The traditional English Bible of the Catholic Church.

Douay-Rheims Challoner Bible - Read Online

Translated from the Latin Vulgate by English Catholic scholars in exile, with the New Testament published at Rheims in 1582 and the Old Testament at Douai by 1610, this Bible was later revised for clarity by Bishop Richard Challoner. Unlike the King James Version (KJV), it includes Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and the Books of Maccabees, starting at Genesis (DRC).


Old Testament

New Testament

About the Douay-Rheims Challoner Bible (DRC) Translation

The Douay-Rheims Bible, translated from the Latin Vulgate by English Catholic scholars in exile (New Testament published at Rheims in 1582, Old Testament at Douai in 1609-1610) and later revised for clarity by Bishop Richard Challoner in the mid-18th century, is the traditional English Bible of the Catholic Church. Unlike most Protestant translations, it includes the Deuterocanonical books - Tobit, Judith, Wisdom, Sirach, Baruch, and First and Second Maccabees - which the Catholic Church recognizes as part of the Old Testament canon. The Challoner revision softened much of the original's heavily Latinate vocabulary while preserving its formal, dignified tone, making it the standard English Catholic Bible for nearly two centuries before the mid-20th century's newer Catholic translations. Read the Douay-Rheims Challoner Bible online here, verse by verse, including the Deuterocanonical books.

Challoner's revision softened much of the original's heavily Latinate vocabulary while keeping its formal tone, making it the standard English Catholic Bible for nearly two centuries, well before translations like the <a href="/bible/asv">American Standard-ASV1901 (ASV)</a> existed. Continue reading through <a href="/bible/drc/psalms">Psalms (DRC)</a>.