PrimeBible Verse Preview
Turn every Bible reference on your site into an instant verse preview.
PrimeBible Verse Preview automatically finds references in your content — ”John 3:16”, ”Romans 8:1-4”, even shorthand like ”2 Sam 7:12” — and turns each one into an elegant tooltip that reveals the verse the moment a reader hovers or taps. No copying Scripture into every post, no interrupting your writing, no sending readers off to another site.
It reads like plain writing and just works: type a reference naturally and it becomes interactive on the front end.
Built and maintained by PrimeBible, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to making Scripture accessible to everyone, it is fast, privacy-respecting, and free — forever. No accounts, no upsells, no tracking.
Key Features
- Automatic Detection – Finds Bible references like ”John 3:16” or ”Romans 8:1-4” in your content
- Manual References – Add explicit references with the
[primebible]shortcode - Multiple Translations – Choose from KJV, ESV, ASV, WEB, and more
- Translation Selector – Pick from supported translations instead of typing codes manually
- API Test Tool – Verify the selected translation and endpoint from the settings screen
- Mobile Optimized – Touch-friendly with long-press support for mobile devices
- Lightning Fast – Aggressive caching, lazy loading, and prefetch optimization
- Fully Customizable – Control appearance, behavior, timing, and styling
- Privacy First – No tracking, no external dependencies beyond the Bible API
- Accessibility – Keyboard navigation and screen reader friendly
- Theme Support – Light, dark, or auto-detect system preference
- Performance – Deferred loading, intersection observer, minimal DOM manipulation
How It Works
- Install and activate the plugin
- Configure your preferred Bible translation and appearance
- Write content naturally: ”For God so loved the world (John 3:16)”
- The reference automatically becomes interactive
- Visitors hover or tap to see the verse instantly
Advanced Features
- Lazy Scanning – Only processes content when it enters viewport
- Smart Caching – LRU cache with configurable size and expiry
- Per-Post Control – Disable scanning on specific posts/pages via meta box
- Exclude Selectors – Prevent scanning in code blocks, comments, etc.
- CSP Aware – Injected styles carry a configurable nonce attribute (works with static-nonce CSP setups; per-request rotating nonces are not supported)
- Chapter Verse Counts – Optional JSON config for accurate verse range detection
- Bundled Verse Counts – Accurate cross-chapter expansion works out of the box
- Prefetch – Intelligently preloads nearby references
- Analytics Ready – Optional Google Analytics integration
- Custom CSS – Add your own styles to match your theme
Perfect For
- Theology and Bible study blogs
- Church websites and ministries
- Christian authors and writers
- Seminary and Bible college sites
- Devotional and sermon websites
- Christian education platforms
Technical Highlights
- No jQuery or external library dependencies
- Modern vanilla JavaScript (ES2020+)
- Deferred script loading for zero blocking
- Intersection Observer API for performance
- Fetch API with retry logic and timeout
- Mobile-first responsive design
- Lightweight – a single deferred script, no jQuery, no render blocking
Additional Info
About PrimeBible
PrimeBible is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization dedicated to making deep Bible study accessible to everyone. Our platform provides free tools including: * Hebrew and Greek original language analysis * Strong’s Concordance integration * Cross-reference explorer * Biblical timeline * Scholarly articles on messianic prophecy, textual criticism, and theology Learn more at primebible.com
Support the Mission
This plugin is free and always will be. If it blesses your ministry, consider: * Leaving a 5-star review * Sharing with other Christian content creators * Donating to support nonprofit Bible study tools at primebible.com/donate
Credits
Developed by the PrimeBible team with love for the global church. Special thanks to the WordPress community and all beta testers who provided feedback.
Privacy Policy
Data Collection: This plugin does not collect, store, or transmit any personal data about your visitors.
API Requests: When a verse tooltip is displayed, the plugin fetches verse text from primebible.com’s API. These requests include: – The Bible reference (e.g., ”John 3:16”) – The requested translation (e.g., ”KJV”)
No Tracking: PrimeBible does not log IP addresses, track user behavior, or use cookies from these API requests.
Optional Analytics: If you enable the analytics setting, the plugin will fire a Google Analytics event when a tooltip is opened (if GA is already installed on your site). This is disabled by default.
Third-Party Services: The plugin connects to primebible.com’s API to fetch verse text. No other third-party services are used. For more information, see the PrimeBible Privacy Policy.
Copyright and Licensing
PrimeBible Verse Preview is free software: you can redistribute it and/or modify it under the terms of the GNU General Public License as published by the Free Software Foundation, either version 2 of the License, or (at your option) any later version.
This program is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. See the GNU General Public License for more details.
Bible translations are subject to their respective copyright holders. PrimeBible provides access to public domain translations and those licensed for free distribution.
Developer Notes
Hooks and Filters
Filter: primebible_config
Modify the JavaScript configuration before it’s output.
add_filter('primebible_config', function($config) {
$config['translation'] = 'ESV';
$config['theme'] = 'dark';
return $config;
});
Filter: primebible_available_translations
Customize the translation dropdown.
add_filter('primebible_available_translations', function($translations) {
$translations['YLT'] = 'Young\'s Literal Translation';
return $translations;
});
Action: primebible_before_enqueue
Runs before scripts are enqueued (if loading conditions are met).
add_action('primebible_before_enqueue', function() {
// Your code here
});
Programmatic Control
Disable on specific page by template:
add_filter('primebible_should_load', function($should_load) {
if (is_page_template('template-landing.php')) {
return false;
}
return $should_load;
});
GitHub Repository
Development happens on GitHub: github.com/primebible/wordpress-plugin Contributions welcome: – Bug reports – Feature requests – Pull requests – Documentation improvements
Support
Documentation: primebible.com/docs/wordpress-plugin Support Forum: wordpress.org/support/plugin/primebible Email: support@primebible.com Average Response Time: 24-48 hours
We’re committed to excellent support. If you have an issue, we’ll help you resolve it.