Bible sales on the rise due to coronavirus: Replace fear with faith

With uncertainty amidst the coronavirus pandemic and many people held up in their homes, people are ordering books online, especially the Good Book, according to some sources.

For many Christians in Ghana, this is no accident, as people often go to the Bible as a source of hope in times of crisis and uncertainty. People draw hope from the Scriptures because in it they see a God who is with them during difficult times. The Bible, as God's words to us, is a reminder that He doesn't leave us to walk through difficult times alone.

“In Ghana, even amidst the suffering and financial hardship we've continued to see people engage with Methodist Book Depot by patronizing our shops purchasing Bibles as encouraging gifts for loved ones during these times,”a shop attendant said. "We believe people are buying Bibles because there’s a longing to connect with God, find meaning, and experience peace she added.

According to (sales) information from top Christian publishers, a vast majority of Americans own Bibles, yet a large percentage say they never read it, but that could be changing. Alabaster Co. , a small business in California that sells books of the Bible for the Instagram generation, saw an increase in the sales of upto 143 percent compared to last year. “In this life-altering and unprecedented pandemic, people are looking for hope and restoration,"- Brian Chung, co-founder and business director of Alabaster Co., told Fox News.

Many people in China are patronizing Bibles to read and meditate due to the fear of the pandemic. Most people have taken to social media platforms encouraging others to purchase the Bible and through that develop a personal relationship with God. Others are even anticipating the world will end soon hence the need to keep copies of the Bible.

Rev Ock Soo Park (Founder of Good News Mission and International Youth Fellowship) a renowned man of God from South Korea has said that what we keep in our hearts and mind makes or unmakes us. According to him the more we read the Bible the more the mind of God gets formed in us hence he encourages all to read the Bible very often to be able to overcome the fear of COVID-19.

Some say that every misfortune has a fortune. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic it is envisaged that the world population shall develop increased levels of loneliness, depression, harmful alcohol and drug use, and self-harm or suicidal behaviour. On the contrary publishers, wholesalers, retailers and online vendors of bibles are rather experiencing increase in revenue during the pandemic.