# Bible Gateway API: Search the Bible

> Finds Bible verses on Bible Gateway that contain the search words or relate to a topic. Returns the verse text and links in Bible order.

Unofficial. Not affiliated with or endorsed by Bible Gateway.

- Page: https://fous.com/methods/biblegateway.com/search-bible
- Method: `biblegateway.com/search_bible`, version 1
- Website: biblegateway.com
- Returns: total matches; verses with reference, text, link
- Effect: read (it gets data and changes nothing)
- Sign-in: none needed
- Cost: 1 credit per completed run (1¢ with pay as you go); failed runs are free
- Verified: Nov 2, 2026

## Inputs

| Field | Type | Required | In the run below | Description |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| `part` | string | no | `"old_testament"` | Part of the Bible to search, for example "new_testament". One of "whole_bible", "old_testament", "new_testament". Default "whole_bible". |
| `query` | string | yes | `"forgiveness"` | Words or a topic to search for, for example "love is patient". |
| `max_results` | integer | no | `10` | Maximum verses to return, for example 25. Default 25. |
| `translation` | string | no | `"King James Version"` | Bible translation name or abbreviation, for example "King James Version" or "KJV". Default "NIV". |

## Output

From a run on Oct 23, 2026. Its input:

```json
{
  "part": "old_testament",
  "query": "forgiveness",
  "max_results": 10,
  "translation": "King James Version"
}
```

Its output:

```json
{
  "verses": [
    {
      "link": "https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm%20130%3A4&version=KJV",
      "text": "But there is forgiveness with thee, that thou mayest be feared.",
      "reference": "Psalm 130:4"
    },
    {
      "link": "https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Daniel%209%3A9&version=KJV",
      "text": "To the Lord our God belong mercies and forgivenesses, though we have rebelled against him;",
      "reference": "Daniel 9:9"
    }
  ],
  "total_matches": 2
}
```

## Run it

From code, with a Fous API key in `FOUS_API_KEY`; the answer's `data` holds the output:

```bash
curl https://api.fous.com/v1/runs \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $FOUS_API_KEY" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -d '{"method":"biblegateway.com/search_bible","input":{"part":"old_testament","query":"forgiveness","max_results":10,"translation":"King James Version"}}'
```

From an AI agent connected to the Fous MCP server: its `run` with the same method and input. To connect one, give it `set up https://fous.com/SKILL.md`.

## Ask your agent

- Find every verse that mentions the phrase "love is patient" in the New Testament, using the NIV, and show me the first 10 results with their references.
- Search the whole Bible in the King James Version for verses about forgiveness and list the total number of matches.
- I need Old Testament verses containing the word "shepherd" in the ESV, capped at 15 results, sorted in Bible order.
- On biblegateway.com, look up verses on faithfulness in the New Living Translation and give me up to 50 results with links.
- Pull up New Testament passages that relate to the topic of anxiety, using the NIV translation, and return the verse text along with each reference.

## Input schema

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "required": [
    "query"
  ],
  "properties": {
    "part": {
      "enum": [
        "whole_bible",
        "old_testament",
        "new_testament"
      ],
      "type": "string",
      "default": "whole_bible",
      "description": "Part of the Bible to search, for example \"new_testament\"."
    },
    "query": {
      "type": "string",
      "minLength": 1,
      "description": "Words or a topic to search for, for example \"love is patient\"."
    },
    "max_results": {
      "type": "integer",
      "default": 25,
      "maximum": 100,
      "minimum": 1,
      "description": "Maximum verses to return, for example 25."
    },
    "translation": {
      "type": "string",
      "default": "NIV",
      "description": "Bible translation name or abbreviation, for example \"King James Version\" or \"KJV\"."
    }
  }
}
```

## Output schema

```json
{
  "type": "object",
  "required": [
    "total_matches",
    "verses"
  ],
  "properties": {
    "verses": {
      "type": "array",
      "items": {
        "type": "object",
        "required": [
          "reference",
          "text",
          "link"
        ],
        "properties": {
          "link": {
            "type": "string"
          },
          "text": {
            "type": "string"
          },
          "reference": {
            "type": "string"
          }
        }
      }
    },
    "total_matches": {
      "type": [
        "integer",
        "null"
      ],
      "description": "Total matching verses within the selected part, when shown."
    }
  }
}
```

## See more

- [Bible Gateway API: Get Bible passage](https://fous.com/methods/biblegateway.com/get-passage.md): Reads up to one chapter of a Bible passage in a chosen Bible Gateway translation. Licensed translations may show only part of the requested passage.
- [Bible Gateway API: Get Verse of the Day](https://fous.com/methods/biblegateway.com/get-verse-of-the-day.md): Gets Bible Gateway's Verse of the Day in the requested translation (NIV by default). The date is the one Bible Gateway assigns, which may differ from the local date.
- [Quran.com API: Search Quran verses](https://fous.com/methods/quran.com/search-quran.md): Finds Quran.com verses matching a word or topic, with Arabic text and a translation in the selected language, in Quran.com search order.
- [Project Gutenberg API: Search free books](https://fous.com/methods/gutenberg.org/search-free-books.md): Finds free public-domain Project Gutenberg books by title, author or topic, with authors, languages, subjects, recent downloads, and reading and download links. Public-domain status is based on the United States.
- [Poetry Foundation API: Search poems](https://fous.com/methods/poetryfoundation.org/search-poems.md): Finds poems matching a topic or occasion, or poems by a named poet, in Poetry Foundation search order. Older magazine poems without public text have no first two lines; untagged poems have no themes or occasions.
- [Britannica API: Search articles](https://fous.com/methods/britannica.com/search-articles.md): Searches Britannica for encyclopedia articles and returns their titles, short descriptions, article links and images when shown. Excludes other search formats such as videos, questions and stories.
- [Open Library API: Search books](https://fous.com/methods/openlibrary.org/search-books.md): Finds Open Library books by search words, optionally narrowed by author and subject, sorted by relevance or publication age. Returns work-level results; free_online means at least one edition is marked public or borrowable, not that a loan is available now.
- [The Verge API: Search news](https://fous.com/methods/theverge.com/search-news.md): Searches The Verge articles by keyword, with optional date filters, sorting and pagination. Only the first 100 matches from The Verge search are used.
- [All Bible Gateway methods](https://fous.com/methods/biblegateway.com.md)