When I want to scribble in the margins of Scripture — circle a word, draw an arrow between verses, sketch a thought mid-devotion — I open Pencil Bible. It is a Bible journaling app for iPhone, iPad, and Android that lets me write, highlight, draw, and journal directly on the page.^1^3
On iPad I get Apple Pencil and PencilKit. On iPhone and Android I still annotate on the verses themselves. The app carries 31 translations, all built in: 25 are free to read, including NLT, NASB, AMP, TPT, and KJV, and licensed editions such as ESV, NIV, and CSB are one-time purchases. Dark mode, search, and customizable fonts sit around that same page.^1
Pencil Bible is Erin Walker's indie project at Launchround in South Africa. He started looking for a digital margin after his kids kept taking the pencils he used for early study, then took the idea to Indiegogo and blogged about the journey as he built it.^4
Reading stays free. On iPhone, writing and drawing on the page are free too. On iPad, journaling starts with a 14-day free trial, then continues with a subscription or a one-time Lifetime unlock. I keep coming back for the wide margin — the homepage readers say it made Bible reading consistent, and closer to God's Word.^1
