The Modern Language Bible (Berkeley Version) is a revision of the original 1959 project of a Dutch-born American by the name of Gerrit Verkuyl, who served for many years with the Board of Christian Education in the Presbyterian Church. He began work on his translation in 1936 and published a translation of the New Testament in 1945. He was encouraged to translate the Old Testament as well. Under his supervision, a staff of 20 translators completed the work in 1959, publishing the collected work as the Berkeley Version in Modern English.