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Now the King James Bible is celebrating its 400th anniversary this year. 

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Now first printed in 1611, only a couple hundred copies of that edition survive today, 

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so imagine the surprise at a small English church when they discovered an original copy in plain sight. 

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Richard Greene reports.

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The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want. 

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He maketh me to lie down in green pastures.

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A little English church in a tiny village has just made an incredible discovery.

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He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness, for his name's sake.

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The ornate old Bible that had been sitting on a table for longer 

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than anyone could remember was a 400-year-old King James Bible, 

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arguably the most important book in the English language.

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It was hiding in plain sight. It even had a sign saying it was from 1611. 

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But no one knew whether or not to believe it.

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Only about 200 copies of the original are known to exist. 

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To find out whether theirs was one of them, 

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Geoff Proctor and two other members of the church 

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took it to the Reverend David Smith at the Museum of the Book in London.

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We put it on his table and immediately he opened it. 

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He said, "Yes, this is a 1611 Bible."

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Smith checked for two particular mistakes that were known to be in early editions.

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The St. Laurence Bible had one that showed it was an original.

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In one section where it says... it should have said Jesus walked into the Garden of Gethsemane,

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 it says Judas walked into the Garden of Gethsemane.

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Commissioned by a king to end bloody religious strife in England, 

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the King James Bible had an enormous influence on both church and literature. 

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It popularized or introduced dozens of phrases that have become part of our daily lives.

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Born again. Eat, drink and be merry. God forbid. Eye for an eye.

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St. Laurence's Church is planning to keep its King James Bible in use 

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once they raise money to build a special display case.

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That's very unusual, says Moira Goff of the British Library. 

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Most of the surviving originals are in libraries at universities or cathedrals, 

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but there just may be a few copies still kicking around village churches.

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At least some of the original King James Bibles were put away safely as treasures

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and are yet to be discovered as this one has been.

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An extraordinary discovery certainly, 

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but perhaps one predicted by the words of the King James Bible itself, "Seek and ye shall find."