Noah is remembered for building the ark and surviving the flood with his family (Genesis 6-8). After the flood, God blessed Noah and his family, and then they left the ark in search of a new life. In the last recorded event of Noah’s life, he got upset with his son Ham and placed a curse on Ham’s son Canaan (Genesis 9:24). Yet we read in Genesis 9:28 that …
Toward a Theology of Translation, Part 2
In this brief series on a theology of Bible translation, we are stepping away from the most common questions about translation. In their place, we are exploring the foundational questions about God and His Word in the language of the nations. In the first blog post, we considered two propositions derived from the Scriptures. First, God reigns. Second, God …
An Open Letter on Behalf of the Bibleless
For several years I lived in northern Cameroon. In this region, I knew people from various ethnic groups and of various religious backgrounds. However, these diverse peoples had in common the fact that they were all, in one degree or another, Bibleless. Most of my neighbors did not have Scriptures in their language. A few had heard that portions or a New …
The Tower of Babel, Part 2
The tower of Babel is a well-known story but not necessarily a well understood event in redemptive history. In the first blogpost in this series, I argued that the tower of Babel is a reminder of something greater than human pride and divine judgment. It is a testimony to God’s mercy and common grace. God impeded our ability to communicate with each other …
Toward a Theology of Translation, Part 1
Bible translation is about far more than choosing a version. With so many Bible translations in English, it is not surprising that our first question about translations is which is best. Yet so many ethnic groups don’t even have their first translation in their language. For many the thought of Bible translation brings images of missionaries in a remote …