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, to some degree or another, Bibleless. Most of my neighbors did not have Scriptures in their language. A few had heard that the New Testament …
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's not surprising that our first question is often about which translation is best. Yet so many ethnic groups don’t even have a first translation in their language. For many, the thought of Bible translation evokes images of missionaries in a remote …
The Tower of Babel, Part 1
The tower of Babel, though never completed, has never been completely forgotten. Babel has endured to this day for most as a fable, an intriguing attempt to explain the many languages spoken around the world and the diversity and disunity that come from language barriers. For those who understand Babel as more than myth, the events surrounding the …