The B I B L E

He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.” Mark 16:15

Every Wednesday evening, the church where I work offers Music & Missions for children from age 3 through 5^th grade.  The music portion is provided by three choirs:  Cherub [3-4 yr. olds], Music Makers [K-2^nd Grade], and the Voices of Praise [3^rd-5^th Grade].  The mission portion is taught by the leader in each respective group.  This year, we have been studying missionaries: where they serve, who they serve, and why they serve.

Tonight’s lesson dealt with missionaries who translate the Bible into another language.  Although the Bible is the most translated piece of literature in the world, I was stunned to learn that 340,000,000 people do not have a even a portion of the Bible in their own language.  In 1994, it was estimated that of the then 3,000+ languages in the world, 341 had complete Bibles, 822 some parts of the Bible, and that Bible translation was in progress in an additional 1,000 languages.  We did a project paper with the kids that showed 7 words in the Balangao language of the Philippines – all of which meant “carry.”  The difference between the seven words hinged on how something was carried.  When we began to think of English words that we used for carry, we came up with: tote, transport, convey, move, conduct, cart, clutch, hold, lug – the meaning of which appeared to hinge on what was being carried.   It was clear that one needed to know the customs and social lives of the people in order to know what particular word to use in any given situation.  Obviously translating the Bible into the language of the people must be an exhaustive task.

I don’t know if the children learned anything, but I certainly did!  I am grateful for the copies of Scripture that I have at my disposal, and have a greater appreciation for the labor of love that brought the various translations into existence. I understand a bit better the cost in human time, talent and dedication, and pray that God will send the laborers into the translation fields to provide the Word of God to all nations, kindred, tongues, and people.

The B I B L E – yes, that’s the book for me.

I stand alone on the Word of God, the B I B L E.