Vietnam (MNN) ― Many Vietnamese Christians are using a Bible that was last translated in 1926 by an American missionary. The World Bible Translation Center is wrapping up an Easy-To-Read (ERV) Old Testament translation and will be releasing the full Vietnamese Bible later this year.
Editor Tam Pham says it was high time. Rather than wait for someone else to undertake the project, he says he began working with WBTC with the New Testament translation 18 years ago. Why? "The language has changed so much that many passages are hard to understand. So, I feel that a new translation with an Easy-To-Read format would reach more people for Christ."
WBTC's President Gary Bishop says now is the time to move because the Vietnamese government has relaxed its restrictions. That makes the need for more support even more urgent.
For most Vietnamese, the cost of a Bible is beyond reach. They're looking for people to help subsidize or sponsor Bibles for believers who cannot afford one on their own. "The World Bible Translation Center is committed to doing 20,000 New Testaments, 20,000 Bibles, as soon as we get the entire Bible completed, and then 20,000 Vietnamese English New Testaments. That's a drop in the bucket, so we have a huge need for Bibles because of the extraordinary numbers."
Pham is finishing up work on the glossary and other references, then the project will be ready for print. At this point, Bishop says the Bible will be released in both the United States and in Vietnam, although the timing is contingent on the printing deadlines.
WBTC is committed to providing the ERV Bible to aid in bringing people to an understanding of who makes up the church and how the church is to work. They provide ERV Bibles and New Testaments in 30 languages around the world to ministries and churches working to plant more churches. Click here if you can help.
