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and the stories of faith they read about in
Hebrews 11 were incomplete. So much of the
New Testament alludes to the Old. However,
they did not have an Old Testament in their
language that they could read or that the old
ones could read or the young ones could
learn to read. What could they do?
With many indigenous groups, outsiders
arrive and drown out the voice and sound of
their native language. Missionaries work as
quickly as possible to learn the language of
the people because it is proven that the heart
language of the people reaches the soul and
stills the spirit in a special way. Paul knew this.

We can read about it in Acts 22 where in the
first few verses he calms the crowd of rioters
by speaking Hebrew. Later, when he talks to
the Centurion and the Tribune, we know he
was speaking in Greek or perhaps Latin, the
official language of the Roman Empire.

And in like manner, the Old Testament
Translation Project is born. Some of the
stories had been translated enough to
help the teaching in the churches by the
missionaries who know the language and
are working on the New Testament revision.

The men from Chajuraña realized that
they needed to take responsibility for their
Bible, and they are excited about giving the
finished books as they produce them to the
old ones so that they might read God’s Word
in their mother tongue. This is their project.

It is not a missionary’s idea. They want to do
this for their people.

We practiced methods and taught them new
techniques to help them get the job done.

They will need help both financially and
technically. We will travel there a few times a
year to consult, help correct the translation,
and encourage the men—a team of six
FAITHFUL men. They are halfway through
Genesis, and the old ones who have read it
love it.

The workman is worthy of his hire. They want
to work full-time, at least six hours a day, but
they need to provide for their families. We
are commanded to tell them the Gospel and
to disciple and train them. We instruct them
to read the Scriptures. Can one imagine not
having the Psalms in our Bibles or Proverbs
or even the stories of Esther and Ruth? They
do not have to imagine, it is their reality.

Would we say, “Well, they do not really need
that part of the Bible”?
They want ALL of the Word of God in their
language. Can we blame them? We should
help them get it! W
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