August 2017 – When a Bible translation is finished and can be handed over to the people, this is a reason for great joy. However, during the long road that it takes to produce a Bible translation, there are milestones that are also cause for celebration. Recently, two translations in the Isles of the Sea project reached one such milestone: a finished first draft of the New Testament.
At the end of 2016 the first draft of the Satawal New Testament was completed. This is a major accomplishment, but only the first step towards publishing it. The team is now continuing with revisions. One of the ways to improve the quality of the translation will be to get community feedback. The translation will also need to be checked by a translation consultant who will make sure the text accurately reflects the meaning of the original text. So, there is a lot of work to be done, but the first major step has been completed!
A few months ago the first draft of the Niuafo’ou translation of the New Testament was completed. The team has now started to check each other’s books, and the consultant, Paulus Kieviet, has started on the consultant check. It is hoped that publishing a review edition will give the team feed-back from the local community. A lot of work still needs to be done, but the completion of the first draft is a major milestone!