Yes, praise God, you read that correctly! This morning, the Chergash team and I finished the consultant check of the last verses of the final book, which completes the entire New Testament in their language! Yesterday, we completed the NT in the Gurbet language, and on Tuesday, we completed the NT in the Arli language. That means that this week, we have brought three full New Testaments through the final consultant check!
This was all by design since, over the last seven years, we have been doing a “cluster” project, which means I have been working simultaneously with teams of translators in several languages, going through the NT verse-by-verse at the same pace. Each week, I met with each team, covering roughly the same passage of Scripture, which made the checking process more efficient. These three languages are similar, so what we learned in translating each language helped suggest how we might want to translate in the other two related languages. So now, all three languages (Arli, Gurbet, and Chergash) have had the entire NT consultant checked!
Now, each team will do a final revision by checking details such as punctuation, cross-references, spelling, consistency, etc., so that, Lord willing, by mid-February, the whole NT will be ready to be typeset. In 2025, we plan to print and distribute the NT in these three languages and finish publishing them online and in mobile applications. They will also make audio recordings of the NT in these three languages, which is especially strategic in the oral culture of the Roma.
Praise God for this milestone, and thank you for all your prayers and financial support to make it possible. You have been an essential part of this work.
Pamala has been asking me how I would like to celebrate. Well, someday, it would be nice to tour Israel, though now is probably not the best time to do that. Perhaps that opportunity will present itself sometime in the future. In the meantime, I might take in a concert when a group I like comes to KC–that would be fun and worshipful. Until then, Pam is spoiling me by offering to make special desserts or a salmon dinner, and maybe we will go out to eat.
In the meantime, I am preparing to check Old Testament books in these languages. Another consultant is checking Genesis, and I will probably check Jonah and Ruth in each language when they have those books ready for me to check.
I’ve been working mainly in Greek for the last 15 years of ministry, so now I need to spin up my Hebrew in preparation for checking OT books. I’ve been investing in OT Hebrew commentaries in digital format and any day a big shipment of ancient OT commentaries should arrive on our doorstep. Fun times!
Bless you all for your undying support!
Gratefully, Todd (and Pamala)
