INSTITUTE FOR BIBLE TRANSLATION
The Children's Bible

Background – The first edition of Institute for Bible Translation’s (IBT) Children’s Bible was published in 1983 in the Russian language. Since then, this effective ministry tool loved by both adults and children has been published in close to 40 languages in the former Soviet Union and distributed in nearly 8 million copies.

Initially, the concept of the book was to provide bible-less peoples with a “short-cut Bible” while the Bible translation process moved forward in their languages. But because of the appeal of this beautiful book, it has acquired a life of its own. In Russia, where it is the most popular book of all books next to the full Bible it is lovingly known as “The Blue Bible.” Because of its effectiveness as a tool to reach young and old with the Good News, it is now time to make the Children’s Bible available in major languages spoken outside of Russia

Design and Features – The IBT Children’s Bible contains about 544 pages, 220 of which are full color illustrations. These traditional illustrations of Scripture passages are photo reproductions of a set of oil paintings well known around the world, having been used for many decades, perhaps nearly a century, in Sunday schools and other forms of ministry to children. For adults unfamiliar with the Bible, these illustrations in the Children’s Bible have proven invaluable in aiding comprehension and understanding. Each “story” (passage of Scripture) in the book is illustrated by one of these timeless paintings.

The key feature of the IBT Children’s Bible is the text. Unlike many other Bibles for children, the text of the IBT version consists primarily of exact Scripture quotations derived from published or unpublished Scripture translations available in the languages in which the book is produced. This feature places the book at a middle school, or high-school, reading level. This is one factor that has made the Children’s Bible such an effective ministry tool among adults as well as among children.

The Scripture selections in the Children’s Bible are drawn from both the Old and New Testaments. This provides a significant overview of the text of the entire Bible. It begins with the Creation story and ends with the Apostle John’s revelation of the Lamb upon its throne. It brings into focus God’s plan of salvation as foreshadowed in the Old Testament and completed in Jesus the Messiah of the New Testament.

The physical aspects of the book includes a laminated, full color hard cover, top quality glossy paper, and a sewn binding to provide strength for heavy use and re-use. In the back of the book a set of Bible maps is found. There is also a set of photographs from the Bible lands. These are captioned, and a Scripture reference is provided to connect each picture with the geographical location named in the text in the book. As stated above, the text in the IBT Children’s Bible consists of direct quotes from the Bible to a very large extent. Therefore, readers in all languages in which this book is published are confronted with the Word of God. This, in itself, is the greatest motivation for translating, printing, and distributing this book also in language where it has not yet been published. The Word of God is powerful. It reaches hearts irrespective of the readers’ ethnicity and cultural background. This is true for readers who have never before come face to face with the Creator’s own Word, as well as those who have some familiarity with the Christian faith.

The Children’s Bible serves as an evangelistic tool , and is also useful in ministry to believers. In languages where it has already been introduced, it has resulted in many committing their lives to Christ and beginning to serve in the Kingdom of God. Some have become pastors, others missionaries, and yet others effective members of local churches providing a healing influence in their communities. To demonstrate a sense of the powerful text in the Children’s Bible, two selections are quoted below – one from the Old Testament (Psalm 23) and one from the New Testament (Luke 17:11-19). (Note: The English text has so far never been published, but used only as a source for translators.)

THE TEN LEPERS

Jesus miraculously healed many ill people - the blind, the paralytics, the mute, the epileptics and so on. Here is an example: "And it came about while He was on the way to Jerusalem, that He was passing between Samaria and Galilee. And as He entered a certain village, ten leprous men who stood at a distance met Him; and they raised their voices, saying, `Jesus, Master, have mercy on us!' And when He saw them, He said to them, `Go and show yourselves to the priests.' And it came about that as they were going, they were cleansed. Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. And Jesus answered and said, `Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine-where are they? Was no one found who turned back to give glory to God, except this foreigner?'" (Luke 17:11-18) Jesus called the grateful man healed of leprosy a "foreigner' because Jews and. Samaritans were* two different nations, with even two different religions (see page 214•). Then Jesus said to him: "Rise, and go your way; your faith has made you well." (Luke 17:19) LUKE 17:11-19

PSALM OF DAVID

When David was a shepherd he loved to play the harp and sing psalms which he wrote himself. As the king he continued to write songs which singers and the people sang glorifying God. Many of David's psalms are written in the Bible. They are inspired by love towards God, and the Lord's name is glorified in them. Being a shepherd, David knew very well how necessary it was for sheep to have a good shepherd, so in one of his psalms he sang about the Lord:

"The Lord is my shepherd,
I shall not want.
He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters. He restores my soul;
He guides me in the paths of righteousness For His name's sake.
Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I fear no evil; for Thou art with me.
Thou dost prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies;
Thou hast anointed my head with oil; My cup overflows.
Surely goodness and lovingkindness will follow me all the days of my life,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever." PSALM 23


The minimal bridge passages serve has helpful introductions to assist readers in better understanding the proper setting and background for the Scripture selection. Note that all 220 illustrations in the Children’s Bible are full-page reproductions. The above two examples are reduced to minimize file size.

Millions of people have been exposed to God’s Word through the IBT Children’s Bible. Many lives have been changed for eternity. It is now the appropriate time to introduce this beautiful book also into the cultures of other people groups. Distribution of the Children’s Bible – A book like the Children’s Bible should be widely distributed. This involves making it available to both believers and unbelievers. This fact will probably influence the preparation of the text somewhat. The actual distribution of the book should be handled by many well-established ministries (“partners”) working among people groups in various countries.

Summary -- In the early 1990’s, Institute for Bible Translation was amazed to see the enormous demand for the Children’s Bible in the former Soviet Union. Since that time, the acceptance of this book in the many cultures in which it has been released has proven its value over and over again. The message of the book ministers to children and adults alike.

In Christ,

Institute for Bible Translation
Contact:
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email contact, ibtna@ibtnet.org