NIV Translation
New International Version Translation
My work in Bible translation is one of the high points of my ministry experience.
In 1997, I was invited to join the Committee on Bible Translation (CBT), an independent group of fifteen scholars who are responsible for the New International Version of the Bible (NIV). The NIV was first published as a complete Bible in 1978 and was revised slightly in 1984. It has been the most widely used English Bible since then. But CBT recognizes that Bible translation is never over. Biblical scholars continue to learn more about the language and world of the Bible, and we want to reflect the best and latest scholarship in the NIV. At the same time, the English language continues to change, and we want the NIV to speak naturally and clearly to modern speakers of English all over the world. Therefore, CBT meets annually to consider ways in which we might be able to maintain the accuracy and clarity of the NIV so that it can meet the needs of a new generation of readers.
Since 2006 I have had the honor of chairing the Committee. It is immensely stimulating to spend intensive weeks with other biblical scholars discussing the meaning of the text and how best to say it in modern English. I have learned a great deal from my colleagues over the years.
The revisions we introduced over that time bore fruit in the 2005 Today's New International Version (now withdrawn from publication) and the 2011 NIV. CBT continues to meet every year, introducing revisions that will eventually appear in a new edition of the NIV.