MAP — Modular Aggregation of Principles for Bible Translation

https://journals.sagepub.com/toc/tbtd/77/2

The articles in this issue fall into two groups. The first four are reflections on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in Bible translation, three of which were presented at the Bible Translation Conference in Chiang Mai, Thailand, in October 2025. Then we have three articles that discuss practical translation issues, followed by six book reviews.

Matthijs de Jong argues that because Bible translation is interpretive and culturally embedded, involving both representation and transformation, AI drafting is problematic. He strongly advocates for the human translator to remain the primary decision-maker in this deeply interpretive, culturally embedded task.

Judy Heath, Jeff Heath, and Emma Kuipers discuss the technical, practical, and ethical aspects of providing translators with machine-generated first drafts of Scripture in their language. They show that AI-generated drafts contain errors of both exegetical accuracy and naturalness and argue that the post-editing of these drafts is often hampered by automation bias, cognitive anchoring, and skill decay. Like De Jong, they conclude that the first draft should remain in the hands of first-language speakers.

Martha Wade, on the other hand, supports the use of AI in the form of Scripture Forge. On the basis of her experience with the Apal language in Papua New Guinea, she argues that the tool can help translation teams who have little access to translation resources, and that even though Scripture Forge drafts require extensive correction, they can still serve as functional first drafts for experienced translators.

Willem van Peursen, Professor of Digital Humanities and Artificial Intelligence at VU Amsterdam, provides a response to the three articles above. He acknowledges the current problems with AI drafting as voiced by the first two articles, but also sees opportunities and potential for such tools to be further developed and refined.

Michael Seheri examines the paradigm shift from equivalence-based linguistic models toward translation strategies that prioritize communicative function and cultural context, the shift which resulted in Nord’s Skopostheorie. Seheri uses Gen 18.1-19 as a case study to demonstrate that it is the functionalist translation that fosters inclusivity, clarity, and theological integrity, enabling Scripture to function effectively within diverse liturgical contexts.

Gregory Forth’s contribution is on the translation of the names for unclean animals mentioned in Lev 11.4-7 and Deut 14.7-8 in the Kambera Bible. This article continues his discussion on unclean birds in our December 2024 issue.

Ian Atkinson discusses the problem of tracking the participants and addressees in Ps 32 and suggests solutions for the problematic verses.

The book reviews we offer are Bronwen Cleaver’s discussion of Kenneth McElhanon’s Biblical Metaphors: Explaining Biblical Metaphors Obscured in Translation, and Fausto Liriano’s discussions of Bronwen Cleaver’s Oral Bible Translation and Biblical Performance in Southern Siberia and of Expanding Approaches to Bible Translation: Multimodal Perspectives, edited by James Maxey. Jean-Claude Loba Mkole reviews Stanley Porter’s New Testament Theology and the Greek Language: A Linguistic Reconceptualization, Drew Maust Margaret Bender and Thomas Belt’s The New Voice of God: Language, Worldview, and the Cherokee Bible, and Marlon Winedt Tobias Houston’s Bible Translating as a Loyal Activity: A Model for Bible Translation in the Majority World.