The goal of Aramaic Bible translation is to translate God’s Word into all modern Aramaic dialects: Assyrian, Chaldean, Suryoyo, Ma’Luli, and Mardini. Speakers of these languages can trace their Christian roots back almost 2,000 years.

War and violence have displaced many Aramaic Christians from their homelands. Rob Hilbert of Lutheran Bible Translators, himself a descendant of Assyrian grandparents, is assisting with the project.

“As war and unrest continues in Syria, Iraq and other parts of the Middle East, more Aramaic Christians are being forced from their homes. Many have emigrated to the U.S. among other western countries. By providing the comfort of Scripture in their own language, we can help the Church better serve them and assuage some of the trauma they have endured.”

Second and third generations of Aramaic descent also benefit from the work of the translation teams, gaining insight in to their history and culture while reading and hearing God’s Word in their own ancient mother tongues. A member of the Chaldean translation team relates how instead of opening his store, one shop owner sat in his car for over an hour listening to audio Scripture. “This is so interesting I cannot leave it!” he said.

In addition to new translation, the project has updated older translations and produced Scripture videos to address the needs of Aramaic speakers across the globe.