Africa Study Bible Sampler - Flipbook - Page 44
A NOTE OF THANKS
W
orking on the Africa Study Bible (ASB) for
the last seven years has been one of the
most exciting things I have ever done. In twenty
years of working for Africa, I have never witnessed
the work of God up close quite like this. Most
days, we have felt God’s special presence and
provision. Often, needs were met before we even
knew that they were needs. God brought people
with special skills to work with us just when the
project needed them the most. He brought people to pray and give at just the right time as well.
As you read these pages, remember that the
Africa Study Bible is a gift from God’s people
around the world to you, the readers, and to Africa. We are thankful that they were listening to
God’s voice and for their strong commitment and
generosity! The ASB is a beautiful demonstration
of God’s family around the world working together, each bringing their unique skills and gifts.
We would like to especially commend and
bless Tyndale House Publishers, Tyndale House
Foundation, and the Tyndale Foundation network for the skills and resources they made available to the ASB project. They went far beyond
what we could have ever imagined. It was in Dr.
Kenneth Taylor’s office that some of the roots of
this project began to grow. Dr. Taylor was one of
the few people who would call us up unexpectedly and ask, “How can I pray for you? How is the
ministry in Africa going?” His humble spirit and
generous heart continue today in his son Mark,
Mary Kleine at the Tyndale Foundation, and in
all that Tyndale does. We honour Tyndale for all
they have done and pray that this effort will be
worthy of their trust in us.
To all the others whom God brought to us,
your names should really be mentioned every
time I talk about what God has done with the
Africa Study Bible. Thank you to Bruce, Tite, Janice, Hannah, Greg, Larry, Ming, Kimberly, and
Natalie—there is a much longer list of people
to thank, but you all deserve special mention.
Jeremy, you brought the needed skills to deliver
printed copies of the ASB to the people of God
in Africa! We thank Tim for his art that inspires
us to read and meditate on God's Word. Among
David's warriors were thirty Mighty Men, and
then there were “the Three” deserving special
honour (2 Samuel 23). There are also three men,
without whom, the ASB may never have been
completed. Danny, you helped birth this Bible
and have stood by us and worked with us ever
since. Paul, we were in great need and you listened to God’s call, responded, and have laboured
almost every day since. John, from our very first
conversation in 2011, it was obvious that God had
gifted you for the job. Thank you for your sacrifice,
faithfulness, and example of godliness.
And thanks to my mom and dad (Ed and Virginia Elliott) for all your prayers, support, and
encouragement since you founded Oasis in 1978.
Thanks also to our board who impressed upon us
the need to prioritize this project above all else.
Thanks to all who have gone before—Jim, Brian
and Elaine, Craig and Beth, Shehu and ODL, and
Tom. The ASB is your legacy, too.
Developing a Bible with notes produced by
more than 350 contributors, from 51 countries,
written in five languages, is a landmark accomplishment. It is truly worthy of all God is doing
in Africa. As the global centre of Christianity
shifts south, I am reminded that great works of
the Spirit have followed after God gave a special
anointing to the Bible. It was not a coincidence
that the printing press, invented just a few years
earlier, paved the way for the development of
Bible literacy when Martin Luther and William
Tyndale prepared their translations of the Scriptures. Less than one hundred years later, the
translators of the King James Version followed
Tyndale’s translation in style and wording. The
Reformation that came about partially through
the printed word could not be stopped.
The church has grown in modern A
frica as Bible translations became available in the heart
languages of the people: the first Zulu translation
appeared in 1883, Yoruba in 1884, and Swahili
in 1890. In the last hundred years, the church in
Africa has exploded beyond the imaginations
of any of the translators. And now we gratefully
present the Africa Study Bible, which uses the
easy-to-understand NLT text.
Our prayer is that the Africa Study Bible will be
used by God in the decades to come in what he
has planned for the African church. May God’s
people in Africa grow in grace and truth as they
step out and become leaders in all that God is
doing around the world.
—Matthew Elliott, Ph.D., Publisher
on behalf of the ASB Editorial Staff
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