Lost in the translation

National | Gender-guideline signers backing away, undermining accord

Ever since the meeting on gender-related language in Bible translation held at Focus on the Family headquarters in Colorado Springs last May, some of the participants and their colleagues have been trying to distance themselves from or undermine the agreement they signed.

That agreement, which has undergone some technical revisions, set down principles its signers hoped would guide evangelicals involved in Bible translation. The accord was met with great expectations since the signers represented critics of gender-neutral language, including R. C. Sproul, John Piper, and Vern Poythress, as well as proponents, including Ken Barker, Lars Dunberg (president of the Internation Bible Society), and Bruce Ryskamp (president of Zondervan Publishing House).