You’d think in 2025 that everyone would already have access to a Bible. Most of us have multiple versions right on our phones. But the reality is, millions of people still don’t. Some live in remote villages, others in countries where it’s dangerous or illegal to have Scripture. Many have never even seen a single verse in their mother tongue. But that could change this year!
Language shapes how we think and feel, and how we connect to God.
Maybe you’ve read the Bible in your second or third language. You can understand it, but it never quite hits the heart like hearing God’s Word in the language you grew up with. The language of your family - your mother tongue.
That’s why Bible translation is still one of the most urgent missions today.
Five hundred years ago, Martin Luther didn’t just translate the Bible, he shaped the German language itself. His translation made Scripture accessible to everyday people and sparked a spiritual and cultural reformation that changed the world.1
“You don’t ask Latin literature how to speak German; you ask the mother at home, the children in the street, the common man in the market.”
- Martin Luther, 1530
Hearing God’s Word in your mother tongue helps the message go straight to the heart.
Did you know Luxembourg, one of the richest countries in Europe, only got its first New Testament in Luxembourgish in 2017? Before that, most people relied on French, German, or English versions. But those weren’t their heart languages.
One person from Luxembourg put it this way, “Having the Bible in your own language is like being home.”2 It moves people in a way foreign languages simply can’t.
Right now, there are around 1,817 languages with zero Scripture - that's about one quarter of all languages. There is a lot of work to get the Word into every language. But there's a huge international push to get translation work started on every living language by the end of 2025! This year!!
But when we look at the world by population, there is at least some Scripture available in the the mother-tongue for 98.2% of all people. Looking at translation progress that way, we're getting so, so close! And there's been so much progress even in the last year.
- Full Bible translations were completed in 20 new languages
- Translation began in 78 new languages
- Translation prep work started in 204 more languages3
- Translation has not begun for 686 languages4
- Most of these 686 languages are in East Asia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu
- Translation work is also underway among the global Deaf
- There are also 1131 dying languages that may not need Bible translations (languages that are still spoken but younger generations would consider another language to be their mother tongue)
More than 3,000 organizations and local churches around the world: including Wycliffe, SIL, Seed Company, Faith Comes By Hearing, YWAM, and many others working together to bring God’s Word to every language.5
Because Bible translation depends on native speakers, much of the work is being led by local believers and churches. Global organizations come alongside them, offering training, resources, technology, and support for the translation process and the distribution of Scripture.
This isn’t just for full-time translators. The whole Church can help by:
Praying for translators, local churches, and unreached people groups still waiting for God’s Word
Giving financially to support Bible translation efforts through translation organizations
Sharing this need with your church, youth group, or small group - most people don’t realize how many are still waiting
Going - consider joining a missions team that partners with Bible translators or works in unreached areas
Advocating for languages with no current work, raise awareness and help connect communities to translation support
God is still speaking. God is still moving and He’s not done yet.
Every language matters. Every person matters. Imagine the day when every tribe and tongue hears the voice of Jesus in the language of their heart. That day is coming! But it needs more workers, more intercessors, and more people saying:
1 Luther, M. (1530). On translating: An open letter. As quoted in various historical sources documenting Martin Luther’s translation of the Bible into German.
2 Bibles International. (2021). Having the Bible in your own language is like being home. Retrieved from https://biblesint.org/stories/having-the-bible-in-your-own-language-is-like-being-home
3 Wycliffe Global Alliance. (2024). Bible translation statistics. Retrieved from https://www.wycliffe.net/resources/statistics/
4 Wycliffe USA. (n.d.). Vision 2025. Retrieved from https://wycliffe.org/vision-2025
5 Wycliffe USA. (n.d.). About. Retrieved from https://www.wycliffe.org/about