When Jesus lived on earth (a life recorded in the four gospels), he spoke and delivered his message of salvation in the language of the people—of fishermen, carpenters, shepherds, cooks, farmers, tax-collectors—a wide range of working men and women.

His stories (he was an inveterate story-teller) were full of homely, everyday analogies and examples, direct speech to be understood by simple folk.

I therefore warmly welcome the New Testament in Belize Kriol, published by Wycliffe Bible Translators.

The most widely used language in Belize is undoubtedly Belize Kriol (the language in which I first learnt to speak) and, happily, thanks to the pioneering efforts of a number of people, more and more Belizeans have come to accept it for what it is—a speech-form with its unique grammar and lexicon which evolved within our shores and reflects the lives of the people who used and still use it.

The celebrated King James Bible was the culmination of long efforts by scholars like Tyndale and Wycliffe to give to the people the Bible in the peopleꞌs own language. And, with the passing time, the King James version has been itself updated, its language renewed and revitalized to reflect the contemporary speech of those who read it.

I congratulate the team of scholars whose passion and hard work have culminated in the New Testament in Belize Kriol. This publication is epoch-making and I urge the church (or, if you will, the churches) to accept it, let it speak in its Belizean idioms and accents, thus communicating its message with a vividness and directness otherwise impossible.

Wen Jeezas mi liv pahn ert (dehn rait bowt ih laif eena di foa Gaspl dehn), hihn mi giv ih mesij bowt salvayshan eena di langwij a di peepl—fishaman, kyaapenta, shepad, kuk, faama, taks-kalekta—wahn hoal lata werkin man ahn uman.

Ih stoari dehn (ih mi oanli laik tel stoari) mi ful a egzampl weh peepl kuda mi rilayt tu, di kaina speech weh eni ahn evribadi ku andastan.

Soh, Ah oanli glad fi di Nyoo Testiment eena Bileez Kriol weh Wycliffe Bible Translators poblish.

Widowt wahn dowt, Kriol da di langwij weh evribadi eena Bileez yooz (dat da di langwij weh Ai mi fos laan fi taak eena ) ahn, Ah hapi fi seh, dat tanks tu di werk a wahn hoal lata peepl, moa ahn moa Bileezyan kohn fi aksep Kriol az wahn faam a speech, wid ih oan grama ahn werdz dehn weh kohn bowt rait ya da Bileez, ahn weh mek yu si ahn andastan di laif a di peepl dehn weh doz yooz it ahn weh stil yooz it.

Di King James Bible weh evribadi noa bowt ahn weh dehn laik, mi kohn bowt sayka di werk a peepl laik Tyndale ahn Wycliffe, weh stodi di Baibl. Dehn mi du dat soh dat peepl kuda mi ga di Baibl eena dehn oan langwij. Az taim paas, di King James vershan ihself geh chaynj, ahn di langwij geh fi bee moa laik di langwij weh peepl yooz tudeh.

Ah seh kongrats tu di teem weh mi-di werk soh haad wid soh moch pashan ahn enerji fi bring bowt dis Nyoo Testiment eena Bileez Kriol. Dis poblikayshan a di Baibl gwain dong eena hischri, an Ah di aks di cherch (er aala di cherch dehn) fi aksep it. Mek di mesij a dis Nyoo Testiment, wid aala ih flayva ahn song dehn, taak tu di peepl dehn schrang ahn klyaa. Dis neva mi wahn bee pasabl no ada way.

Di Nyoo Testiment da di sekant paat a di Baibl. Di fos paat da di Oal Testiment weh tel wi how Gaad mek di werl, ahn ih tel wi bowt di agreement weh Gaad mi fos mek wid ih peepl dehn, ahn bowt ih pramis tu dehn. Ih mi pramis dat ih mi wahn sen di Mesaiya (er Krais) az wahn king weh mi wahn sayv dehn. Di Nyoo Testiment tel wi how dehn pramis deh kohn chroo, ahn ih tel wi dat Jeezas da di Mesaiya. Di Nyoo Testiment eksplayn di nyoo agreement weh Gaad mi fos mek wid ih peepl dehn. Ih tel wi di Gud Nyooz bowt how Gaad pramis fi sayv evribadi weh put dehn fayt eena Jeezas Krais az fi dehn Laad ahn Sayvya.

Di Nyoo Testiment ga tweni-sebm buk eensaida it, ahn ih mi tek bowt twelv difrent man bowt fifti yaaz fi rait it. Aldoa yu mi ga difrent peepl weh rait di buk dehn, di mesij weh dehn rait da di saym. Di fos foa buk dehn tel wi bowt di laif a Jeezas Krais pahn di ert. Di Aks a di Apasl Dehn tel wi bowt how Gaad sen di Hoali Spirit, ahn how di cherch mi staat, ahn how ih bigin fi spred aal oava di werl. Den yu ga tweni-wan leta weh di apasl dehn rait tu di cherch dehn fi eksplayn how peepl weh bileev eena Jeezas shuda liv. Di Revilayshan da di laas buk eena di Nyoo Testiment, ahn ih tel bowt di vizhan weh Gaad gi di apasl Jan. Da vizhan tel bowt di laas dayz wen Jeezas wahn kohn bak tu ert.

Di projek fi chranslayt di Nyoo Testiment eena Kriol staat eena 1993, ahn ih da wahn paat a di Bileez Kriol Projek. Di chranslayshan teem werk fi rait di mesij a dis buk eena di way how peepl taak Kriol eena Bileez tudeh. Fi di peepl weh reed er yehr dis mesij, wi waahn dehn andastan di mesij klyaa-wan, jos laik how di peepl a Jeezas taim ahn kolcha mi andastan it lang taim bak wen dehn yehr di mesij eena fi dehn langwij.

Di chranslayshan teem mi hafu chek wid lata peepl fi mek disizhan bowt di bes way fi seh sertn werdz eena Kriol. Wi chrai noh fi yooz werdz weh da noh Kriol werdz, bot som a di werd dehn da werdz weh wi yooz eena cherch, ahn di Bileezyan peepl mi adap dehn fahn Inglish, ahn now wi tek dehn fi wi oan. Wi doo yooz wan ahn too werdz weh di oalda peepl noa, bot wi aym moa fi di way Bileez taak now.

Di way how peepl yoostu liv eena Baibl taim difrent fahn how peepl liv tudeh. Yu ga wahn glosari da di bak a di Nyoo Testiment ahn wahn inchrodokshan fronta eech buk fi eksplayn tingz bowt how peepl yoostu liv eena Baibl taim. Yu ga sohn picha ahn map fi help yu tu. Wen yu reed di Baibl eena Kriol, sohntaim yu wahn si sertn sentens weh wi rait bitween too brakit laik dis: [ ]. Dat wahn shoa yu dat dehn werdz noh eena di fos fos kapi dehn weh di raita dehn rait. Sohn peepl bileev dat maybi dehn werdz mi ad aan layta. Yu wahn si sohn werd weh ga wahn lee leta weh rayz op kloas tu dehn. Da lee leta di tel yu fi luk pahn di batam a di payj fi moa infamayshan bowt di werd er di vers. Sohntaim di lee leta wahn tel yu dat sertn werdz da wahn koat fahn di Oal Testiment. Wi noh ga di Oal Testiment eena Kriol yet, bot di noat wahn tel yu wehpaa yu wahn fain dehn werdz eena wahn Inglish Baibl.

Wee di pray dat di Hoali Spirit wahn gi unu lata jai az unu reed ahn yehr di Gud Nyooz eena Bileez Kriol.