Widening the Table: An Ethics of Accessible Exegesis and Interpretation

With the rise of oral Bible translation (OBT), oral drafting, community checking, church based Bible translation (CBBT), and other community-driven translation paradigms and processes, the global church has become more actively involved in every stage of Bible translation. In light of this shift, translation organizations, consultants, and academics must re-examine the current paradigms of Biblical exegesis and interpretation. This paper draws on case studies, qualitative data, and theological literature to argue that the ethical response to this changing landscape is to “widen the table” of exegesis and interpretation. We seek to re-imagine ways of “doing” exegesis and Biblical interpretation that draw on the knowledge of oral theologians and thus invite the global church more fully into every aspect of Bible translation.

Ethical exegesis and theological interpretation must be accessible exegesis and interpretation. The Bible translation world can champion such accessibility in two ways: Making existing exegetical resources more widely available, and drawing on oral and communal knowledge to create new, more accessible exegetical resources. This could look like translation organizations removing paywalls for helpful resources, translating relevant resources into languages of wider communication, investing in improving technological access to resources, and creating multi-modal exegetical resources tailored for oral audiences. More importantly, translation organizations must acknowledge and utilize the exegetical and theological knowledge that already exists in oral communities, and invite oral theologians into the process of identifying and creating helpful exegetical knowledge and resources.