It’s a well known fact that the Holy Bible is the world’s most translated book. When it comes to translating the Bible, there are certain principles to be followed.

• The translation must be made without loss, change, distortion or embellishment of the meaning of the original text.
• It must be extremely accurate when it comes to the meaning of the Scriptures.
• The translation must not only convey the meaning of the original, but also capture its underlying emotions and attitude.
• The translation must maintain the variety found in the original – the receptor language must adhere to the same literary forms like poetry, prophecy, narrative and exhortation as in the original.
• There should be no loss or embellishment of historical and cultural information.
• The translation must be understandable to the audience that it is meant for – people whose native tongue is the receptor language.
• The translation must not be influenced by any political, ideological, social, cultural or theological bias.
• The translation must use the most reliable original language Scripture as the basis for the transference from one language to the other so as to retain the maximum accuracy.
• The translator is allowed to use reliable Bible translations in other languages as intermediary source texts.
• The translator is allowed to change grammatical and syntactical structure according to the receptor language so as to achieve accuracy and ensure that the target audience understands the translation.
• The translator must remember to use as few words or sentences possible to achieve the desired translation.
• The translator must do sufficient research of the target audience to decide on the most appropriate translation for them. It is up to him/her to decide on whether to go for a formal or informal translation based on the linguistic and social characteristics of the target audience.
• The translation must be done by people who are trained and who are competent in both the languages – the original and the receptor.
• Preferably, one of the languages must be the native tongue of the translator.
• The translation must be tested among the target audience to make sure that it is accurate, has clarity, and is natural and not contrived.
• The media for the translation – text, audio or a combination of these – must be chosen with the target audience in mind.
• And finally, the translation must be reviewed periodically to check if revisions or new translations are needed.