The History of Chinese Bible Translation Is Full of Cooperation
Western missionaries collaborated with Chinese Christian scholars to translate the Word of God, leading to the achievement of the Union Version.
One author once said that in the hearts of many Christians, the Chinese Union Version (CUV) Bible is “the only Chinese Bible; everyone calls it the ‘Chinese Bible’ and not the CUV.”
Another praised the CUV as “a collection of the essence of a hundred years of Bible translation,” a “culmination of the efforts of countless Chinese and Western scholars, with many terms derived from [Robert] Morrison’s translation.”
Although there have been several high-quality Chinese translations in recent years and the CUV has undergone revisions, the early history of Protestant Chinese Bible translation clearly testifies to Chinese-Western cooperation and global collaboration, laying the foundation for different Chinese translations in the future.
The Bassett Version and the first translations
When Robert Morrison arrived in Guangzhou in 1807, China operated under the Canton System, restricting foreigners’ activities to the port of Guangzhou and imposing limitations on their interactions with the Chinese.
During his studies and translation work, Morrison heavily relied on a copy of the New Testament known as the British Museum Manuscript, which he acquired from his Chinese teacher, Yong Sam-tak, in London. This manuscript was later identified as a translation of the New Testament done by French missionary Jean Bassett and Chinese believer Johan Su (or Xu) in Sichuan. However, Bassett’s translation reached only the first chapter of Hebrews before his death in 1707, leaving the task unfinished.
This copy significantly influenced Morrison’s translation efforts and created a competitive environment with another group of Protestants attempting to translate the Bible into Chinese ...