“I Have Nothing Yet That I Can Venture to Use”: Adoniram Judson’s Rejection of James Chater’s Gospel of Matthew in Burmese

Abstract

Adoniram Judson, whose 1840 translation of the Bible is still the most widely used version in modern-day Myanmar, rejected James Chater’s 1812 translation of Matthew into Burmese. Comparing Chater’s work with Judson’s first attempt at translating Scripture, which was also the Gospel of Matthew, in 1817, reveals five main issues: (1) Judson’s translation is generally better executed than Chater’s; (2) the two translations are mostly different; (3) there are some places where it appears Judson was following Chater’s translation; (4) occasionally Chater provides a better translation than Judson; and (5) Judson uses more “polite” honorific and religious language than Chater. Judson’s work demonstrates more sophisticated exegesis and translation technique. Two factors contribute to this, the first being Judson’s superior education. The second is that Chater’s work stands in the Serampore/William Carey tradition of Bible translation and shares the weaknesses that have been identified in that approach.