Quarterly Record (Issue 604) and 182Nd Annual Report
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Albanian Afrikaans THE WORD OF GOD AMONG ALL NATIONS ALL AMONG GOD OF WORD THE Arabic Armenian July toSeptember 2013 Quarterly Catalan Dutch Record Issue Number: 604 Number: Issue French Farsi Trinitarian Greek German Hindi Hebrew Italian Hungarian Malayalam Lithuanian Bible Society ANNUAL and Financial Statements Statements and Financial Maori Maltese REPORT 182nd 31 December 201231 December for the year ended theyear for Ndebele Mongolian Portuguese Polish Annual Report Russian Romanian Tamil Spanish Turkish Nepali Urdu Ukrainian Xhosa Welsh Trinitarian Bible Society Founded in 1831 for the circulation of Protestant or uncorrupted versions of the Word of God Officers and Executive Staff of the Society President: General Secretary/Chief Executive: The Rev. G. Hamstra, B.A., M.Div. Mr. D. P. Rowland* Vice-Presidents: Operations Director: Mr. G. Bidston Mr. D. Larlham Mr. G. den Boer Resources Director: The Rev. B. G. Felce, M.A.* Mr. D. J. Broome, C.P.F.A. The Rev. Dr. T. Gilmer Mr. D. Oldham Editorial Director: Pastor J. Stehouwer Mr. P. J. D. Hopkins, M.A. Oxf. The Rev. M. Stuart Mr. D. Vermeulen Senior Editorial Consultant: Chairman: Mr. L.Brigden, B.Sc.(Hons.), M.Sc., B.A.(Hons.) The Rev. M. H. Watts* Editorial Consultants: Vice-Chairman: Mr. G. W. Anderson, B.A. Mr. G. D. Buss, B.Ed.* Mr. A. Hembd, M.A.C.S. Treasurer: J. Cammenga, B.A., M.A., Ph.D. Pastor R. A. Clarke, B.Sc., F.C.A.* G. Fox, B.A. (Hons.), D.D., Ph.D. The Rev. W. M. Patterson Jnr., B.A., D.D. Members: Mr. G. R. Burrows, M.A.* The Rev. R. G. Ferguson, B.A.* The Rev. J. L. Goldby, M.A.* Pastor M. J. Harley* Mr. A. K. Jones, LLB. (Hons.) Solicitor* The Rev. E. T. Kirkland, B.A., Dipl.Th.* The Rev. D. Silversides* *These are the serving members of the The Rev. J. P. Thackway* General Committee. QQuarterlyuarterly ANNUAL RRecordecord REPORT 182nd Annual Report Issue Number: 604 and Financial Statements July to September 2013 for the year ended 31 December 2012 for presentation at the Annual General Meeting of the Trinitarian Bible Society to be held, God willing, on 21 September 2013 at 11.00 a.m. at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, London Contents Annual General Meeting 2 Introduction by the General Secretary 3 Report of the Operations Director 5 Branch Greetings 10 Distribution Chart 15 Take Heed How Ye Hear! 16 Report of the Editorial Director 18 Report of the Resources Director 28 Statement of the Independent Auditors 32 Summary Financial Statements 33 The Word of God among all Nations 36 Acknowledgment of anonymous gifts 40 Quarterly Record Production Team © Trinitarian Bible Society 2013 Editorial Director: P. J. D. Hopkins All rights reserved. The Trinitarian Bible Senior Editor: Dr. D. E. Anderson Society permits reprinting of articles Editor: K. J. Pulman found in our printed and online Quarterly Graphic Designers: P. Hughes, S. Talas Record and Annual Report provided that Circulation: J. M. Wilson prior permission is obtained and proper acknowledgement is made. Trinitarian Bible Society – Quarterly Record Issue Number: 604 – July to September 2013 The 182nd Annual General Meeting The Business Meeting will be held, God willing, at 11.00 a.m. on Saturday, 21 September 2013 at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, London SE1 6SD, England After the Business Meeting, at 2.00 p.m. The Rev. C. Sonnevelt Minister, Gereformeerde Gemeente, Krabbendijke, Zeeland, The Netherlands is expected to preach Lunch will be served between the meetings AAllll araree inviinvitedted to aattendttend 2 182nd Annual Report for the year ending 31st December 2012 Introduction by the General Secretary e rejoice at the Lord’s goodness and other forms of technology are in enabling the Trinitarian Bible (cautiously and yet positively) harnessed WSociety to have been used in as many ways as are possible for the during another year to fulfi l its primary progress and development of the particular aim and objective, as it is simply and yet aspects of the Lord’s work in which the comprehensively stated in our Constitution, Society is engaged, the tremendous and ‘to promote the Glory of God and the increasing need that there is throughout salvation of men, by circulating, both at the world for truly faithful and reliable home and abroad, in dependence on the translations of the Word of God becomes Divine blessing, the HOLY SCRIPTURES, more and more evident. Sadly, this which are given by inspiration of God, and geographically wide-ranging need— are able to make men wise unto salvation, and the apparently limitless potential through faith which is in Christ Jesus’. opportunities open to the Society for the development and growth of its activity Once again the Society has been fully and of Bible translation and distribution extensively engaged in the great work of throughout the world—are far, far greater assisting in the translation, the publication than we are able to undertake (with our and the distribution of the Holy Scriptures very limited resources) at the present time. in, and for, many diff erent parts of the world. As the benefi ts of the Nevertheless, the year 2012 was rapid advances in travel, remarkable for the Trinitarian Bible Society. communication Perhaps, not during all the 182 years of the Society’s history have we been privileged during a single twelve-month 3 Trinitarian Bible Society – Quarterly Record Issue Number: 604 – July to September 2013 period to be involved in the publication of (as Christ reminds us in this portion of His so many major new projects—including Word), it surely cannot be denied that the Eastern Armenian Bible for Armenia, the we, the professing Christians of our day, Ndebele Bible for Zimbabwe and the Maori have a clear duty and an obligation under Bible for New Zealand. For this, we give all God to provide (as far as we are able in honour unto the Lord, and acknowledge His providence) ‘every word’ of that ‘Word the generosity of the organisations and of God’ in its purest form in the heart branches that provided much of the languages (see Acts 2.8) of all men. The goal funding to make this possible. Whilst we must be that every man everywhere will in London and most of our branches were hear (and read) every word of the Word of engaged in the editorial work and the God in his own tongue. funding of these new translations and In the Lord’s great goodness, we who are others that are still in preparation, TBS reading this Annual Report have been the (Brazil) pressed forward with the printing benefi ciaries of the spiritual legacies of our and distribution of very large numbers of forefathers. We have had passed down to the Portuguese Bible and the preparation of us, generation after generation, faithful and yet further future editions in this language. reliable translations of the Holy Scriptures. Of the total of 862,186 Bibles published Likewise, we should, in our own day, be under the Society’s name in 2012, 615,000 burdened to ensure that we pass on to were Portuguese Bibles (including nearly our children and our grandchildren ‘every 440,000 under royalty agreements). In word’ of the ‘Word of God’. And should we addition, over 7,400,000 Portuguese New not also be truly concerned to do all that Testaments were printed by the Gideons we are prayerfully and practically able, under a royalty agreement. We are deeply to ensure that this same blessed, living, conscious of the fact that, notwithstanding authoritative and spiritually powerful these high fi gures, the comparatively very Word of Life, which is able to make men little we publish is only an extremely small wise unto salvation (cf. 2 Timothy 3.15), is contribution to the exceedingly great need translated into all the many languages of there is throughout the world. the world and published and distributed to our fellow sinners? This is our aim, with the The desire to spread the Word of God in prayer that the Lord Himself would receive the most accurate form possible to all praise, honour and glory to His Name in mankind is not a man-centred notion the redemption of sinners and the advance of a comparatively few narrow-minded, of His Kingdom among the nations of the old-fashioned and uncharitable bigots world. who take a very extreme view of the Word of God, as many incorrectly seem May the Lord enable the Society to to imply. Rather, this desire is, and should continue to go forward in His strength with be carefully noted to be, the very mind this great work in the coming days, humbly of God revealed in His Word. ‘It is written, acknowledging our utter dependence upon Man shall not live by bread alone, but by Him for His grace and looking to Him for His every word that proceedeth out of the blessing! mouth of God’ (Matthew 4.4). Therefore, Brethren, pray for us. since man—whoever he may be, wherever he may live and whatever language he may speak—does truly need ‘every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God’ 4 182nd Annual Report for the year ending 31st December 2012 Report of the Operations Director ooking back over our day-to-day of ten thousand copies, making a total of ‘operations’ during 2012—as seen forty-fi ve thousand in all. I am very pleased Lthrough the prism of the last few to say that all of these have been sent out, months as I put pen to paper (fi ngers to mainly to participating churches, but also keyboard) in June 2013—I would say that to one or two individuals who took very the landscape has been dominated by three substantial quantities into local schools.