On May 27, 2023, Brother Mark Sanderson, a member of the Governing Body, announced the release of the first ever complete New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures in Russian Sign Language (RSL). A total of 148 people attended the in-person program. An additional 5,000 people from 15 countries viewed either a live stream or a recording of the program. The newly released Bible is now available on jw.org and in the JW Library Sign Language app.

One deaf brother commented: “When I view the Bible in sign language, it is as if I can see Jesus reacting to people’s suffering. It touches my heart so much!”

Before the Bible was released in RSL, many deaf Witnesses relied on the printed Bible in Russian. However, because RSL is a very descriptive language, some publishers struggled to grasp the meaning of a number of expressions.

For example, in the account at 1 Kings 17, the widow from Zarephath told the prophet Elijah that she and her son would die after they had eaten. Some deaf publishers thought these words indicated that the widow’s food was spoiled or poisoned. In the RSL translation, it is more explicit that this was the last of their food.

RSL is used by a variety of people from different nations and cultures. Therefore, the translators took local linguistic variations into account. One of the translators explained: “A sign may mean ‘sin’ in one region but ‘God’ in another. Additionally, the sign for ‘disciple’ in one area means ‘last’ or ‘poor’ in a different area. As a translation team, we tried to use the most well-known signs and expressions.”

We rejoice with our brothers and sisters who use RSL and thank Jehovah for blessing them with this beautiful gift.—Proverbs 10:22.