The Marakwet Bible translation team and community members with the half beehive in 2012 Seventeen years ago, in 2009, the Marakwet community of Kenya celebrated the New Testament in their language. It was the cause of joyful and exuberant celebrations. And rightly so: it was a historic moment for the community.
And yet… even in the midst of the celebrations, there was a dissatisfaction, an awareness that the job wasn’t complete. To the extent that in 2012, three years after the launch, the Marakwet community produced a symbol of their dissatisfaction: a half beehive. Why a beehive? Because God’s word is sweeter than honey.
That half beehive represented the fact that although the Marakwet now had the New Testament in their language, they were still missing the Old Testament. They had an incomplete beehive. As they began work on translating the Old Testament, they were anticipating the day when they would have the full counsel of God – the complete Bible – in their own language.
The Marakwet Bible is presented to the people Fast forward to 1 August 2026, and imagine the joy as the Marakwet community paraded the complete beehive during their latest celebration! Yes, the complete Bible in the Marakwet language was being launched!
The day itself saw dancing, singing, speeches, eating and many, many smiles!
But the two big highlights were when the Marakwet Bible was brought out and held aloft… and when the procession of the complete beehive made its way through the assembly! What a moment!
The complete beehive arrives For one man in particular, this was a moment to savour.
Edwyn Kiptinness had been there right at the start, way back in 1983.
The story began even before that though, in 1962, when he was 16 years old and fell out of a tree and broke his thigh bone.
Because he lived in a rural area, he didn’t get to hospital for four days, during which time he experienced excruciating pain. The operation to fix the thigh was successful, but Edwyn then had to recuperate in the hospital for 10 months.
While in hospital he was given a Bible to read. But it was in the Nandi language, and although Edwyn could read it, he couldn’t fully understand it. He said to himself:
‘One day, our people will be able to read God’s word in the language they understand best.’
The Marakwet Bible in the hands of the people Years later, that ‘one day’ opportunity arrived, and Edwyn got involved in establishing the work of Bible translation in Kenya.
As part of that, he became the standard bearer for the translation of God’s word into the Marakwet language.
The translation has had its challenges.
Initially, there was no appetite for it among the community leaders, for fear of upsetting other local language communities.
But eventually they changed their minds, and the first work on the language finally started in 1983.
Edwyn receives his Marakwet Bible However, due to insecurity in the region – and the complexity of developing a writing system for the language – progress was slow until 1992, when linguistic research resumed and the programme moved forward.
And so, 43 years after the first work on the language, began, Edwyn was able to hold his copy of the Marakwet Bible at its launch event, his dream fulfilled.
Finally, the Marakwet community of approximately 200,000 people have their complete beehive.
The Marakwet community invite you to join them in prayer:
Thanks to BTL Kenya (btlkenya.org) for all the original information and images that formed the basis for this article.
