IBT has published the illustrated edition of Gospel Parables in the Bezhta language of the North Caucasus area of Russia.  Bezhta is spoken by about 6,000 speakers, most of whom live in the villages of Bezhta and Tlyadal in Dagestan and in the Kvareli region of Georgia. It is an endangered language without an official writing system. In 1999, IBT published the first book ever in Bezhta (the Gospel of Luke), using an adapted form of the writing system used in the related Avar language. This was followed in 2005 by the Proverbs of Solomon. The translator of all three of IBT’s Scripture portions books in Bezhta is a professional linguist who is the world’s leading expert on his mother tongue.

Bezhta is the ninth language into which IBT has translated this book, following on the heels of Agul (2007), Dungan, Kumyk, Nogai (2016), Dargi, Tatar, Rutul and Tsakhur (2017).

The Gospel Parables in Bezhta will soon be delivered to Bezhta-speaking areas in Dagestan and Georgia. The book is already available for downloading from the IBT website. IBT plans to make available an audio recording of this book in the coming months.