The Persian language (also known as Farsi) belongs to the Iranian branch of the Indo-Iranian subdivision of the Indo-European languages. Old Persian dates back to the sixth century BC. Today the modern version of the language is spoken in Iran, Afghanistan, and Tajikistan in three mutually intelligible standard varieties: Persian, Dari, and Tajik. In its several different forms, Persian is spoken by over 100 million speakers worldwide.

Persian is predominantly spoken and used officially within Iran (a country corresponding to the Biblical Elam). Persian is the language of government and education in Iran, and is the mother tongue of half of the population. A large proportion of the rest of the population have Persian as a second language.

Christianity in Iran

The early period of the Khomeini regime (1979–1989) in Iran left the church alone. Meetings were unrestricted, and evangelism and Bible distribution seemed to thrive. However, this has changed, and although there is no official hostility to Christianity the churches have suffered—anger towards converted Muslims and the association of Christianity with Western imperialism have sparked attacks on church property and people.

In recent years persecution has led to significant numbers of Persian Christians fleeing Iran. Türkiye is often their first port of call; from there many of them then move on to other countries such as the USA, UK, and Germany where there are now large Iranian populations.

Persian Scriptures

Together with Mīrzā Sayyed Alī Khan, Henry Martyn translated the New Testament which was published in 1815. This translation was later revised by Robert Bruce to reflect the form of Persian that was then more current and published in 1895.

TBS Persian Project

The Society have had a project underway for many years to revise the classic Persian Bible of 1895, led by a native speaker. The publication of the New Testament in 2019 represented an important milestone and the fruition of years of hard work by our main reviser and others who have helped him in the project. A second printing of 5,000 copies was completed in 2022; the entire New Testament in Persian is available to download at tbsonlinebible.com/#fa. We are delighted that the online edition of the TBS Persian New Testament is being accessed from Afghanistan as well as Iran and other countries such as Türkiye where Persian speakers reside.

It is hoped that the Old Testament revision work will be completed before too long, with the aim of publishing the whole Bible, God willing.

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