The Boogi Waqa

Shipwrecked for Bible Translation

The following is translated from the testimony of Nimbrot Makaruku, an Indonesian man from the Maluku Islands.


I was born in a Christian family and I thought I was automatically a Christian. I went to Sunday school and learned a lot. I knew who Jesus was, how He was born, all the names of His disciples, and the history of the Israelites in the Old Testament.

But that’s all.

I didn’t know how I could truly become a Christian. I remember that if someone in the family became sick, we went to a shaman (a traditional healer) and that continued until I became a college student. I entered Pattimura University and majored in education to become a teacher.

I started trusting Jesus more after I experienced a shipwreck. I was traveling by boat from Seram Island to Ambon, but because of the strong waves, the boat tipped over and broke into pieces. I couldn’t swim, but a piece of wood about three meters long floated towards me, so I grabbed it. I floated with that piece of wood for about thirteen hours, until I reached a floating fisherman’s hut in the bay. It was another five hours before rescue came. I felt that it must be God who sent a piece of wood and saved me. I was amazed that such a holy God loved me so much and saved me, who was so sinful. I regretted all the times I had sinned, confessed my sins to Him, and gave my life to Him.

When I finished college, my parents and all of my brothers and sisters wanted me to become a teacher but at that time I started working on the Alune Bible translation. My family told me that there was no hope for the future if I continued working with the translation team, but that if I became a teacher, I would have a guaranteed future.

I prayed, “Lord, which do you want me to become — a teacher or a Bible translator?”

After I prayed, I read the Bible. The verse that strengthened me was Hebrew 13:8, which says that Jesus Christ is in the same all the time, yesterday, today, and forever. To me it meant that the Lord who saved my life from the disaster of the shipwreck will always help me in all my needs and in any hardship in my life. Since then I have been involved in Bible translation, and God has been very true to what He has promised me.


The Alune New Testament was finished and celebrated in 2012. Nimbrot is now working on the Alune Old Testament, as well as getting further training to be a consultant for other language projects.

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