Israel Speaks
I've seen it written somewhere that in 1947 Kaarlo Syväntö came to -
Israel and began the Bible work there as early as that.
Back then it was not about starting a Bible work, but about surviving.
Because he was a nature man in his youth he knew how to make fish traps.
He made a fish trap out of chicken wire.
We caught a lot of fish with that trap until, eventually, -
one of the local fishermen saw the fish trap and said that -
it was illegal.
That was the end of it.
However, anyone could fish with a throwing net and that's why -
my father bought one.
In addition, my father got a job as the janitor of a Scottish hospital -
in Tiberias.
I went to work with my father when I was 14 years old.
We cleaned the yard, fixed leaking water pipes -
and did everything else needed in an old hospital building.
Like I said, my father was convinced that he had a mission here, -
even though in the beginning it was not clear what the mission would be.
In the mid 1950's -
with many things contributing to it -
the Bible work began.
Dr. Myron Shakett, who was Oral Roberts' colleague -
in the United States, had the Jews on his heart -
and he wanted to get Bibles to them.
The first Hebrew language Bibles were printed in a printing house -
in Örebro, Sweden.
My father, who had also worked in the railway's post office, -
had had to study the rules of the post.
He remembered one paragraph, which helped him.
Israel has also signed these international mailing rules -
and has promised to abide by them.
They include one paragraph which says that the government cannot stop -
nor forbid you from receiving private mail -
at least with regards to small amounts, -
such as a 5 kg book package per month, -
a fortiori, since they were not used for business.
We collected a lot of addresses which we sent to the printing house -
in Örebro, Sweden.
We asked them to send a 5 kg Bible package to these addresses -
around the country once a month.
Although we didn't have a car back then, we somehow managed to -
collect them from these addresses or they were brought to us.
This is how the Bible work began.
I took the first orders by bicycle, for ex., to the hotels in Tiberias.
When we had enough money my father bought a new car.
It was assembled in Israel and had an English Ford motor -
and a fiberglass body.
That allowed us to travel more.
For example, we went through all the kibbutzes of that time in Israel -
except the ultra Orthodox kibbutzes.
Apart from two kibbutzes, all of them accepted the Hebrew Bibles -
for their libraries or atheneums.
Later on, in addition to the Hebrew Bibles, -
another American published several thousand New Testaments in Hebrew.
We also distributed them.
5 days a week we toured around the country with our car -
whenever we had material to give.
We were able to give out New Testaments in over ten languages -
straight from the car.
We had only samples of the entire Bible.
By giving us their address we would send the Bibles by mail.
That's how our address spread around the country.
Even today you can order a Bible from the same address.
We went through all the different cities, -
workshops and factories in Israel.
We found out when the work day ended in each factory and we came -
to wait outside the gate so as not to disturb the work in the area.
Our car trunk was open and we showed the New Testaments -
which we gave out for free.
Many found that hard to believe.
When we said it was for free, they asked how much it cost.
They thought "free" meant "cheap".
It is quite obvious for children -
of a certain age, which is 18 today and back then it was 21 -
according to the Finnish law, to leave their parents' house.
When I was 17 years old I also left my parents' house -
and went to a Jewish kibbutz where I was for 2 years.
In other words, I earned my own living.
There are many jobs in a kibbutz.
They don't pay salaries, but they sustain you.
Special needs were taken into account.
For instance, cigarettes were provided for those who smoked.
I didn't smoke, but I asked to have chocolate. I didn't get it, -
because it was not included in the list.
I was in correspondance with Ester, an Ingrian girl, whom I had met -
in Sweden.
Sometimes our letters were very thick - up to 10 sheets of paper.
At that time air letters could normally weigh 5 grams.
The costs were higher, the heavier the package was.
The mailman in the kibbutz told me that my letters were too heavy -
and they had to pay excess costs for them. I got angry and said, -
"I'm working here 8 hours a day. Don't I earn at least the money -
for stamps?"
Hence, I was allowed to continue sending these letters.
At that time there were no Finnish or other young believers in the kibbutz.
Only later on in the 1970's did people start coming from Finland, -
for example, the Karmel groups and others.
Consequently, I felt lonely there.
There were no young people there.
At that point I had already decided that I would not start dating -
girls who were not believers, even though there were many opportunities -
to do that in the kibbutz.
There were designated get-togethers for the kibbutz youth.
They would have taken me along right away.
However, because I didn't go there, I felt lonely.
Then I thought I should ask if Ester would like to come to the kibbutz.
I wrote to her and she agreed to come.
In 1954 I borrowed money from Ester's brother and went to Sweden.
I worked there in a factory for one summer.
We got married there and in the fall we returned to Israel -
to the same kibbutz.
In 1959 we came to Beersheva.
In this very place where we are sitting at the moment -
was our living room, which was the only room we had.
We had 2 children already and we lived in one room and a kitchen.
At the other end of this building there is an old stone building -
from the Turkish times, which housed the Bible store -
founded by the Alias Mission.
We lived there for 6 years.
Annual Bible sales in the store were around 1 per day.
Throughout the year, however, I gave out hundreds of these free Bibles -
printed by my father.
In the beginning of the 1970's the Bible association decided -
to translate the New Testament into modern Hebrew, -
which had never been done before.
Me and Halvor were invited to that committee.
I was invited as a "national translator".
In the early 70's there were not many who had gone to a Hebrew school.
I became an Israeli national translator, which is quite funny.
There I learned how amazing a work Bible translation is -
and how unbelievably responsible work it is.
You form the word of God to other people.
If you translate a verse a certain way, a pastor, priest or private -
person will say, "This is what is written in the Bible."
According to what is written, the reader will conclude that it -
is the word of God.
It is the most responsible work ever and, on the other hand, -
the most humiliating work, because you try to research and understand -
things and you feel inadequate -
no matter how well you know the language and culture.
You understand the responsibility.
You have to be both self-confident and very humble.
In your efforts to understand the text in the best possible way -
you have to be as humble as possible.
If you think you already know it, you might actually not.
On the other hand, when writing the text you have to be confident -
that it is the word of God for the readers.
This committee was founded in the early 1970's and it operated for 6 years.
This New Testament that is printed is the result of that work.
Me and Halvor were involved in it from the beginning.
The main translator was a Messianic Jew, but we were in the committee -
that checked it.
Ever since then my heart has been captured by it.
When we established this home in the 1990's I was very blessed -
when my father who was over 80 years old, upon hearing about it, said, -
he blessed and supported us.
The first translators came in 1995 and we took them to the Galilee.
They were all black men from Africa.
When they sang, tears ran down my father's cheeks.
He was able to rejoice over a new form of work.
He could have been satisfied with just his own work, but he was truly -
happy that the nations will have Bibles in their mother tongues.
This is a clear continuation of my father's work.
The principle is producing Bibles in one's mother tongue, -
but in this case, providing the Bible to those nations who still don't -
have the Bible.
Our motto is: "Go into all the world and make disciples of all the nations."
One translator told me that without a Bible in our mother tongue -
we cannot be disciples.
I reached the conscription age and was summoned to the Finnish army.
At that time Finland did not cover the travel costs to Finland.
In that sense I didn't have to go.
However, I heard that if you don't go, you will be enlisted to the army -
on the day you come to Finland until you turn 30.
I wanted to get it over with and decided to go to the Finnish army.
After the army I wanted to come back to continue the Bible work.
At that point we already had a new better car, a minibus, -
which was only borrowed, but it was meant for this work.
The work included touring around the country 5 days a week.
I lived with my parents and I had no plans to get married.
Somehow I thought God also thought that way.
The problem was that I had not asked God. I should have asked.
A few years after the army, we lived in a bigger house in Tiberias.
On a New Year's Eve when I was sleeping, my present wife Meri, -
appeared on the ceiling of the room.
I was laying down eyes closed and she was in the ceiling smiling at me.
I knew exactly who she was - a Jewish believer girl from Finland.
I had been in the summer festivals in Finland and had seen many girls there.
Because of my assumption, I didn't date anyone.
I woke up to this vision, but it didn't shake me -
to ask God what He had planned for my future.
It was just a beautiful vision and a memory.
At the end of that year, I saw a letter she wrote to my mother.
I wrote down her mail address and sent her a Christmas card.
I knew she was a Jewish believer, but I didn't know her situation.
I wrote a few questions for her be- cause I knew her Jewish background.
I asked if she had ever thought of moving to the land of her forefathers.
She said she was working and had an old father who earned a low salary.
At that point she couldn't even think of moving to Israel.
Nevertheless, it finally made me start asking God.
I did what many people do after praying.
I opened the Bible in a random place with the question in mind: -
To marry or not to marry? What did God have to say about that?
I was surprised to find this verse.
There were also many other things that had happened.
Our car was broken and we needed a new one, but we lacked the money.
This is from Deuteronomy chapter 14, verses 24-26.
It gives detailed instructions to the Israelites.
But if that place is too distant and you have been blessed by the LORD -
your God and cannot carry your tithe (because the place where the LORD -
will choose to put his Name is so far away), then exchange your tithe -
for silver, and take the silver with you and go to the place the LORD -
your God will choose. Use the silver to buy whatever you like: -
cattle, sheep, wine or other fer- mented drink, or anything you wish.
Then you and your household shall eat there in the presence of the -
LORD your God and rejoice.
"You and your household" was the answer to the first question.
Eventually, Meri changed her mind and came with me.
I didn't take this as a specific answer to the question, though.
I asked God to give me another verse for the marriage question.
I had no idea that there is a verse on the next page saying: -
But if your servant says to you, "I do not want to leave you," -
because he loves you and your family and is well off with you, then take -
an awl and push it through his earlobe into the door, and he will -
become your servant for life.
I didn't use an awl, but the ring is a modern "sign of slaves".
I got answers from the Bible and, therefore, I was not puzzled at all -
when she told me she could not come.
The Lord gave me a promise and He would change her mind if necessary -
and so He did.
I believe God tests His candidats.
I believe there are hundreds maybe thousands who have been in -
God's calling one way or another.
At some point, however, they have let it pass, because they have not -
surrendered to it sincerely, but have started using their brains.
My father had a unique combination of concreteness.
He was very practical and realistic.
He didn't just go, but he prepared himself.
God tested him.
For example, in his book he tells that when he was rooting a carrot field -
all of a sudden, he saw a government official with a fancy hat and suit -
standing before him while he was rooting carrots -
on a hot field near Tel Aviv.
He tells in his book how the devil began torturing him by saying, -
"so this is what the work here is like."
He was tested if he was ready to do anything that came before him.
Many people are willing to do something but not something else.
It's amazing to be in God's plans.
Our household is blessed and our work is not due to our choices.
I didn't go somewhere with four children, but the Bible says -
that He will bless you and your household. That's why I always say -
that my parents founded this Bible house.
I and Halvor have not made the same sacrifices as they did.
God apparently works through great sacrifices.
This is our story.
We see that God in His grace has helped us and guided us.
We believe God will do great things among the people of Israel.
We want to encourage the Israelis who are many times depressed -
and ask what future they have.
They are threatened from all fronts.
Then it is good to refer to what the Bible says.
God has promised in His word what He will do, and His word is true.
I am confident about the future, although the situation in the world -
would not prompt us to be confident.
Jesus said that in the New Testament.
When others die when they are afraid and waiting what the future will hold, -
Jesus said to His disciples, "Lift up your heads, because -
your redemption is drawing near."
This is what I believe in.
Translation: Sonja Mattayev