The Greek in Matthew 5:18 that is translated as “winnowing fork” in English is translated in Matumbi idiomatically as “up and down,” meaning “everything. (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
See also heaven and earth.
The Greek in 1 Corinthians 9:19 that is translated as “free” in English is translated in Matumbi as “not a slave” since there is no native word for “free.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
The Greek and Ge’ez that is translated as “pearl” in English is translated in Matumbi as samani ngu’lu’ or “valuable thing,” since pearls are not known. (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
In Cherokee it is translated as “like oysters or mussels.” (Source: Bender / Belt 2025, p. 18)
The Greek in Ephesians 1:8 that is translated as “insight” or “understanding” or similar in English is translated in Matumbi as utangi, “meaning understanding — knowing what something is, or what it really means, or maybe how to do something.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
The Greek in John 6:9 that is translated as “But what are they among so many people?” or similar in English is translated in Matumbi as “But this amount of food for this crowd of people, who will get to eat and who will be left out?” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)
The Greek that is translated as “pledge” or similar in English is translated in Matumbi as “first.” “We tried to think about what the main point of the word was, and we determined that the main point is that there is an initial payment of something that guarantees a larger payment later. This Matumbi word, which comes from the word for ‘first (hinting that something else is coming),’ is a word used to talk about buying a house or other large purchase, if you can’t pay the whole thing, you give the first payment so that the buyer knows you’re serious.” (Source: Pioneer Bible Translators, project-specific notes in Paratext)