Governance · Ruleset v3.4

The 29 Rules.

Every translation makes choices. Most hide them. We wrote ours down.

The Prime Directive

If any rule conflicts with these four principles, the principles win.

i

If the original text is complex, we keep it complex.

ii

If the original text is ambiguous, we keep it ambiguous.

iii

We do not add words the source text does not say — unless the target language physically cannot form a sentence without them.

iv

When we do add a word, we mark it so you can see it.

/

Rules in action

A few, made concrete

Rule 1 · Controlled Lexical Consistency

Hebrew אֶרֶץ (eretz) always → land. Greek ἐκκλησία (ekklesia) → assembly, not “church.”

Rule 2 · Preserve Ambiguity

Hebrew רוּחַ (ruach) → wind/spirit. Greek πίστις (pistis) → trust/faithfulness.

Rule 3 · Avoid Imported Theology

Hebrew: sky, not ‘Heaven.’ Greek: assembly, not ‘church.’ Good news, not ‘Gospel.’

Rule 11 · Signal All Additions

“And God saw that it was good” — italics show ‘it was’ is added for English grammar.

Rule 25 · Divine Name Policy

YHWH — because that is what the Hebrew consonants are. The vowels were never written.

29

The complete set

All 29 rules

01
Controlled Lexical Consistency
Same source word → same translation, by default.
02
Preserve Ambiguity
If source text supports two meanings, preserve both.
03
Avoid Imported Theology
Don't sneak in later concepts not in the source text.
04
Transliteration Threshold
Transliterate when translation would impose a single reading.
05
Locked Glossary
Core terms locked across the project.
06
Source-Text Priority
When traditions conflict, source text governs.
07
Locked Formulas
Repeated phrases rendered identically each time.
08
Verb System Fidelity
Preserve tense, aspect, and voice from source.
09
Converting Vav / Greek Aspect
Handle source-language verbal systems transparently.
10
Register Consistency
Maintain consistent linguistic register.
11
Signal All Additions
Mark every word not in the source text.
12
Structural Correspondence
Preserve source sentence structure where possible.
13
Uncertainty Levels
Flag debated terms with confidence labels.
14
Wordplay and Cross-References
Note sound patterns and textual echoes.
15
Reading-Aloud Test
Translation must work when read aloud.
16
Cross-Language Alignment
All 4 target languages render the same source consistently.
17
Parallel Passage Consistency
Same source passage → same rendering across books.
18
Number Fidelity
Reproduce source numbers without modernizing.
19
Priority Resolution
When rules conflict, explicit priority order applies.
20
Poetic Structure
Preserve parallelism and poetic form.
21
No Smuggled Commentary
Commentary belongs in notes, not in translation.
22
Text-Critical Restraint
Translate base text; note variants, don't adopt silently.
23
Genre Sensitivity
Respect the genre of each passage.
24
Edition Identity
Transparent vs Reader edition, declared explicitly.
25
Divine Name Policy
Tetragrammaton rendered per declared policy.
26
Variant Apparatus
Significant variants noted in companion material.
27
Formatting Standards
Consistent typographic conventions.
28
Review and Sign-off
No verse ships without documented review.
29
Contextual Enrichment
Companion material in separate files, labeled by type and confidence.