This diglot edition of the Gospel of John was the first book published by the British and Foreign Bible Society (BFBS) and the second book of the Bible published in Mohawk. It was translated by John Norton (Teyoninhokarawen), who was born in Scotland to a Cherokee father and Scottish mother and who later worked closely among the Mohawk people as a schoolmaster, interpreter, trader, and diplomat. While visiting England in 1804, he was introduced to members of the newly formed BFBS, who commissioned him to translate the fourth Gospel into Mohawk. Only 2,000 copies were printed, which were distributed to communities across Upper Canada and northern New York State.