William Tyndale’s English Bible work broke ecclesiastical control and put God’s Word in the hands of ordinary believers.
William Tyndale: How We Got the Bible
How Did the New Testament Come Down to Us?
We have a young man, who has been on the run from the Catholic Church for many years, all the while working as a printer and a translator of the English Bible. Many times, there was a pounding at the door, only to find that this translator and his apprentice has left moments earlier.
The Bible Was Miraculously Restored, not Miraculously Preserved
The Bible was not kept in one flawless manuscript line but restored through abundant witnesses under Jehovah’s care.
How Did We Get the Old Testament Text?
The Old Testament text was preserved through faithful copying and restored through disciplined textual criticism, not miraculous copyist perfection.
How Were the Scriptures Impacted By the Persecution of Early Christianity?
Jesus had told his followers, “‘a slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you. If they kept my word, they will keep yours also.’” (John 15:20)
BIBLE TRANSLATIONS: How the Bible Has Come Down to Us
The Bible has been translated into many languages from the biblical languages of Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. As of September 2020, the full Bible has been translated into 704 languages, the New Testament has been translated into an additional 1,551 languages and Bible portions or stories into 1,160 other languages. How did the Bible come down to us? Can it be trusted?
William Tyndale’s Bible for the People
William Tyndale (c. 1490-1536) devoted himself early to Scripture studies, and by the time he had reached the age of about thirty, he had taken for the work of his life the translation of the Bible into English.
Anglo-Saxon Versions of the Bible
In Britain, as elsewhere, missionary work proceeded almost entirely by means of the spoken word. Any translation of the Scriptures consisted of a free and extemporaneous rendering of the Latin text into the vernacular speech.
History of the English Bible
The Bible has a unique record of preservation, restoration, translation, and distribution. It has faced many enemies and yet it is the bestselling book of all time many times over. How did our English Bible come down to us?
APPENDIX 2 Bible Texts and Versions –Why We Need to Know
We must face the reality that while the original 39 OT manuscripts and 27 NT manuscripts were inspired by God [Lit. “God-breathed”] (1 Tim. 3:16), as the authors were moved along by the Holy Spirit (1 Peter 1:21), this was not the case with the copyists thereafter. Yes, hundreds of thousands of scribal errors crept into our manuscripts.
