The Constantine Codex
Image sourced from Mark Moore's http://markmoore3bc.com
By Khen Lim
Asking a new Christian to choose the ‘best’ Bible to
purchase could be like asking someone to find the roundest sand pebble on the
beach. Other than the usual NKJV, NIV, NLT or Good News Bible, there are
literally dozens of others to vie for your contention not to mention ones that
are called Life Application or Study Bibles. Enquiries made to fellow church
members might not amount to much beyond personal preferences and opinions.
Whether or not you can rely on one friend’s advice will depend on how well
verse his experiences are with the broad varieties available. The question then
is why are there so many ‘confusing’ versions of the Bible to choose from?
The Latin Vulgate itself was contentious because in itself, the originality was always in question. After all, the original scriptural texts were in Aramaic or Hebrew as well as in Greek. To create the Latin Vulgate, a papal commission saw to it that the original texts were translated into Latin. The word ‘vulgate’ would give rise to the English word ‘vulgar,’ which is in metaphoric reference to ‘common’ or ‘widespread.’ In other words, the Latin Vulgate was supposedly common in one’s ability to understand what Scriptures say but all that was in theory because common folk had little understanding of the language whether we are referring to England or most parts of Europe.
Church services back then were expressly conducted in Latin as we may also find the same thing in today’s Roman Catholic church masses. Such services remain a mystery to many because of the language alienation. It’s not difficult to understand how this may be frustrating because one would attend service and not know what is being said. In the same vein, Friday prayers in Arabic are hardly understood by the average Muslim in Malaysia and so whatever the mufti or imam would chant, most have no idea. In fact when a Muslim is ‘taught’ to recite the Qu’ran, it’s simply a case of rote and nothing else.
Looking back at the earliest possible origins of the emergence of the Bible is not difficult but it’s a good way to start seeing how Scriptures became available in the form we know today. Let’s have a look using our Bible:
Establishing
the Old Testament
There is never any doubt that the Bible we know of today was hardly in any such shape more than 3,000 years ago. However there is evidence that back then, it had begun to take some ‘primitive’ form. In the days of Adam, the knowledge that God transferred to Man was passed on verbally from one generation to the next but because lifespans then were in the many hundreds of years, it was not difficult to ensure that handed-down knowledge had retained its accuracy.
By the time of 1450BC, handwriting had already been invented and cuneiform was amongst the earliest type. Deuteronomy 31:9-13 (and 24-26) recorded that around then, Moses had instructed the Levites who were tasked with carrying the Ark saying, “Take this book of the law and put it by the side of the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord your God, that it may be there for a witness against you.”
In its original form, ‘this book of law’ in Hebrew is ‘sefer’ (also spelt as ‘sepher’), which means ‘a book of Hebrew religious literature.’ According to Wikipedia*, the word is specifically in reference to copies that were handwritten. Therefore ‘Sefer Torah’ means a handwritten copy of the Torah or Pentateuch. For such a copy to exist, it must be carefully produced under the most extreme standards. The ‘Sefer Torah’ is in fact the holiest of all Hebrew religious scrolls, containing the Five Books of Moses, which is why it is also called the Pentateuch.
* http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sefer_Torah
To underscore the importance of accuracy when dealing with the Word of God, every single one of the 304,805 letters found in the ‘Sefer Torah’ must be duplicated with precision by a trained scribe called a ‘sofer,’ which means as many as eighteen months may be needed for the copying to be properly completed.
There are of course other Hebrew religious texts apart from the Torah such as Sefer Yetzirah (Book of Creation), Sefer Raziel ha-Malakh (Book of Raziel the Archangel), Sefer Hasidim (Book of the Pious or Saints), Sefer ha-Chinuch (Book of Education) and Sefer ha-Mitzvot (Book of Commandments).
Back to Moses.
This book of law that Deuteronomy 31:9-13 talks about was written by Moses as inspired by God. It was handed down to the priests, the sons of Levi, as well as to all the elders of Israel at that time. From Moses’ command, this book of law must be read aloud at a stipulated time every seven years for all of Israel to hear, know and understand. It wasn’t all that long ago that families pretty much did the same thing – they would gather together after dinner to read and share the Scriptures so that everyone including young children could understand and learn about God’s Word.
Thirty years later, Joshua resonated a similar message writing, “upon the stones, a copy of the law of Moses” before his fellow Israelites (Joshua 8:32-35). From there, he made statutes and ordinances for all of Israel at Shechem by writing “these words in the book of Law of God” (24:26).
In 1120BC, the prophet Samuel defined the rights and duties of kingship “in a book and laid it before the Lord” (1 Kings 10:25) and then a hundred years thereon, it was David’s turn to pen the words that formed the basis of worship and praise to the Lord that the Levites would eventually use to sing praises with gladness in their hearts as commended by Hezekiah the king and they would do so bowing and worshipping God in fullness (2 Chronicles 29:30).
About five-hundred and fifty years later (450BC), Ezra gathered the returning Israelites and recited from the book of the Law of Moses as Moses himself once commanded. He did this on the first day of the seventh month, from morning to mid-afternoon in the presence of all men and women of Israel. It was said that the ears of all the people were peeled to the law.
“And when (Ezra)
opened it (the book) all the people stood. And Ezra blessed the Lord, the great
God, and all the people answered, “Amen, amen,” lifting up their hands; and
they bowed their heads and worshipped the Lord with their faces to the ground.
Also Jeshua (and many others)…helped the people to understand the law while the
people remained in their places. And they read from the book, from the law of
God, clearly and they gave the sense so that the people understood the
reading.” (Nehemiah 8:1-8)
Around 440BC, Nehemiah the prophet founded a library and
collected the books about the kings and prophets and also, the writings of
David including letters of kings above prayerful offerings. And then some 190
years later, in 250BC, Ptolemy asked from the inhabitants of Jerusalem to
translate the Scriptures into Greek. Having established the library in
Alexandria, he was now anxious to fulfil this part of what he had intended to
do. And so seventy of the most experienced elders were brought together to
carry out the translation. Fearing that these elders might conspire and
comprise the integrity of a ‘real translation,’ Ptolemy had all of them
physically separated from one another, so that there would be no collusion.
The end result was nothing short of remarkable as Eusebius puts it:
“God was glorified and
the Scriptures were recognised as truly divine for they all rendered the same
things in the same words and the same names, from beginning to end, so that
even the heathen who were present knew that the Scriptures had been translated by
the inspiration of God.”
As you may well be aware, it was because of the use of these
seventy elders that the collection of translated works into Greek was to be
called the Septuagint or LXX (Roman numeral for seventy) in short.
In the era of Jesus, Luke testified of the Law of Moses in which it was written that those of the Psalms and the prophets must be fulfilled in Christ (Luke 24:36-45). Despite this, the Jewish ‘canon’ was far from being finalised and by the time Jesus was raised, everything was essentially still up in the air. However it is fair to say that at the very least, five books were agreed by all concerned to constitute the Law of Moses.
Sixty years following the resurrection of Christ, Josephus would write profusely about these canons. He left no doubt that not only were there no discrepancies but that all that the prophets had written were inspired by God and that they acquired the necessary knowledge only because He willed it to be an account for His people to know and abide by. Josephus said:
“It follows, I say,
that we do not possess myriads of inconsistent books, conflicting with each
other. Our books, those which are justly accredited, are but two and twenty,
and contain the record of all time. Of these, five are the books of Moses,
comprising the laws, and the traditional history from the birth of man down to
the death of the law-giver.”
From the period stretching from 200BC to 70AD came the Dead
Sea Scrolls, discovered in 1947 throughout eleven caves near Qumran by Bedouin
shepherds. From just this alone, 600 to 800 original works were uncovered and
of these were copies of Hebrew Scriptures, writings of the Essenes, a Jewish
sect, and also copies of the Jewish Apocrypha and the Pseudepicgrapha. Also 38
of the books of the Old Testament – with the exception of Esther – could be
assembled.
In 90AD not far from Joppa, a group of Jewish rabbis met at the Council of Jamnia (Jabne). Consequently they also met again in 118AD. In the both cases, discussion had centred on the topic of the Jewish Canon. While the rabbis finally agreed on the Book of Ecclesiastes and Song of Songs, the rest remained unclear. There was still some way to go insofar as closure of the Jewish Canon was concerned but one thing appeared evident at that time – the apocrypha (or ‘extra books’) were read by Jews and still considered ‘sacred.’
Establishing
the New Testament
Coming to the writings of the New Testament, historians tell us that these mainly took place from 50AD to 100AD and comprised eight or nine different authors, all of whom were inspired by the Holy Spirit to pen twenty-seven different Books. They were the following:
Matthew
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1
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John
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5
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Jude
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1
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Mark
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1
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Peter
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2
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Paul
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13*
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Luke
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2
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James
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1
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(* possible 14; how about Hebrews?)
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|
Written in Koine Greek (meaning ‘common Greek’), the New
Testament is identifiable as four distinct sections, notably, the Gospels
(originating from Greek ‘euaggelion,’ meaning ‘good news’), Church History,
Epistles and Prophecy (of which the Book of Revelation is most talked about).
The collective name ‘New Testament’ became more visibly accepted only much
later.
The Gospels alone are the centrepiece of the Bible. They lay proof to the authenticity of the events surrounding Jesus’ life including his crucifixion and resurrection. Written within twenty to fifty years after Christ died and rose, these writings have now been credited as those that truly chronicled the days of Jesus. While the Synoptic Gospels were written between 50AD and 70AD, that of John’s was said to be set between 60AD and 90AD.
The infallibility of the New Testament could also be attested by thousands of ancient quotations written by early Church Fathers. There were also physical existence of reliable manuscripts that more than substantiated the Gospel of John. It is said that Papyrus 52 – the oldest copy dating back to 120AD – was one such prime example. All told there are at least 5,000 ancient manuscripts just on the New Testament alone.
The subject of gospel authorship has also long been addressed. We can draw evidence from some of the leading apostolic fathers in their prime such as the Bishop of Hierapolis around 110AD called Papias. Also a disciple of John, Papias was recalled by Eusebius as saying that Mark had been Peter’s interpreter although he had never heard directly from the Lord nor followed Him. Still Mark remembered of the things Peter had said and/or what Christ had done and then wrote them down diligently and accurately. His writings henceforth formed the centrepiece of the New Testament Gospels.
“He (Mark) followed
Peter who adapted his teaching to the needs of his hearers but with no
intention of giving a connected account of the Lord’s discourses so that Mark
committed no error while he thus wrote some things as he remembered them. For
he was careful of one thing, not to omit any of the things which he had heard
and not to state any falsely…” (Eusebius, Church History, 3:39)
Another of John’s disciples was Irenaeus who also remembered
the apostles as being “filled from His gifts.” Also a student of Polycarp,
Irenaeus recalled the apostles having been endowed with “perfect knowledge”
whence the Holy Spirit descended upon them after Jesus’ resurrection.
Around the time of 55AD-60AD, Matthew authored his Gospel and a few years later, Mark added his own. Matthew’s Gospel targeted an audience among his fellow Jews, writing in native Hebrew while Peter and Paul were actively preaching to the Romans while laying the early foundations of the Church. Mark, on the other hand, followed closely what Peter, his mentor, preached. After that, Luke, a companion of Paul’s, launched his Gospel before Jesus’ ‘Beloved Disciple,’ John, was inspired to do the same during his stay in Ephesus in Asia.
In his book simply called, ‘Church History’ published around 325AD, Eusebius recounted that specifically Matthew and John wrote under some extent of pressure. Out of the necessity to compensate his fellow Jews for leaving them all too soon for his outreach, Matthew was obliged to write his Gospel in his native tongue. John, on the other hand, wrote out of the necessity to account for the lack of coverage of deeds performed by Christ at the beginning of His ministry. And he did so after the three Gospels had come into his possession. For example, John covered the period prior to John the Baptist being incarcerated, which the others had omitted.
“One who understands
this can no longer think that the Gospels are at variance with one another,
inasmuch as the Gospels according to John contains the first acts of Christ
while the others give an account of the latter part of His life…”
Heretical
Proof of New Testament Validity
The amount of proof positive for the New Testament was well counterbalanced by the proliferation of ancient heretical writings recorded between the Second and Sixth Centuries. All of these were levelled at the New Testament; evidence that with God’s inspired word, there would always be those who were bent on raining on His parade.
The prominent ones were authored by at least five identifiable heretical groups – those who denied the humanity of Christ (Docetists), those who denied the divinity of Christ (Ebionites), those who denied the goodness of Christ (Gnostics), those who denied the dualism nature between good and evil and who were entrenched in asceticism (Manicheans) and then those who simply rejected the Old Testament and thus distinguishing two different Gods involved, preferring plainly Luke and Paul’s teachings (Marcionites).
From these groups came writings that were directly opposed to those of the Apostolic Fathers. Here we have to include also the New Testament Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha, which are informally referred to as ‘Hidden Writings’ and ‘False Writings’ respectively. In the case of the latter, the word ‘pseudepigrapha’ means “falsely attributed Jewish works and spurious texts that were composed around 200 years of the birth of Jesus often attributed to various biblical patriarchs, apostles and prophets.” Examples include the Gospel of Peter, Gospel of Barnabas and the attribution of the Epistle to the Laodiceans to Paul. One particularly good example of pseudepigrapha is the Gospel of Judas, which presents its text as “the secret account of the revelation that Jesus spoke in conversation with Judas Iscariot.”
There have also been others such as the Gospel of Thomas, Gospel of Mary Magdalene, Acts of Paul and Thecla and also the Apocalypse of Peter. Like the others, none of these were written by their namesakes and have since been proven to be deliberate forgeries.
Wikipedia (under the topic ‘Pseudepigraphy’) outlines seven different but important aspects of proving authenticity in the case of pseudepigraphy that are useful to know:
Literal Authorship
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A church leader who writes a letter
in his own hand
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Dictation
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A church leader who dictates but a
scribe pens the letter word for word
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Delegated Authorship
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A church leader who defines the
contents of a letter but a scribe puts them into writing
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Posthumous Authorship
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A church leader dies before
completion of the letter but his scribe finishes it and attributes the work
to him
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Apprentice Authorship
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A church leader dies but his
authorised scribe continues to write letters in his name even long after his
demise
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Honourable Pseudepigraphy
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A church leader dies but his
admirers decide to honour him by writing letters in his name as a way of
perpetuating his teachings
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Forgery
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A reputable church leader who
before or after his death has other people who seek to exploit his standing
by forging letters in his name and then present them as proof of his support
of their own ideas
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No matter what form pseudepigraphy takes, they are
unsettling because of their deception and false teachings. One example of this
is the ‘Lost Gospels,’ which was recorded between the Second and Fourth
Century. In this work lies the ‘Infancy Story of Thomas,’ an extract of which
you can read here:
“When this boy Jesus
was five years old, he was playing at the ford of a brook and he gathered
together into pools the water that flowed by and made it at once clean… But the
son of Annas the scribe was standing there with Joseph; and he took a branch of
a willow and (with it) dispersed the water, which Jesus had gathered together.
When Jesus saw what he had done, he was enraged and said to him, “You insolent,
godless dunderhead, what harm did the pools and the water do to you? See, now
you shall also wither like a tree and shall bear neither leaves nor root nor
fruit.” And immediately the lad withered up completely… After this again Jesus
went through the village and a lad ran and knocked against his shoulder. Jesus
was exasperated and said to him, “You shall not go further on your way,” and
the child immediately fell down and died.”
From the Gospel of Thomas, we can find further deliberations to not only discredit Jesus but became a liberal excuse to widely embrace homosexuality today:
“Simon Peter said to
them, “Let Mary leave us, for women are not worthy of life.” Jesus said, “I
myself shall lead her in order to make her male, so that she too may become a
living spirit resembling your males. For every woman who will make herself male
will enter the kingdom of heaven.”
Christian gay communities and churches with a strong liberal
bent would do well to learn to distinguish between heretical and real biblical
works rather than to find excuses for their lifestyle through ancient writings
that have nothing to do with the Christian canon. But it’s not as if such work
has not been denounced. Condemnation was widespread as far back as 180AD when
Irenaeus disparaged not only the Gospel of Judas but also the ‘Fictitious History,’
a publication put together by a bunch of heretics who called themselves
‘Cainites’ as in the followers of Cain, the world’s first murderer.
Cyril of Jerusalem added his voice in 350AD against the Gospel of Thomas and also in particular, works penned by the Manicheans. Serapion, the Bishop of Syria, levelled his criticisms against the Gospel of Peter, stating that it was “false(ly) ascribed to Him,” reasoning that “such were not handed down to us.”
Shaping the
New Testament Books – The Debate
None other than Eusebius whose writings on the development of the New Testament canon revealed in 325AD the inclusiveness of the ‘holy quarternion’ (reference to the four Gospels) was being its central foundation. Revolving around the Gospels were the Acts of the Apostles (Book of Acts), letters of Paul and also those of John and Peter. To all of these, there were no disagreements or disputes.
By this point, the New Testament could be identified through four book categories:
‘Undisputed’ texts
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Also known as ‘Accepted’ texts
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‘Disputed’ texts
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Despite so, they are widely
recognised
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‘Rejected’ texts
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‘Heretical’ texts
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Also known as ‘False Writings’
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Of the ones listed above, ‘undisputed’ texts means they are
incontestable. These are books that have been unanimously agreed upon as being
truly scriptural and inerrant. Of these, discussions had also centred on the
one book that attracted a mass of different opinions. Later called the Book of
Revelation but better known then as the Apocalypse of John the Divine, there
was much about it that required resolution.
The key features of the ‘disputed’ writings were the letters of James as well as those of Jude, Peter (2 Peter) and John (2 and 3 John). These were highlighted as being widely recognised and accepted but the issue was whether or not they had belonged to the evangelists or were in reference to completely different people who happened to have shared the same names. Could John be the same John or for that matter, Peter? These names were fairly common then and therefore the crux of the issue had centred on authorship and authenticity.
‘Rejected’ texts were a little more complicated to deal with. The ones that attracted the most attention in this category were the Acts of Paul (and the alleged Shepherd), the Apocalypse of Peter, the Epistle of Barnabas including the Teaching of the Apostles (called the Didache). Despite being part of the ‘disputed’ texts, the Apocalypse of John – or Book of Revelation – was very much part of the discussion here as well. Eusebius recalled that all of these were set apart from those that were unanimously accepted, and were then considered ‘not canonical but disputed.’ Nonetheless they were still well known works to most ecclesiastical writers.
‘Heretical’ texts were simply not deemed worthy of attention even then. Experts by then were entirely able to authenticate their validity (or lack of), finding in all of them that – in Eusebius’ words – “the character of the style (was) at variance with apostolic usage and both the thoughts and the purpose of the things that (were) related in them (were) so completely out of accord with true orthodoxy that they clearly (showed) themselves to be the fictions of heretics. Wherefore they (were) not to be placed even among the rejected writings but (were) all of them to be cast aside as absurd and impious.”
Still, despite all these, there was much left to disagree concerning the exact canon and so by the Fourth Century, no closure was in sight, begging the question, “Who decides exactly which books are and aren’t inspired?” And all this while, over the next many centuries, pseudo-experts have been emerging from the woodwork declaring obtuse views about the origins of the Bible.
Of these Dan Brown’s ‘Da Vinci Code’ has probably earned the indignity of being the most infamous. Other than making loads of money, Brown’s half-hearted assertion of its fictional nature did nothing to arrest growing belief that the Bible is not from God and instead merely a fancy adventurous work of ‘Man.’ Needless to say when the paperback hit the movie screens throughout the world, many hearts and minds of fragile young Christians were devastated.
While Brown’s cheap trick was as close to defacing Scripture, Emperor Constantine was, on the other hand, wrongly accused of rewriting the Bible some 1,700 years earlier. In 325AD, Constantine was said to have ‘altered’ the Gospels on the pretext that he was a pagan Roman Emperor wanting to render Christ more ‘divine.’ Hindsight offered by Eusebius (in his book titled, ‘Life of Constantine’) revealed that he did no such thing. Instead he simply ordered fifty copies of the Scriptures for his city in order to cater to easier access by more churches:
“It happens, through
the favouring providence of God our Saviour, that great numbers have united
themselves to the most holy church in the city which is called by my name,
Constantinople. It seems therefore highly requisite, since that city is rapidly
advancing in prosperity… that the number of churches should also be increased.
Do you therefore, receive with all readiness my determination on this behalf? I
have thought it expedient to instruct your Prudence to order fifty copies of
the sacred Scriptures… to be written on prepared parchment in a legible manner,
and in a convenient, portable form, by professional transcribers thoroughly
practised in their art.”
Council of
Rome and Pope Damasus I
By the Fourth Century, the Council of Rome had convened with the view of bring the subject of the canon to closure. Just as they began with the fundamental question of “What is Scripture,” they dealt also with the heresies of rejecting the Holy Trinity and hence the challenge to the divinity of the Holy Spirit, much of which were also brought up by the Council of Nicaea. All of these, of course, meant that the inclusiveness of what constituted Scriptures was perhaps now drawing to a close.
From this point, the canon was pronounced that dictated forty-six books for the Old Testament and twenty-seven for the New Testament. Of the former, seven represented the contentious Apocrypha. In other words, as much as the Council of Rome would have wanted to, the issue was nowhere near over. In the decree outlined by then-Pope Damasus I, the Scripture looked like this (at least for now):
Old Testament (number of books
in parenthesis)
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||
Genesis (1)
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Ecclesiastes (1)
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Habacuc (1)
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Exodus (1)
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Canticle of Canticles (1)
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Sophonias (1)
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Leviticus (1)
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Wisdom (1)
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Aggeus (1)
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Numbers (1)
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Ecclesiasticus (1)
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Zacharias (1)
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Deuteronomy (1)
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Ezechiel (1)
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Malachias (1)
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Josue Nave (1)
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Daniel (1)
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Job (1)
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Judges (1)
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Osee (1)
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Tobias (1)
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Ruth (1)
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Micheas (1)
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Esdras (2)
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Kings (4)
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Joel (1)
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Esther (1)
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Paralipomenon (2)
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Abdias (1)
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Judith (1)
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Psalms (1)
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Jonas (1)
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Maccabees (2)
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Solomon (3)
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Nahum (1)
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Proverbs (1)
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(* together with Ginoth and his lamentations)
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Isaias (1)
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Jeremias* (1)
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New Testament (number of books
in parenthesis)
|
||
Matthew (1)
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Acts of the Apostles (1)
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* Paul’s Epistles:
(Romans (1), Corinthians (2), Ephesians (1), Thessalonians (2),
Galatians (1), Philippians (1), Colossians (1), Timothy 2, Titus (1),
Philemon (1), Hebrews (1)
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Mark (1)
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Peter (2)
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Luke (1)
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James the Apostle (1)
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John (1)
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John the Apostle (1)
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Paul* (14)
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Jude the Zealot (1)
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John the Presbyter (2)
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Apocalypse of John (1)
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Pope Damasus’ significance in the history of the Bible was
made palpable by his commissioning of Jerome to translate Scripture into Latin,
thus giving rise to the ‘official’ Bible of the Catholic Church. Known as the
Latin Vulgate, the word ‘vulgate’ is the origin for the English equivalent of
‘vulgar,’ which generally means ‘common.’ The motive of the Church then was to
push the Latin Vulgate as the common Bible for all of Christendom and by
mobilising a single standard, the hope was to unify all Christians at that time.
The impact of the Latin Vulgate was great. Both the Councils of Hippo (393AD) and Carthage (397AD) in Africa hailed its introduction. Pope Boniface resoundingly approved it at the Second Council of Carthage (419AD). Fourteen years later, Pope Innocent I wrote of his consent to the Bishop of Toulouse (433AD). And the Council of Trent (1546AD) reinforced its validity.
The fact that the Latin Vulgate was also at the storm of change should not go amiss. By the 16th Century, it was evident that it was not only far from perfect but had been one of several causes for the divide in the Church between those who sought to protect papal powers and those who wanted spiritual freedom by way of wanting to understand God’s Word.
The Rise of
Protestantism
Antagonism against the Catholic Church is nothing new for even during the Norman era, this was already evident. Opposition against the papacy had as much to do with religious domination as it had to do with political power play of which being a Pope, held incredible influence throughout the world at that time. By the 16th Century, rebellion against the papal authorities was peaking and there was much wrong in the Christian world.
Henry VIII had sought to sever ties with the Catholic Church in order that he could marry Ann Boleyn and from hereon, the Church of England was founded. England alone would see widespread bloodshed as the country swung from one royal ruler to the next. Across in Germany, Martin Luther was stirring for change once he began questioning the church over doctrinal heresies including indulgences, purgatory and praying for the dead. Wars were waged and assassinations were plotted with Elizabeth I narrowly escaping an attempt on her life by at least one assassin sent by papal authorities. She not only survived but led England to repulse the Spanish Armada in 1588 in what was probably her greatest victory. This was made much sweeter by the ‘Protestant Wind’ that miraculously swept the Armada into pieces as it fought its way to return to Spain humiliatingly.
The Latin Vulgate was in the middle of this century of storm. In simple terms, it was of little use to the new world of Protestant Christianity. The Septuagint would have been far more useful and it still is today. By comparison, the Latin Vulgate drew heavy criticism for its error-filled texts both in terms of choice of words and typographical slipups. John Wycliffe was among the earliest to draw ire from a greatly annoyed Catholic Church so much so that years after his death, papal authorities even exhumed his body to burn it and cast into a nearby river. The England of Wycliffe’s days was strongly Catholic and therefore publishing alternative Bibles amounted to heresy and therefore, death by the stake.
No matter Desiderius Eramus’ efforts defending and improving the Latin Vulgate, the inertia of a reforming world has turned against it with Luther at the forefront. By the time the full force of Reformation had taken place, the Latin Vulgate was reduced to insignificance owing to its plethora of embarrassing translation errors. But it was far more than that.
In a world of increasingly convoluted politics, the Church was not without its hands dirtied. Many of the papacy’s supporters have often said that only an infallible church could produce an infallible canon of Scripture but the Latin Vulgate fell so far short of flawlessness that the topic itself became irrelevant. Created to not just be the scriptural stalwart for the Catholic Church but to repulse alternative Bibles produced by people like Wycliffe, it was compromised from the start not just because of the translation errors – the decision taken to translate the original Hebrew and Greek texts into Latin was as political as it was fated because in the end, it sought to drive a wedge between the Church and the people it was supposed to serve.
The powers to be had decided that Latin would ensure that God’s word would stay with the papal authorities mainly because the common people did not know enough of the language to understand what was written. The political position was simple – God’s word was available to read but then it would take someone proficient in Latin to be able to take advantage of it. It was no more useful than if they had written it in Sanskrit.
Agitating to bring God’s word to the people, many answered the calling to make it available by doing their own translations. There were those that used the Latin Vulgate as the source, which meant that theirs were also erroneous. These included the Aldheim, Bede, Psalters, King Alfred, Aldred the Scribe, Farman, Ælfric, Caedmon, Ormulum, Rolle, West Midlands Psalms and the Catholic New Testament Bibles, all of which were available from the late 7th to the early 12th Century. Beyond these, the more prominent ones included the following:
LV: Latin
Vulgate; MT: Masoretic Text; TR: Textus Receptus; ER: Erasmus’ Greek NT; LU:
Luther Bible; &C: Others
Year of Release
|
Name of Bible Translation
|
Translation Sources
|
|||||
lt
|
mt
|
tr
|
er
|
lu
|
&c
|
||
1380
|
Wycliffe’s
Bible
|
x
|
|||||
1526
|
Tyndale Bible
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
|||
1535
|
Coverdale
Bible
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
||
1537
|
Matthew’s
Bible
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
||
1539
|
Great Bible
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
||
1539
|
Taverner’s
Bible
|
||||||
1560
|
Geneva Bible
|
x
|
x
|
||||
1568
|
Bishops’
Bible
|
x
|
x
|
||||
1582
|
Douay-Rheims
Bible
|
x
|
|||||
1611
|
King James
Version
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
|||
1752
|
Douay-Rheims
Bible (Challoner Revision)
|
x
|
|||||
1764
|
Quaker Bible
|
x
|
x
|
||||
1808
|
Thomson’s
Translation
|
x
|
|||||
1826
|
Living
Oracles
|
x
|
|||||
1833
|
Webster’s
Revision (revision of the KJV)
|
x
|
x
|
x
|
|||
1844
|
Brenton’s Old
Testament
|
x
|
|||||
1852
|
Murdock
Translation of the Western Peshitto
|
x
|
|||||
1853
|
Ferrar-Fenton
Bible
|
x
|
x
|
||||
1862
|
Young’s
Literal Translation
|
x
|
x
|
||||
1864
|
Emphatic
Diaglott
|
x
|
|||||
1876
|
Julia E Smith
Tanakh
|
x
|
x
|
||||
1890
|
Darby Bible
|
||||||
Efforts to offer translations made the Protestant Canon
distinct from the Catholic’s. By the time we witnessed the proliferation of
different Bibles translated from the Latin Vulgate, Textus Receptus, Masoretic
Text and even Erasmus’ Greek New Testament, it was evident that the word
‘catholic’ required more careful understanding. ‘Catholic’ simply means
‘universal.’ As the Protestant or Reformation movement distanced itself from
the Catholic Church, Christendom began calling them the Roman Catholic Church.
As the Scriptural differences became different and agreement could not be met, the Catholic Church could no longer be universally applicable to all Christians. Herein we began to see the Protestant Bible using only 39 rather than 46 Books to define the Old Testament. The difference of seven books removed were the ‘Apocrypha’ (or the ‘den Books’) as well as the Deuterocanonicals (known as the ‘Second Canon’) and they included the Books of Tobit, Judith, Wisdom of Solomon, Baruch, 1 and 2 Maccabees, Sirach and also certain portions of Esther and Daniel.
It is true that earlier Protestant Bibles had retained the Apocrypha and integrated them into the Old Testament. Subsequent versions were amended, firstly by relegating the Apocrypha to the back of the Bible and then eventually disappearing altogether. Elizabeth I’s preferred Great Bible was one such example and in fact, the early editions of the King James Version (KJV) was similar. In a reprint ordered by the government, later versions of the KJV Bible had the Apocrypha removed completely. These were all done in line with the Luther Bible.
The removal of the Apocrypha had caused a serious irreparable rift with the Roman Catholic world but Luther’s motives were clear. He could not reconcile himself to the serious doctrinal breaches and he felt strongly that they did not reflect the true nature of God. Of the many issues abound, one that he raised was the teaching of purgatory and prayers for the dead found in the Book of 2 Maccabees of which Chapter 12:43-46 was an example:
“And making a
gathering, he (Judah) sent twelve thousand drachmas of silver to Jerusalem for
sacrifice to be offered for the sins of
the dead, thinking well and religiously concerning the resurrection. For if
he had not hoped that they that were slain should rise again, it would have
seemed superfluous and vain to pray for the dead. And because he considered
that they who had fallen asleep with godliness had great grace laid up for
them. It is therefore a holy and
wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from their
sins.”
The fact that Luther was dead against the existence of
purgatory meant the two Books of Maccabees were unacceptable and as it turned
out, he then decided to reorder the books as they would appear in the Bible. In
so doing the Apocrypha would exist in a section at the back called ‘Appendix.’ It
is true that this is not the same as having them removed completely but given
the circumstances, Luther was probably wise not to have done so. With the
powerful forces he was affronting, he probably did not have to stomach to go
all the way. The fear of harm coming his way was not to be underestimated. At
any rate, the Appendix section quietly disappeared over time.
Not to sound like an apologist for the Roman Catholic Church, Luther was interfering beyond just the Old Testament. He found enough of his own reasons to dislike some parts of the New Testament and relegated them to the self-styled Appendix section. Surprisingly these included the Books of Hebrew, James, Jude and Revelation (or as it was known then, the Apocalypse of John the Divine). It was after all Luther who outrageously regarded the Book of James as “an epistle of straw” mainly because he abhorred James mentioning “not by faith alone.”
The
Calvinistic and Anglican standpoints
At roughly the same time (1540AD), John Calvin was also in the scene. Being the driving force behind the famous Geneva Bible, he was also not well liked by the Roman Catholic Church especially when he was once a Catholic monk and now he had become central to the fledgling Protestant movement. About the seven books that drove a wedge in between the Catholics and the Protestants, Calvin had this to say:
“These books, called
Apocrypha, have always been distinguished from the writings, which were without
difficulty called Holy Scripture. For the Church Fathers wished to avoid the
danger of mixing profane books with those which were certainly brought forth by
the Holy Spirit. That is why they made a list, which they called a canon… It is
true that the Apocrypha is not to be despised, insofar as it contains good and
useful teaching. Yet there is good reason for what was given us by the Holy
Spirit to have precedence over what has come from human beings. Thus all
Christians, following what St Jerome said, read the Apocrypha, and take from it
teaching “for edification”… None of these books was in any way accepted by the
Hebrews, and their original texts are not in Hebrew but in Greek. It is correct
that today, a great part of them are found in Hebrew. But it may be that they
were (back) translated from Greek. The safest thing is therefore to hold to
what is extant in the language in which they are usually found.”
Not surprisingly, a defiant Catholic Church claimed Calvin
was wrong on several counts. Firstly the Church deemed it incorrect to make a
distinction between the Apocrypha and the Scriptures. To papal authorities, the
both are intertwined, inseparable and indistinguishable and they quoted early
Church Fathers who declared that the seven books were not to be apart in their
lists. Secondly they took offence to Calvin’s opinion that the Apocrypha was
not the work of the Holy Spirit but of men and because of this, he felt it
could not be part of Scriptures. The Church on the other hand thought otherwise
and justified that it was integral with Scripture canon, arguing also that
language in itself didn’t matter (it does, actually). And in the end, Calvin’s
opinion was his and his alone and insofar as the Church was concerned, one
particular personal opinion did not the scriptural canon make.
All of these must also take into account that the Church of England, founded in 1553 by King Henry VIII for all the wrong reasons, had also utilised Article 6 in its own ’39 Articles of Religion for Essential Doctrine’ to argue the point:
“In the name of Holy
Scripture, we do understand those Canonical Books of the Old and New
Testaments, of whose authority was never any doubt in the Church. Of the names
and number of the Canonical Books… All the books of the New Testament, as they
are commonly received, we do receive and account them canonical. And the other
books (as Hierome* saith) the Church doth read for example of life and
instruction of manners; but yet doth it not apply them to establish any
doctrine. Such are these following (lists the 7 Books plus 3 and 4 Esdras).”
* Another way of saying ‘Jerome’
The Anglican Church’s stand-offs with the indomitable papal
powers formed a large part of old England’s history. Beginning with Henry VIII,
his children fought a seesaw battle that turned into an ugly and murderous dark
period. While Henry sought to distance England from the Catholics, Mary I used
her Spanish connections to destroy the Church of England and draw towards the
papacy. In the process tens of thousands of people were burned at the stake
throughout the country in a period now known as Bloody Mary.
Upon her untimely death – and with no direct succession available – her half-sister Elizabeth I assumed the helm and set forth to resume her late brother’s (Edward VI) agenda, moulding a new culture of a Protestant England. Her reign was rocked by attempted assassination plots, threats and intimidations and wars in Europe that had strong Catholic ambitions. Her greatest victory was in successful thwarting the Spanish Armada in 1588 before the country entered a golden era of stability. In handling the reins to her godson, James VI, whose mother she beheaded for her murderous Catholic plots, England was finally on the way to securing its Protestant legacy.
Although by then England had witnessed a string of Bible translations – admittedly some better than others – the reign of King James VI proved remarkably significant. He not only united England and Scotland but also authorised the most influential Bible translation today. Grander than even his predecessor’s Great Bible and less contentious than the Calvinistic Geneva Bible, the King James Version (KJV) was to be known indisputably as the Authorised Version also. If ever there was a Bible that would define Protestant Christianity (till today), it is the KJV Bible in all its Tyndale-inspired poetry and the beauty of God’s Word expressed for every English-speaking household to learn, enjoy and embrace.
The advent of the KJV Bible paved the way for the common person to gain access to God’s Word. It may not have been an overnight occurrence but by making it possible, there began a growing sense of freedom to encourage others to further broaden public access in ways unheard of before. And herein lies the issue – language. What the papal powers had sought to do, the Protestant movement had succeeded in undoing. Just as the Roman Catholic Church used a difficult language to distance the divine word from the masses, the Protestant movement use localisation to enable Scripture to reach families and homes. One was about control; the other was about outreach and the difference between the two was distinct.
Families were now able to read, share and understand. With the family Bible available, the language barrier was no longer there. People were no longer separated from the Word of God. Church life flourished and people flocked to read the Gospels as much as understand the history of God’s covenant with His people. As much as the papacy had fought so hard to repress, the Protestant movement had now unlocked the flood gates that allowed people to not just read but own their own Bibles.
Four years after its original launch (1615AD), the updated version of the KJV Bible no longer featured the Apocrypha including also the liturgical calendar of the Saints’ Feast Days. All the cross-references had also disappeared as well. Over the subsequent years, all other Bible translations had followed suit until 1650AD when the seven books were completely gone from every Protestant Bible. Today the modern Christian, unless a studious attendant of Bible Study classes, will have little to no idea of what the Apocrypha is and what the fuss was about.
The Modern
Translations
In today’s modern climes, the Protestant Bible the world over numbers in dozens of versions. Even as the KJV Bible maintained its position as the world’s most popular, millions of Christians have also found favour in myriad other versions that are the result of scholars pouring their skills at translating while paying close attention to scriptural authenticity with a view to not lose its original meanings. Despite the obvious difference in terms of available technologies, scholars today work with the same feverish devotion as their predecessors centuries ago.
Every modern Protestant Bible today carries the following books for the Old and New Testaments:
Old
Testament
|
New
Testament
|
||
Genesis, Exodus
Leviticus, Numbers
Deuteronomy, Joshua
Judges, Ruth
1 Samuel, 2 Samuel
1 Kings, 2 Kings
1 Chronicles,
2 Chronicles
Ezra, Nehemiah
Esther, Job, Psalms
|
Proverbs, Ecclesiastes
Song of Solomon
Isaiah, Jeremiah
Lamentations, Ezekiel
Daniel, Hosea, Joel
Amos, Obadiah, Jonah
Micah, Nahum
Habakkuk, Zephaniah
Haggai, Zechariah
Malachi
|
Matthew, Mark, Luke
John
Acts of the Apostles
Romans
1 Corinthians
2 Corinthians
Galatians
Ephesians
Philippians
Colossians
|
1 Thessalonians
2 Thessalonians
1 Timothy
2 Timothy
Titus, Philemon
Hebrews, James
1 Peter, 2 Peter
1 John, 2 John, 3 John
Jude
Revelation
|
The complexion of the Old Testament has been commonly
divided into identifiable sections where each provides a unique insight into
God. These sections are Law, History, Poetry/Wisdom and Prophets.
The books of the Old Testament can be sectioned accordingly:
Law
The five books that characterise
the beginning of the Old Testament in every Bible translation are also
collectively referred to as the Pentateuch (meaning ‘five-volumed book’) or the
Torah (meaning ‘the law’ or ‘instruction’) in Judaic tradition. They include
the following:
Genesis
|
Exodus
|
Leviticus
|
Numbers
|
Deuteronomy
|
These books provide not just the
founding divine law in the Bible but also the theological basis revolving
around how sin has entered the world. The Pentateuch also allows us to bear
witness to how God responds to sin, His relationship with Man and an
opportunity to understand better about His character and nature.
In most cases, both Jewish and Christian scholars have by tradition credited authorship of these books to Moses but it’s also easy to see why when we check out the passages of evidence found in Exodus 17:14, 24:4-7, Numbers 33:1-2 and Deuteronomy 31:9-22. On the other hand, a verse like Deuteronomy 34:5-8 could attest to Joshua recording the death and burial of Moses, the majority of scholars believe that the teachings and revelation are traceable all the way back to God through instructions handed down to Moses and then perhaps someone like Joshua writing them down. To underscore the importance of the Pentateuch and the role Moses played, Jesus Himself refers to it as the ‘Law of Moses’ (Luke 24:44).
A very good article on the Pentateuch can be found in Got Questions.com at the following URL: http://www.gotquestions.org/Pentateuch.html
History
Twelve books in the Old Testament
are history based. They include the following:
Joshua
|
1 Samuel
|
2 Kings
|
Ezra
|
Judges
|
2 Samuel
|
1 Chronicles
|
Nehemiah
|
Ruth
|
1 Kings
|
2 Chronicles
|
Esther
|
They tell the story of the Bible
and as such they provide the historical record of Israel’s foundation and how
the nation is firmly intertwined with God. History begins with the Book of
Joshua when the Israelites finally claimed the Promised Land and ends some
1,000 years later upon their return from exile. In between, these are some of
the most powerful, compelling and inspirational stories ever told in the Bible.
The history aspect of the Old Testament can be said to centre on the following aspects:
-
The stories of ancient Israel’s establishment
-
Israel’s rise to prominence
-
Israel’s collapse into moral and physical defeat
-
Israel’s eventual restoration
Here you will also discover some very famous (and infamous) biblical characters including David, Elijah, Solomon, Ahab and Esther and many others. It’s reasonable to say that some of them are known even to non-Christians.
Poetry, Wisdom
All up, there are five books that
colour the Bible with poetry and wisdom. They are as follows:
Job
|
Psalms
|
Proverbs
|
Ecclesiastes
|
Song of Songs
|
They span from the Abrahamic era to the very tail-end of the Old Testament. The oldest book here, Job, is also one of contentious authorship; simply told, we are not certain who wrote it. On the other hand, the Book of Psalms has multiple writers of which King David is perhaps not only the most notable but the most famous while the others have remained largely unknown. David’s son, Solomon is the author behind Proverbs, Ecclesiastes and of course, Song of Songs. All of them, amidst their poetic style also qualify as ‘wisdom literature’ on the basis that they teach us about our human struggles and real-life endeavours.
These five contrast quite dramatically to the historical books – the writing style, the existentialistic form of questioning and in the case of the Book of Job, the dialogue – all of these offer an insight into the wisdom of the Ancient Near East literature that centres on humanity, Creation and the dualism of good and evil, blessings and sufferings.
Prophetic
By tradition, scholars divide the many
prophetic books in the Old Testament into two distinct groups identifiable by
the major (as in ‘prominent’) and the minor (as in ‘lesser known’) prophets who
wrote them. Between the two groups, the latter outnumber the former but then
the former appear to be more significant.
The five books from the major prophets go by their names (with the exception of one):
Isaiah
|
Jeremiah
|
Lamentations
|
Ezekiel
|
Daniel
|
The Book of Lamentations is believed to
be authored by Jeremiah himself. However despite its strongly poetic nature, it
was brought into this group on the basis that Jeremiah was an important
prophet. Also while Hebrew canon considered the Book of Daniel to be a
significant part of ‘Writings,’ English and Greek translations place him in
this group because they qualify him as a major prophet.
The books of the minor prophets are as follows:
Hosea
|
Joel
|
Amos
|
Obadiah
|
Jonah
|
Micah
|
Nahum
|
Habakkuk
|
Zephaniah
|
Haggai
|
Zechariah
|
Malachi
|
In the New Testament, the books are sectioned accordingly:
Gospels
Central to every Bible are the
four Gospels in the New Testament. They are as follows:
Matthew
|
Mark
|
Luke
|
John
|
These record the life and story of Jesus
Christ from birth to crucifixion and resurrection. With the exception of John’s
Gospel, the first three were written between 55AD and 65AD. John wrote his
around 85AD to 95AD.
Book of Acts
Bible scholars singled out the Book of
Acts for its outstanding and detailed eyewitness account of the foundation of
the early Church. Written by Luke, Acts records the time immediately following
the resurrection of Christ. Although this was a tumultuous and essentially
uncertain period, the apostles acted on their faith to spread the Gospel.
The Book of Acts is in many ways the history of Christianity of the New Testament age, melding the Jesus’ life and ministry with the life of the founding Church and the witness of early believers. Luke’s writings also helped to bridge the Gospels and the Epistles.
Epistles
Epistle is another word for ‘letter’ but
written in a poetic or literary style. Originating from the Latin word ‘epistola’ and in itself a derivative of
the Greek word ‘epistole,’ an epistle
is also a series of letters composed by the writer and aimed to be read to
either a person or a group of people within a fledgling church setting.
Although Paul of Tarsus wrote thirteen of the epistles, there have been others. However Paul’s significance is such that his writings, which address specific situations or problems, take up about 25 percent of the whole New Testament.
All the epistles are as follows:
Romans
|
1 Corinthians
|
2 Corinthians
|
Galatians
|
1 Thessalonians
|
Five Prison
Epistles (Paul)
|
2 Thessalonians
|
|||
Ephesians
|
Philippians
|
Colossians
|
Philemon
|
Seven Epistles
|
Three Pastoral
Epistles (Paul)
|
Not
Written by Paul
|
|||
1 Timothy
|
2 Timothy
|
Titus
|
1 John
|
2 John
|
1 Peter
|
2 Peter
|
Hebrews, Jude
|
James
|
3 John
|
As noted, epistles that were not written by Paul include Hebrews, James, 1 and 2 Peter, 1, 2 and 3 John and also Jude.
Apocalypse of John
We know this today as the Book of
Revelation but in some quarters, it’s also referred to as “The Revelation of
Jesus Christ.” Not to be mistaken, this is the same John who wrote the last of
the four Gospels and indeed, we know him also as the son of Zebedee. Whilst in
exile on Patmos Island, he was inspired by the visions he experienced not long
after he completed his Gospel.
At a time when the early Church was facing incredible persecution not just in Europe but also Asia, John’s apocalyptic work was both frightening but inspiring. Filled with powerful symbolisms and imageries, the Book of Revelation challenges and bewilders, leaving the reader gasping to understand and still fear to tread further. It is as intimidating as it is confounding, yet it is strongly accepted to be the culmination of things yet to come.
Today’s
English Translations
According to Wikipedia, these are the leading versions of the Protestant Bible available today:
American Revised Version
|
arv
|
Moulton (Modern Readers’) Bible
1907
|
|
American Standard Version
|
asv
|
New American Bible
|
nab
|
Bishops’ Bible (1568)
|
New American Standard Bible
|
nasb
|
|
Contemporary English Version
|
cev
|
New English Bible
|
neb
|
Coverdale Bible (1535)
|
New International Version
|
niv
|
|
Easy-to-Read Version
|
erv
|
New Jerusalem Bible
|
njb
|
English Revised Version
|
erv
|
New King James Version Bible
|
nkjv
|
English Standard Version
|
esv
|
New Living Translation
|
nlt
|
Geneva Bible (1560)
|
New Revised Standard Version*
|
nrsv
|
|
Good News Bible (Today’s Eng
Version)
|
tev
|
Revised English Bible
|
reb
|
Great Bible (1540)
|
Revised Standard Version
|
rsv
|
|
Jerusalem Bible
|
jb
|
Revised Version
|
rv
|
Knox Bible
|
Smith-Goodspeed (‘Chicago’) Bible
|
||
Living Bible 1971
|
The Living Bible
|
tlb
|
|
Martin Luther Bible (1522)
|
Today’s New International Version*
|
tniv
|
|
Matthew Bible (1537)
|
Tyndale Bible (1525)
|
||
Modern Language Bible
|
mlb
|
Wycliffe (& Purvey) Bible
(1385)
|
|
Moffatt Bible
|
For more detailed background, refer to http://www.masters-table.org/reformation/Bible%20version%20list.htm
Remarkable
curiosities
Using the King James Version (KJV) Bible as the reference standard, there have been some interesting notes not missed by those looking for curiosities. Here are what are commonly available throughout the Internet:
Take note that the following do not take into account the deuterocanonical books.
-
Calculating from the 929 and 260 chapters in the
Old and New Testaments respectively, there are, on average, eighteen chapters
for each of the 66 books. In total, there are 3,586,483 letters packaged into
773,693 words and presented in 1,188 chapters with 31,173 verses (23,214 in the
Old and 7,959 in the New Testament).
-
There are 39 books in the Old Testament and 27
in the New Testament. To remember these numbers easily, consider the word ‘Old’
has three and the word ‘Testament’ has nine letters. 3 and 9 joined together is
‘39.’ To remember, ’27,’ take the 3 and multiple 9.
-
With a total of 1,188 chapters, Psalm 118 is
mathematically the middle chapter of the whole Bible. There is some contention
with this as some believe that the honour goes to Psalm 117 instead. Yet, it is
Psalm 118 that attracts a fair amount of intrigue because the middle verse here
is v.8 and the middle two words are “the Lord,” which is quite stunning given
that this is the calculated centre of the entire Bible. With Psalm 118 dividing
the Bible into ‘two halves,’ each of these halves will have 594 chapters before
and after. Given the total of 1,188 chapters, it is ironic that Psalm 118:8 is
also the middle verse in the whole Bible, which speaks to us to place our trust
in God rather than man.
-
Another record for the Book of Psalms is its 150
chapters, making it the longest in the Bible and with that, there are 43,743
words. The shortest is 3 John with only 1 chapter comprising 299 words.
-
The middle of the Old Testament is where we find
Job 29. For the New Testament, that would be Romans 13.
-
The word ‘Lord’ occurs 1,853 times while
‘Jehovah is recorded at 6,855 times through the Bible.
-
The longest word in the Bible is
‘Mahershalalhashbaz (or Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz),’ which comprises 18 letters and
is found in Isaiah 8:1. The word means ‘quick to the plunder, swift to the
spoil’ and was used to refer to the successful Assyrian conquest of Damascus
(Syria) and Samaria (Israel). It was also used as Isaiah’s son’s name who was
the prophet’s second mentioned prophetic child.
-
In Psalm 107, there are four verses that are
identical at the 8th, 15th, 21st and 31st, saying, “Oh, that men would give
thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the
children of men!”
-
In Psalm 136, every verse ends identically with,
“For His mercy endures forever.”
- The lengthiest verse found in the Bible is in the Book of Esther 8:9. All in, there are 90 words. At the other end, the shortest has only two words – In John 11:35, the verse reads, “Jesus wept.” While this is true for most English translations, some will differ. For example the NIV (New International Version), NLT (New Living Translation), NFV (New Life Version), Homan Christian Standard Bible and the NIRV (New International Reader’s Version) places Job 3:2 as the shortest, with “He said.” To be specific, this is a translator’s condensation of the Hebraic transliteration of “And Job answered and said.”
-
It is said that the four most inspiring promises
found in the Bible are in John 14:2 and 6:37, Matthew 11:28 and Psalm 37:4.
Similarly many consider the most beautiful chapter in the Bible is Psalm 23 and
the finest chapter to read is Acts 26.
-
With the exception of five, all the books in the
Bible are divided into chapters and verses. The five that do not feature any
chapters include Obadiah, Philemon, 2 and 3 John and Jude.
-
Chapters were introduced to Scriptures in 1238
by Cardinal Hugo de S. Caro. On the other hand, verses were used for easier
legible division in 1551 by Robertus Stephanus in New Testament. However a
century earlier in 1488, it was R. Nathan who did the same for the Old
Testament. In fact the very first translation version that featured the use of
chapters and verses was the Geneva Bible in 1560.
-
With the exception of Joel 3:3, the word ‘girl’
appears nowhere else in the Bible.
-
The verse that contains every single letter in
the alphabet list (except ‘J’) is Ezra 7:21. Similarly Daniel 4:37 also
qualifies but the omitted exception instead is the letter ‘Q.’
-
Of all books written about God by various
religions, only the Bible contains the actual
words of God. From beginning to end, there are more than 3,000 occurrences
of the phrase, “thus saith the Lord.”
-
There are neither names nor words with more than
six syllables found anywhere in the Bible.
-
More than 3,200 verses of prophecy in the Bible
have been fulfilled. There are still 3,100 prophecies that are now awaiting
fulfilment.
-
More than any other publication in history, the
Bible is the only one translated into 1,200 different languages and dialects.
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