Bible Series, CTI Yr. 1, History of the Bible

Covenant Treasure Institute THE BIBLE I SERIES LESSON 2, HISTORY By Patricia Smith AUTHENTICITY The books that we have come to know as inspired, are books of Moses that were put into the ark of the covenant (Deut. 31: 26) others subsequently added (Joshua, etc.) to that which Moses wrote serving as historical records for the Jews Daniel speaks of the law and the “prophets” Isaiah also speaks of “the book of the Lord” which included the law, prophets and writings. The writings were given their final form, most likely by Ezra and Nehemiah and included acts of the kings prophets David Noted historian Josephus (A.D. 37-100) states the books acknowledged by God’s people (the Jews) as having divine authority, are those that we now have in our O.T. He states that “no one since the death of Artaxerxes had dared to add anything to them, take anything from them or make any changes in them. These books were regarded by Christians as having divine authority were quoted extensively by the N.T. writers. Between A.D. 200 and 400, ten catalogues of canonical books were published six agree totally with our present Bible and the rest omit only Revelation. (It is interesting that the Church at Laodicea was one of these works that omitted Revelation.) Prior to the 4th century there was no complete catalogue of N.T. books. Early Christians themselves gave credence to the writings of Paul Peter The gospel writers The learned scholar Jerome in that century is the one to whom the Church acknowledges the assignment of authenticity to the N.T. as we now have it. PRESERVATON Hebrew scribes penned the O.T. writings on fine skin rolls. Four scribes were required to copy one scroll. If one mistake was made the entire roll was destroyed the scribe would have to start over one scribe would copy the consonants second would mark vowel points and accents to ensure proper pronunciation third would check their work fourth would actually write in the rolls About 260 – 285 BC, 72 Alexandrian Jews (monks) were commissioned, each in a separate cell, given a copy of the Hebrew text and told to translate it into Greek (the language of the day). It is said that when the translations were complete and compared, they were identical, thus giving credence to the Greek Septuagint Bible. THE GREEK SEPTUAGINT BIBLE IS THE ONE JESUS AND THE NEW TESTAMENT WRITERS REFER TO AND QUOTE. Near the end of the 1st century AD, a Syrian version was made in the common Aramaic language that most Jews spoke. Other Latin versions appeared and became so corrupted that St. Jerome in 384 began an original translation that took him 20 years to complete known as the Latin Vulgate translation. Other versions appeared over the centuries until finally in Germany in 1546 the Gutenberg German translation (done at the behest of Martin Luther) first Bible to be printed on a metal printing press would become first mass production of any Bible In 1947, a shepherd boy playing in the hills on the west side of the Dead Sea, entered a cave and found clay jars containing leather scrolls wrapped in linen cloth. Through a series of purchases, these scrolls ended up, along with many others subsequently found in the same area, in the United States. Scholars determined that they were the oldest original manuscripts of the Bible that we have today. the book of Isaiah was found to be practically word for word with our King James Bible (minus the old English). Proof that God’s hand was on the preservation of His Word. THE ENGLISH BIBLE John Wycliffe used both pen and voice against the Roman Catholic Church. Born in 1320 in Yorkshire, England, John received a superior education and at Oxford, his preaching and teaching was controversial, He had to be protected by powerful and influential friends. He formed a band of “poor priests” called Lollards who went about the country teaching laymen from the Bible that he begun to translate into English. He finished his translation in 1384. In 1428, after his death, Catholic councils ordered his Bible to be burned wherever it was found, his own bones to be dug up, burned and the ashes cast into the River Swift. His translations were used widely in the King James Version. William Tyndale was born 1494 in Gloucestershire, translated over his lifetime and produced the first printed Scripture in English and a complete New Testament. When called before a council of religious leaders in the 16th century, he uttered these famous words: “If God spare my lyfe, ere many years I wyl cause a boye that dryveth the plough shall know more of the scripture than thou doest.” God did spare his life for many years and he fled England to Germany, until on May 21, 1535, he was kidnapped. taken from Antwerp to a fortress six miles from Brussels. On Oct. 6, 1536, he was strangled and burned at the stake. His dying words were: “Lord, open the Kings of England’s eyes.” Years later, after subsequent persecutions, his prayers were answered when King James commissioned scholars to translate from the original texts (with referrals to Wycliffe and Tyndale’s versions), an entire Bible that would be so carefully and meticulously studied and reviewed by all the world’s most prominent linguists and scholars of the day, that he would authorize it himself. Thus we have what we call the King James Bible. published in 1611. It has since been somewhat revised, but not re-translated. It replaced the Geneva Bible, a complete work done in Switzerland that had been widely used by the common people. It has been translated into more languages and has been the number one best seller worldwide ever since. We have many modern translations, (some taken from the King James, and others translated from the original texts). It still remains true that the hand of God was upon the preservation and translation of this most important work. TEST REVIEW The Bible I Series, Lesson 2, History 1. How do we know that early Christians acknowledged the Old Testament as the inspired Word of God? ______________________________________________________________ ___________________________________________________________________________ 2. What was the duty of the “scribes” spoken of in Jesus’ day? ________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ 3. What version of the Old Testament did Jesus most likely use and quote from? ______________________________________ 4. What was the first Bible to be printed on a metal printing press and gave birth to mass production of the Bible? __________________ What year was this done? ____________ 5. What are the oldest known original manuscripts of the Bible that we have today? ___________________________________________________________________ 6. What two translators are most remembered for giving us the English translation of the Bible? _______________________________________________________________________ 7. What year was the King James Bible translated? ___________ 8. Whose works were largely used by the scholars translating the KJV? ____________________________________________________________________________