CRBC Wednesday Night Bible Study: 5/16/2007

“The History Of Our Bible”

 

Introduction

            Recently, in the news, there was talk that some “new books of the Bible” had been discovered.  This naturally caused people to start asking questions, and one of the questions asked of me had to do with how we got our Bible as it is today.  So, we’re going to take the time examine that very subject.  Since we hold to the belief and conviction that the King James Bible is the correct one, that is the one that we are going to be focusing on.

 

I.                    Before the King James Bible was compiled

a.      Old Testament preservation

                                                               i.      God preserved the words of the Old Testament by the Levitical priests, who faithfully copied them through the centuries. (1500 B.C. - 300 B.C.)

                                                             ii.      The scribes are the next group God used to preserve His words. (400 B.C. - 500 A.D.)

                                                            iii.      The next group God used was the Masoretes. (500 A.D. - 1000 A.D.)

                                                           iv.      In 1515 A.D., Daniel Bomberg used a Masoretic text and printed a Hebrew Old Testament called the First Rabbinical Bible.  In 1524 A.D. he published the second edition called the Second Great Rabbinical Bible.

1.      In the 1590s Dr. Robert Wison certifies the Second Great Rabbinical Bible.

2.      Luke 24:44 stamps approval on all 3 parts of the Old Testament.

b.      New Testament preservation

                                                               i.      The Apostles (around 50 A.D.) were writing letters to people and churches.

                                                             ii.      All believers were making copies of what they had, but the most dedicated publishers were found in Antioch. (see Acts 11:26)

1.      This also included the Vaudois people of the French Alps (about AD 120)

c.      For 250 years or so from this point, we do not hear of any conflicts in the Scripture.  Everything has been copied and preserved the way that it was given by the Holy Spirit.  This is one of the reasons that we refer to it as the Textus Receptus, or “Received Text”- they are the words that the writers received from the Holy Spirit.

                                                               i.      These texts were also in 100% agreement.

                                                             ii.      The other versions of the Bible that are common today were translated from a different source of text.

1.      A man named Origin decides he is going to correct the Scriptures to what God had intended. 

2.      Jerome from Rome (382 A.D.) picked up where Origin left off. 

3.      Jerome’s work became a major force when a German critic found a pristine copy in a trash heap in a convent. (1800 A.D.)  This text becomes the basis for the translation used by the Catholic church.

 

II.                 Compiling of the King James Bible

a.      King James I of England wants one English Bible for his two kingdoms. (1604 A.D.)

                                                               i.      We make a mistake, however, if we attribute his zeal to good motives.  He had an ambition to advance his own cause and glory.  He was shrewd enough to see that a new translation, which was acceptable to all, would do much to unite the church and thus enhance his own glory.

                                                             ii.      However, God in His providence took the zeal of a king for his throne, and in the midst of the opposition of bishops, gave to His Church a Bible that has been her blessing and strength for almost 400 years.

b.      By June 30, 1604, 54 men had been approved as translators of the new version

                                                               i.      Only 47 of those men actually worked on the project.

                                                             ii.      Their main qualification was that they had "Taken pains in their private study of the Scriptures"

c.      The translators were formed into 6 companies: 2 meeting at Westminster, 2 at Cambridge, and 2 at Oxford.

                                                               i.      Genesis through II Kings was translated by the first Westminster company

                                                             ii.      I Chronicles through Song Of Solomon was done by the first Cambridge company

                                                            iii.      Isaiah through Malachi was done by the first Oxford company

                                                           iv.      The second Oxford company translated Matthew through Acts, and also Revelation.

                                                             v.      The Second Westminster company did Romans through Jude.

                                                           vi.      The Apocrypha was done by the second Cambridge company.

d.      The translation work

                                                               i.      Steps in translation

1.      Each member of the group would make his own translation

2.      They would then compare one another's work and present a single translation

3.      This book was then sent to the other five companies to be revised and edited.

4.      When the complete Bible was translated it went before a select committee of 12 (2 from each group) for another revision.

5.      The entire work was finally reviewed by 2 of the most scholarly translators before being sent to the printer.

                                                             ii.      This means that 14 times the Bible from Genesis to Revelation was translated, analyzed, and corrected by a team of 47 men.

                                                            iii.      This was a word-for-word translation from the original manuscripts.  The other versions of the Bible that are common today translate ideas, not necessarily the actual words.

1.      In other words, when reading any of the other versions, you are getting the writer’s interpretation of God’s idea, whereas in the King James you are getting the actual words of God as given to the writers by the Holy Spirit.

e.      The Apocrypha

                                                               i.      The Apocrypha is a collection of uninspired books written by various individuals. (supposedly part of the Old Testament)

                                                             ii.      It was not considered a part of the inspired Scriptures, even though it was translated and bound with the Bible. (In later editions- starting in 1629- it was dropped altogether.)

                                                            iii.      Why the Apocrypha isn't in the Bible

1.      Not one of the apocryphal books is written in the Hebrew language, which was alone used by the inspired historians and poets of the Old Testament. All Apocryphal books are in Greek except one, which is extant only in Latin.

2.      None of the apocryphal writers laid claim to inspiration. (see II Timothy 3:16)

3.      The apocryphal books were never acknowledged as sacred scriptures by the Jews, custodians of the Hebrew scriptures. In fact, the Jewish people rejected and destroyed the Apocrypha after the overthrow of Jerusalem in 70 A.D.

4.      The apocryphal books were not permitted among the sacred books during the first four centuries of the real Christian church

5.      The Apocrypha contains fabulous statements which not only contradict the Bible, but themselves as well.

6.      The Apocrypha includes doctrines in disagreement with the Bible, such as prayers for the dead and sinless perfection.

7.      It teaches immoral practices, such as lying, suicide, assassination and magical incantation.

8.      No apocryphal book is referred to in the New Testament, whereas the Old Testament is referred to hundreds of times.

f.        The translation was finished by 1611 A.D., which is the most common date given when referring to the King James Bible.

                                                               i.      A few newer editions of the King James Bible were published, but no changes were made to the text.  The King James Bible you have is probably a 1769 edition.

 

III.               Summary and miscellaneous reasons why the King James is the correct version

a.      It was translated by men who were unsurpassed in their knowledge of Biblical studies.

b.      The translators were pious men of God who believed in the inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.

c.      The King James Version is based upon the “Received Text” rather than the corrupted Greek text of modern versions.

d.      It is a word-for-word translation that faithfully and accurately reflects the originals.

e.      It is the only version of the Bible that is not copyrighted.

                                                               i.      According to the New Standard Encyclopedia, the definition of a copyright is, "The legal protection given to authors and artists to prevent reproduction of their work without their consent. The owner of a copyright has the exclusive right to print, reprint, publish, copy and sell the material covered by the copyright."

                                                             ii.      In other words, by taking out a copyright on a so-called "Bible", the copyright owner admits that this is not "God's Word" but "Their own words."

 

Conclusion

Isn’t it wonderful to see how God has worked throughout history to bring us the Scriptures that He intended for us to have?  This is yet another reason (among many) that we can have confidence that our King James Bible is the one, true, Word of God.