第1章

THElecturesincludedinthisvolumewerepreparedattherequestoftheBrooklynInstituteofArtsandSciences，andweredeliveredintheearlypartof1912，underitsauspices。TheyweresuggestedbythetercentenaryoftheKingJamesversionoftheBible。Theplanadoptedledtoarestatementofthehistorywhichpreparedfortheversion，andofthatwhichproducedit。Itwasnaturalnexttopointoutitsprincipalcharacteristicsasapieceofliterature。 Twolecturesfollowed，notingitsinfluenceonliteratureandonhistory。ThecourseclosedwithastatementandargumentregardingtheplaceoftheBibleinthelifeofto-day。 Thereceptionaccordedthelecturesatthetimeoftheirpublicdelivery，andthediscussionwhichensueduponsomeofthepointsraised，encouragethehopethattheymaybemorewidelyuseful。 ItisapleasuretoassigntoDr。FranklinW。 Hooper，directoroftheInstitute，whatevercredittheworkmaymerit。Certainlyitwouldnothavebeenundertakenwithouthiskindlyurgency。 THEREarethreegreatBook-religions—— Judaism，Christianity，andMohammedanism。 Otherreligionshavetheirsacredwritings，buttheydonotholdtheminthesameregardasdothesethree。BuddhismandConfucianismcounttheirbooksratherrecordsoftheirfaiththanrulesforit，historyratherthanauthoritativesourcesofbelief。ThethreegreatBook-religionsyieldameasureofauthoritytotheirsacredbookswhichwouldbeutterlyforeigntothethoughtofotherfaiths。 Yetamongthethreenamedaretwoverydistinctattitudes。TotheMohammedanthelanguageaswellasthematteroftheKoranissacred。Hewillnotpermititstranslation。ItsoriginalArabicistheonlyauthoritativetongueinwhichitcanspeak。Ithasbeentranslatedintoothertongues，butalwaysbyadherentsofotherfaiths，neverbyitsownbelievers。TheHebrewandtheChristian，ontheotherhand，butnotablytheChristian，havepersistentlysoughttomaketheirBiblespeakalllanguagesatalltimes。 ItisacuriousfactthataBookwritteninonetongueshouldhavecometoitslargestpowerinotherlanguagesthanitsown。TheBiblemeansmoreto-dayinGermanandFrenchandEnglishthanitdoesinHebrewandChaldaicandGreek—— moreeventhanitevermeantinthoselanguages。 Thereisnothingjustlikethatinliteraryhistory。 ItisasthoughShakespeareshouldafterawhilebecomenegligibleformostreadersinEnglish，andbeamasterofthoughtinChineseandHindustani，orinsomelanguageyetunborn。 WeowethispersistentefforttomaketheBiblespeakthelanguageofthetimestoaconvictionthattheparticularlanguageusedisnotthegreatthing，thatthereissomethinginitwhichgivesitpowerandvalueinanytongue。Nobookwasevertranslatedsooften。Menwhohaveknownitinitsearliesttongueshaverealizedthattheirfellowswouldnotlearntheseearliesttongues，andtheyhavesetouttomakeitspeakthetonguetheirfellowsdidknow。Somehaveprotestedthatthereisimpietyinmakingitspeakthecurrenttongue，andhaveinsistedthatmenshouldlearntheearliestspeech，oratleastaccepttheirknowledgeoftheBookfromthosewhodidknowit。Buttheyhaveneverstoppedthemovement。Theyhaveonlydelayedit。 ThefirstmovementtomaketheScripturespeakthecurrenttongueappearednearlythreecenturiesbeforeChrist。MostoftheOldTestamentthenexistedinHebrew。ButtheJewshadscatteredwidely。ManyhadgatheredinEgypt whereAlexandertheGreathadfoundedthecitythatbearshisname。AtonetimeathirdofthepopulationofthecitywasJewish。ManyofthepeoplewerepassionatelyloyaltotheiroldreligionanditsSacredBook。ButthecurrenttonguethereandthroughmostofthecivilizedworldwasGreek，andnotHebrew。Asalways，thereweresomewhofeltthattheBookanditsoriginallanguagewereinseparable。Othersrevealedthedispositionofwhichwespokeamomentago，andsetouttomaketheBookspeakthecurrenttongue。Foronehundredandfiftyyearstheworkwenton，andwhatwecalltheSeptuagintwascompleted。Thereisaprettylittlestorywhichtellshowtheversiongotitsname，whichmeanstheSeventy——thatKingPtolemyPhiladelphus，interestedincollectingallsacredbooks，gatheredseventyHebrewscholars，sentthemtotheislandofPharos，shutthemupinseventyroomsforseventydays，eachmakingatranslationfromtheHebrewintotheGreek。 Whentheycameout，behold，theirtranslationswereallexactlyalike!Severaldifficultiesappearinthatstory，oneofwhichisthatseventymenshouldhavemadethesamemistakeswithoutdependingoneachother。Inaddition，itisnothistoricallysupported，andthefactseemstobethattheSeptuagintwasalongandslowgrowth，issuingfromtheimpulsetomaketheSacredBookspeakthefamiliartongue。And，thoughitwasaGreektranslation，itvirtuallydisplacedtheoriginal，astheEnglishBiblehasvirtuallydisplacedtheHebrewandGreekto-day。TheSeptuagintwastheOldTestamentwhichPaulused。Ofonehundredandsixty-eightdirectquotationsfromtheOldTestamentintheNewnearlyallarefromtheGreekversion——fromthetranslation，andnotfromtheoriginal。 Weowestillmoretotranslation。WhilethereisaccumulatingevidencethattherewasspokeninPalestineatthattimeacolloquialGreek，withwhichmostpeoplewouldbefamiliar，itisyetprobablethatourLordspokeneitherGreeknorHebrewcurrently，butAramaic。HeknewtheHebrewScriptures，ofcourse，asanywell- trainedladdid；butmostofHiswordshavecomedowntousintranslation。Hisname，forexample，toHisHebrewmother，wasnotJesus，butJoshua；andJesusisthetranslationoftheHebrewJoshuaintoGreek。WehaveHiswordsastheyweretranslatedbyHisdisciplesintotheGreek，inwhichtheNewTestamentwasoriginallywritten。 BythetimethewritingoftheNewTestamentwascompleted，sayonehundredyearsafterChrist，whileGreekwasstillcurrentspeech，theRomanEmpirewassodominantthatthecommonpeopleweretalkingLatinalmostasmuchasGreek，andgradually，becausepoliticalpowerwasbehindit，theLatingainedontheGreek，andbecamevirtuallythespeechofthecommonpeople。ThemovementtomaketheBibletalkthelanguageofthetimeappearedagain。ItisimpossibletosaynowwhenthefirsttranslationsintoLatinweremade。CertainlythereweresomewithintwocenturiesafterChrist，andby250A。D。awholeBibleinLatinwasincirculationintheRomanEmpire。ThetranslationoftheNewTestamentwasfromtheGreek，ofcourse，butsowasthatoftheOldTestament，andtheLatinversionsoftheOldTestamentwere，therefore， translationsofatranslation。 Thereweresomanyoftheseversions，andtheyweresounequalinvalue，thattherewasnaturaldemandforaLatintranslationthatshouldbeauthoritative。SocameintobeingwhatwecalltheVulgate，whoseverynameindicatesthedesiretogettheBibleintothevulgarorcommontongue。JeromebeganbyrevisingtheearlierLatintranslations，butendedbygoingbackofalltranslationstotheoriginalGreek，andbackoftheSeptuaginttotheoriginalHebrewwhereverhecoulddoso。Fourteenyearshelabored，settlinghimselfinBethlehem，inPalestine，todohisworkthebetter。Barelyfourhundredyears(404A。D。)afterthebirthofChristhisLatinversionappeared。ItmetastormofprotestforitsefforttogobackoftheSeptuagint，sodominanthadthetranslationbecome。Jeromefoughtforit，andhisversionwontheday，andbecametheauthoritativeLatintranslationoftheBible。 Forsevenoreightcenturiesithelditsswayasthecurrentversionnearesttothetongueofthepeople。Latinhadbecometheacceptedtongueofthechurch。Therewaslittlegeneralculture，therewaslittlegeneralacquaintancewiththeBibleexceptamongtheeducated。 Duringallthattimetherewasnorealroomforafurthertranslation。Oneofthewriters[1]says: \"MedievalEnglandwasquiteunripeforaBibleinthemothertongue；whiletheilliteratemajoritywereinnoconditiontofeelthewantofsuchabook，theeducatedminoritywouldbeaversetosogreatandrevolutionaryachange。\" Whenamancannotreadanywritingitreallydoesnotmattertohimwhetherbooksareincurrentspeechornot，andthemajorityofthepeopleforthosesevenoreightcenturiescouldreadnothingatall。ThosewhocouldreadanythingwereapttobeabletoreadtheLatin。 [1]Hoare，EvolutionoftheEnglishBible，p。39。 ThesecenturiesaddedtotheconvictionofmanythattheBibleoughtnottobecometoocommon，thatitshouldnotbereadbyeverybody，thatitrequiredacertainamountoflearningtomakeitsafereading。TheycametofeelthatitisasimportanttohaveanauthoritativeinterpretationoftheBibleastohavetheBibleitself。WhenthemovementbegantomakeitspeakthenewEnglishtongue，itprovokedthemostviolentopposition。Latinhadbeengoodenoughforamillennium；whycheapentheBiblebyatranslation?TherehadgrownupafeelingthatJeromehimselfhadbeeninspired。Hehadbeencanonized，andhalfthereferencestohiminthattimespeakofhimastheinspiredtranslator。 Criticismofhisversionwascountedasimpiousandprofaneascriticismsoftheoriginaltextcouldpossiblyhavebeen。ItisoneoftheironiesofhistorythattheversionforwhichJeromehadtofight，andwhichwascountedapieceofimpietyitself，actuallybecamethegroundonwhichmenstoodwhentheyfoughtagainstanotherversion，countinganythingelsebutthisveryversionanimpiousintrusion! HowearlythemovementforanEnglishBiblebegan，itisimpossiblenowtosay。Certainlyjustbefore700A。D。，thatfirstsingeroftheEnglishtongue，Caedmon，hadlearnedtoparaphrasetheBible。WemayrecalltheVenerableBede\'scharmingstoryofhim，andhowhecamebyhispowerofinterpretation。BedehimselfwasachildwhenCaedmondied，andtheromanceofthestorymakesitoneofthefinestinourliterature。 Caedmonwasapeasant，afarmlaborerinNorthumbriaworkingonthelandsofthegreatAbbeyatWhitby。Alreadyhehadpassedmiddlelife，andnosparkofgeniushadflashedinhim。Helovedtogotothefestivegatheringsandheartheotherssingtheirimprovisedpoems； but，whentheharpcamearoundtohiminduecourse，hewouldleavetheroom，forbecouldnotsing。Onenightwhenhehadslippedawayfromthegroupinshameandhadmadehisroundsofthehorsesandcattleunderhiscare，hefellasleepinthestablebuilding，andheardavoiceinhissleepbiddinghimsing。Whenhedeclaredhecouldnot，thevoicestillbadehimsing。\"WhatshallIsing?\"heasked。\"Singthefirstbeginningofcreatedthings。\"Andthewordscametohim；and，stilldreaming，hesanghisfirsthymntotheCreator。Inthemorninghetoldhisstory，andtheLadyAbbessfoundthathehadthedivinegift。ThemonkshadbuttotranslatetohimbitsoftheBibleoutoftheLatin，whichhedidnotunderstand，intohisfamiliarAnglo-Saxontongue，andhewouldcastitintotheruggedSaxonmeasureswhichcouldbesungbythecommonpeople。 Sofaraswecantell，itwasso，thattheBiblestorybecamecurrentinAnglo-Saxonspeech。 BedehimselfcertainlyputtheGospelofJohnintoAnglo-Saxon。AttheBodleianLibrary，atOxford，thereisamanuscriptofnearlytwentythousandlines，themetricalversionoftheGospelandtheActs，donenear1250byanAugustinianmonknamedOrm，andsocalledtheOrmulum。TherewereothermetricalversionsofvariouspartsoftheBible。MidwaybetweenBedeandOrmcameLangland\'spoem，\"TheVisionofPiersPlowman，\" whichparaphrasedsomuchoftheScripture。 YetthefactisthatuntilthelastquarterofthefourteenthcenturytherewasnoproseversionoftheBibleintheEnglishlanguage。Indeed，therewasonlycomingtobeanEnglishlanguage。Itwasgraduallyemerging，takingdefiniteshapeandform，sothatitcouldbedistinguishedfromtheearlierNormanFrench，Saxon，andAnglo-Saxon，inwhichsomuchofitisrooted。 Assoonasthelanguagegrewdefiniteenough，itwasinevitablethattwothingsshouldcometopass。First，thatsomemenwouldattempttomakeacolloquialversionoftheBible；and，secondly，thatotherswouldopposeit。Onecancountwithallconfidenceonthesetwogroupsofmen，marchingthroughhistoryliketheanimalsintotheark，twoandtwo。Somemenpropose，othersoppose。Theyarebuiltonthoselines。 Wearemoreconcernedwiththemenwhomadetheversions；butwemustthinkamomentoftheothers。Oneofhiscontemporaries，Knighton，mayspeakforallinhissayingofWiclif，thathehad，tobesure，translatedtheGospelintotheAnglictongue，butthatithadtherebybeenmadevulgarbyhim，andmoreopentothereadingoflaymenandwomenthanitusuallyistotheknowledgeofletteredandintelligentclergy，and\"thusthepearliscastabroadandtroddenunderthefeetofswine\"；and，thatwemaynotbeindoubtwhoaretheswine，headds: \"ThejeweloftheChurchisturnedintothecommonsportofthepeople。\" ButtwostrongimpulsesdrivethoughtfulmentoanyeffortthatwillsecurewideknowledgeoftheBible。OneistheirloveoftheBibleandtheirbeliefinit；buttheother，dominantthenandnow，isasenseoftheneedoftheirowntime。ItcannotbetoostronglyurgedthatthetwogreatpioneersofEnglishBibletranslation，WiclifandTindale，morethanacenturyapart，werechieflymovedtotheirworkbysocialconditions。 Noonecouldreadtheliteratureofthetimesofwhichwearespeakingwithoutsmilingatourassumptionthatwearethefirstwhohavecaredforsocialneeds。Wetalkaboutthepastastheageoftheindividual，andthepresentasthesocialage。Ourfathers，wesay，caredonlytobesavedthemselves，andhadnoconcernfortheevilsofsociety。Theybelievedinrescuingonehereandanotherthere，whilewehavecometoseethewisdomofcorrectingtheconditionsthatruinmen，andsosavingmeninthemass。Theremustbesomebasisoftruthforthat，sincewesayitsoconfidently； butitcanbemuchover-accented。Thereweremanyofourfathers，andofourgrandfathers，whoweremightilyconcernedwiththemassofpeople，andlookedascarefullyaswedoforacorrectiveofsocialevils。Wiclif，inthelatefourteenthcentury，andTindale，intheearlysixteenth，weretwosuchmen。ThefirstEnglishtranslationsoftheBiblewerefruitsofthesocialimpulse。 Wiclifwasimpressedwiththechasmthatwasgrowingbetweenthechurchandthepeople，andfeltthatawiderandfullerknowledgeoftheBiblewouldbehelpfulfortheclosingofthechasm。ItisafamiliarremarkofMissJaneAddamsthatthecurefortheevilsofdemocracyismoredemocracy。Wiclifbelievedthatthecurefortheevilsofreligionismorereligion，moreintelligentreligion。Hefoundaconsiderablefeelingthatthebestthingsinreligionoughttobekeptfrommostpeople，sincetheycouldnotbetrustedtounderstandthem。Hisownfeelingwasthatthebestthingsinreligionareexactlythethingsmostpeopleoughttoknowmostabout；thatpeoplehadbetterhandletheBiblecarelessly，mistakenly，thanbeshutoutfromitbyanymeanswhatever。 WeowethefirstEnglishtranslationtoafaiththattheBibleisabookofemancipationforthemindandforthepoliticallife。 JohnWiclifhimselfwasascholarofOxford，masterofthatfamousBalliolCollegewhichhashadsuchalistofdistinguishedmasters。 HewasanadviserofEdwardIII。Twentyyearsafterhisdeathayoungercontemporary(W。Thorpe)saidthat\"hewasconsideredbymanytobethemostholyofallthemenofhisage。Hewasofemaciatedframe，spare，andwellnighdestituteofstrength。Hewasabsolutelyblamelessinhisconduct。\"AndeventhatsameKnightonwhoaccusedhimofcastingtheChurch\'spearlbeforeswinesaysthatinphilosophy\"hecametobereckonedinferiortononeofhistime。\" ButitwasnotatOxfordthathecametoknowcommonlifesowellandtosensetheneedforanewsocialinfluence。HecamenearertoitwhenhewasrectoroftheparishatLutterworth。 Asscholarandrectorhesetgoingthetwogreatmovementswhichleavehisnameinhistory。Onewashissecuring，training，andsendingoutabandofitinerantpreachersor\"poorpriests\"togatherthepeopleinfieldsandbywaysandtopreachthesimpletruthsoftheChristianreligion。Theywereunpaid，andlivedbythekindnessofthecommonpeople。 TheycametobecalledLollards，thoughtheoriginofthenameisobscure。Theirfollowersreceivedthesamename。AfewyearsafterWiclif\'sdeathanenemybitterlyobservedthatifyoumetanytwomenonewassuretobeaLollard。Itwasthe\"firsttimeinEnglishhistorythatanappealhadbeenmadetothepeopleinsteadofthescholars。\"Religionwastobemaderatheramatterofpracticallifethanofdogmaorofritual。The\"poorpriests\"intheircheapbrownrobesbecameamightyreligiousforce，andevokedoppositionfromtheChurchpowers。AgenerationafterWiclif\'sdeaththeyhadbecomeamightypoliticalforceinthecontroversybetweentheKingandthePope。Aslateas1521fivehundredLollardswerearrestedinLondonbythebishop。[1]Wiclif\'spurpose，however，wastoreachandhelpthecommonpeoplewiththesimpler，andthereforethemostfundamental，truthsofreligion。 [1]Muir，OurGrandOldBible，p。14。 TheothermovementwhichmarksWiclif\'snameconcernsusmore；butitwasconnectedwiththefirst。HesetouttogivethecommonpeoplethefulltextoftheBiblefortheircommonuse，andtoencouragethemnotonlyinreadingit，ifalreadytheycouldread，butinlearningtoreadthattheymightreadit。TennysoncomparesthevillageofLutterworthtothatofBethlehem，onthegroundthatifChrist，theWordofGod，wasbornatBethlehem，theWordofLifewasbornagainatLutterworth。[1]ThetranslationwasfromtheVulgate，andWiclifprobablydidlittleoftheactualworkhimself，yetitisallhiswork。Andin1382，morethanfivecenturiesago，thereappearedthefirstcompleteEnglishversionoftheBible。Wiclifmadeitthepeople\'sBook，andtheEnglishpeoplewerethefirstofthemodernnationstowhomtheBibleasawholewasgivenintheirownfamiliartongue。Onceitgotintotheirhandstheyhaveneverletitbetakenentirelyaway。 [1]\"Notleastartthou，thoulittleBethlehemInJudah，forintheetheLordwasborn； NorthouinBritain，littleLutterworth，Least，forintheethewordwasbornagain。\"—— SirJohnOldcastle。 Ofcourse，allthiswasbeforethedaysofprinting，andcopiesweremadebyhandonly。 Yettherewereverymanyofthem。Onehundredandfiftymanuscripts，inwholeorinpart，areextantstill，ascoreofthemoftheoriginalversion，theothersoftherevisionatonceundertakenbyJohnPurvey，Wiclif\'sdisciple。ThecopiesbelongingtoEdwardVI。andQueenElizabetharebothstillinexistence，andbothshowmuchuse。Twentyyearsafteritwascompletedcopieswerecountedveryvaluable，thoughtheywereverynumerous。ItwasnotuncommonforasinglecompletemanuscriptcopyoftheWiclifversiontobesoldforonehundredandfiftyortwohundreddollars，andFoxe，whoseBookofMartyrsweusedtoreadaschildren，tellsthataloadofhaywasgivenfortheuseofaNewTestamentonehouraday。 ItwouldbedifficulttoexaggeratetheinfluenceofthisgifttotheEnglishpeople。ItconstitutesthestandardofMiddleEnglish。ChaucerandWiclifstoodsidebyside。ItistruethatChaucerhimselfacceptedWiclif\'steaching，andsomeofthewisementhinkthatthe\"parson\" ofwhomhespeakssofinelyasonewhotaughttheloreofChristandHisapostlestwelve，butfirstfollowedithimself，wasWiclif。Buttheversionhadfarmorethanliteraryinfluence；ithadtremendouspowerinkeepingaliveinEnglandthatspiritoffreeinquirywhichistheonlysafeguardoffreeinstitutions。HerewastheentiresourceoftheChristianfaithavailableforthejudgmentofcommonmen，andtheybecameatoncejudgesofreligiousandpoliticaldogma。 Dr。LaddthinksitwasnotthereadingoftheBiblewhichproducedtheReformation；itwastheReformationitselfwhichprocuredthereadingoftheBible。[1]ButDr。RashdallandProfessorPollardandothersarerightwhentheyinsistthattheEnglishReformationreceivedlessfromLutherthanfromthesecretreadingoftheScriptureoverthewholecountry。WhatwecalltheEnglishspiritoffreeinquirywasfosteredanddevelopedbyWiclifandhisLollardswiththeEnglishScriptureintheirhands。OutofithasgrownasoutofnootheronerootthefreedomoftheEnglishandAmericanpeople。 [1]WhatIstheBible?，p。45。 ThisworkofWiclifdeservesthetimewehavegivenitbecauseitassertedaprinciplefortheEnglishpeople。Therewasmuchyettobedonebeforeentirefreedomwasgained。AtOxford，intheConvocationof1408，itwassolemnlyvoted:\"WedecreeandordainthatnomanhereafterbyhisownauthoritytranslateanytextoftheScriptureintoEnglish，oranyothertongue，bywayofabook，pamphlet，orothertreatise；butthatnomanreadanysuchbook，pamphlet，ortreatisenowlatelycomposedinthetimeofJohnWiclif……untilthesaidtranslationbeapprovedbytheorderlyoftheplace。\"Butitwastoolate。Itisalwaystoolatetoovertakealiberatingideaonceitgetsfree。TolstoitellsofBatenkoff，theRussiannihilist，thatafterhewasseizedandconfinedinhiscellhewasheardtolaughloudly； and，whentheyaskedhimthecauseofhismirth，hesaidthathecouldnotfailtobeamusedattheabsurdityofthesituation。\"Theyhavecaughtme，\"hesaid，\"andshutmeuphere； butmyideasareoutyonderinthestreetsandinthefields，absolutelyfree。Theycannotovertakethem。\"Itwasalreadytoolate，twentyyearsafterWiclif\'sversionwasavailable，tostoptheEnglishpeopleintheirsearchforreligioustruth。 InthecenturyjustaftertheWicliftranslation，twogreateventsoccurredwhichboreheavilyonthespreadoftheBible。Onewastherevivaloflearning，whichmadepopularagainthestudyoftheclassicsandtheclassicallanguages。CriticalandexactGreekscholarshipbecameagainapossibility。RememberthatWiclifdidnotknowGreeknorHebrew，didnotneedtoknowthemtobetheforemostscholarofOxfordinthefourteenthcentury。Evenaslateas1502therewasnoprofessorofGreekattheproudUniversityofErfurtwhenLutherwasastudentthere。ItwasafterhebecameadoctorofdivinityandauniversityprofessorthathelearnedGreekinordertobeabetterBiblestudent，andhisyoungfriendPhilipMelancthonwasthefirsttoteachGreekintheUniversity。[1]ButundertheinfluenceofErasmusandhiskind，withtheirnewinsistenceonclassicallearning，therecamenecessarilyanewappraisaloftheVulgateasatranslationoftheoriginalBible。ForathousandyearstherehadbeennonewstudyoftheoriginalBiblelanguagesinEurope。TheLatinoftheVulgatehadbecomeassacredastheBookitself。 Buttherevivaloflearningthrewscholarshipbackonthesourcesofthetext。ErasmusandotherspublishedversionsoftheGreekTestamentwhichweredisturbingtotheVulgateasafinalversion。 [1]McGiffert，MartinLuther。 Theothergreateventofthatsamecenturywastheinventionofprintingwithmovabletype。Itwasin1455thatGutenbergprintedhisfirstbook，aneditionoftheVulgate，nowcalledtheMazarinBible。Thebearingoftheinventiononthespreadofcommonknowledgeisbeyonddescription。Itisratherlatetobepraisingtheartofprinting，andweneedspendlittletimedoingso；butonecanseeinstantlyhowitaffectedtheuseoftheBible。Itmadeitworthwhiletolearntoread——therewouldbesomethingtoread。Itmadeitworthwhiletowrite——therewouldbesomeonetoreadwhatwaswritten。 OnehundredyearsexactlyafterthedeathofWiclif，WilliamTindalewasborn。HewaseightyearsoldwhenColumbusdiscoveredAmerica。HehadalreadytakenadegreeatOxford，andwasastudentinCambridgewhenLutherpostedhisthesesatWittenburg。ErasmuseitherwasateacheratCambridgewhenTindalewasastudentthere，orhadjustleft。 SirThomasMoreandErasmuswereclosefriends，andMore\'sUtopiaandErasmus\'sGreekNewTestamentappearedthesameyear，probablywhileTindalewasastudentatCambridge。 Buthecameatatroubledtime。Thenewlearninghadnopowertodeepenorstrengthenthemorallifeofthepeople。Itcouldnotmakereligionavitalthing。Moralityandreligionwerefarseparated。Thepriestsandcuratesweredenselyignorant。WeneednotaskTindalewhatwasthecondition。AskBellarmine，acardinaloftheChurch:\"SomeYearsbeforetheriseoftheLutheranheresytherewasalmostanentireabandonmentofequityinecclesiasticaljudgments；inmorals，nodiscipline；insacredliterature，noerudition；indivinethings，noreverence；religionwasalmostextinct。\"OraskErasmus，whoneverbrokewiththeChurch: \"Whatmanofrealpietydoesnotperceivewithsighsthatthisisfarthemostcorruptofallages?Whendidiniquityaboundwithmorelicentiousness?Whenwascharitysocold?\" And，asacenturybefore，WiclifhadfeltthesocialneedforapopularversionoftheBible，soWilliamTindalefeltitnow。Hesawtheneedasgreatamongtheclergyofthetimeasamongthelaity。Inoneofhiswritingshesays:\"IfyouwillnotletthelaymanhavethewordofGodinhismothertongue，yetletthepriestshaveit，whichforthegreatpartofthemdounderstandnoLatinatall，butsingandpatteralldaywiththelipsonlythatwhichtheheartunderstandethnot。\"[1]Sobadwasthecasethatitwasnotcorrectedwithinawholegeneration。FortyyearsafterTindale\'sversionwaspublished，theBishopofGloucester，Hooperbyname，madeanexaminationoftheclergyofhisdiocese。Therewere311ofthem。 Hefound168，morethanhalf，unabletorepeattheTenCommandments；31whodidnotevenknowwheretheycouldbefound；40whocouldnotrepeattheLord\'sPrayer；andnearlyasmanywhodidnotknowwhereitoriginated； yettheywereallinregularstandingasclergyinthedioceseofGloucester。Theneedwaskeenenough。 [1]ObedienceofaChristianMan。 About1523TindalebegantocasttheScripturesintothecurrentEnglish。HesetouttoLondonfullyexpectingtofindsupportandencouragementthere，buthefoundneither。Hefound，asheoncesaid，thattherewasnoroominthepalaceoftheBishopofLondontotranslatetheNewTestament；indeed，thattherewasnoplacetodoitinallEngland。AwealthyLondonmerchantsubsidizedhimwiththemunificentgiftoftenpounds，withwhichhewentacrosstheChanneltoHamburg；andthereandelsewhereontheContinent，wherehecouldbehid，hebroughthistranslationtocompletion。PrintingfacilitiesweregreaterontheContinentthaninEngland；buttherewassuchoppositiontohisworkthatveryfewcopiesoftheseveraleditionsofwhichweknowcanstillbefound。 Tindalewascompelledtofleeatonetimewithafewprintedsheetsandcompletehisworkonanotherpress。Severaltimescopiesofhisbooksweresolemnlyburned，andhisownlifewasfrequentlyindanger。 ThereisoneamusingstorywhichtellshowmoneycametofreeTindalefromheavydebtandpreparethewayformoreBibles。TheBishopofLondon，Tunstall，wassetondestroyingcopiesoftheEnglishNewTestament。HethereforemadeabargainwithamerchantofAntwerp，Packington，tosecurethemforhim。 PackingtonwasafriendofTindale，andwenttohimforthwith，saying:\"William，Iknowthouartapoorman，andIhavegottentheeamerchantforthybooks。\"\"Who?\"askedTindale。 \"TheBishopofLondon。\"\"Ah，buthewillburnthem。\"\"Sohewill，butyouwillhavethemoney。\"Anditallcameoutasitwasplanned；theBishopofLondonhadthebooks，Packingtonhadthethanks，Tindalehadthemoney，thedebtwaspaid，andtheneweditionwassoonready。Theolddocument，fromwhichIamquoting，addsthattheBishopthoughthehadGodbythetoewhen，indeed，hefoundafterwardthathehadthedevilbythefist。[1] [1]Pollard，RecordsoftheEnglishBible，p。151。 ThefinalrevisionoftheTindaletranslationswaspublishedin1534，andthatbecomesthenotableyearofhislife。Intwoyearshewasputtodeathbystrangling，andhisbodywasburned。WhenwerememberthatthiswasdonewiththejointpowerofChurchandState，werealizesomeoftheoddsagainstwhichheworked。 Spiteofhisodds，however，TindaleistherealfatherofourKingJamesversion。Abouteightypercent。ofhisOldTestamentandninetypercent。ofhisNewTestamenthavebeentransferredtoourversion。IntheBeatitudes，forexample，fivearewordforwordinthetwoversions，whiletheotherthreeareonlyslightlychanged。[1]Dr。Davidsonhascalculatedthatnine-tenthsofthewordsintheshorterNewTestamentepistlesareTindale\'s，andinthelongerepistlesliketheHebrewsfive-sixthsarehis。Froude\'sestimateisfair:\"Ofthetranslationitself，thoughsincethattimeithasbeenmanytimesrevisedandaltered，wemaysaythatitissubstantiallytheBiblewithwhichwearefamiliar。Thepeculiargeniuswhichbreathesthroughit，themingledtendernessandmajesty，theSaxonsimplicity，thepreternaturalgrandeur，unequaled，unapproached，intheattemptedimprovementsofmodernscholars，allarehere，andbeartheimpressofthemindofoneman，WilliamTindale。\"[2]