How We Got

The ible

All scripture is given by inspirotion of God, and is profitoble for doctrine, for
reproof, for correcfion, for insfruction in righleousness: Thof fhe mon of God may
be perfecf, throughly furnished unlo all good works.
2 Timothy 3:16-17 The Holy Bible, KIV

LISHING
 *-il;";;j
How We Got The Bible
W
New Testoment *
frogment f
,uir**Stl (from John 18)
thot we hove

Ten Key Points

ffi
todoy wos
copied in Greek
on o popyrus
:"- I "'-"--" codex oround
@ fhe Bible is inspired byGod (2Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter t:20-21t AD 1 r0-t 30.

W
I

@ fh" Bible is mode up ,l500

of oo different books thot were written over 1600 yeors
(from opproximotely BC to AD IOO) by more thon 40 kings, propheis,
leoders, ond followers of Jesus. The Old Testqment hos 39 books (written
L.-".- ..-
" "".-".- "--ffi:"-"i
OId Testomenl Wrifien
le6ther

New Testament Written

opproximotely 1500-a00 aC). The New Testomenl has 27 books (written
(opprox. 1500-400 BC) (opprox. AD 45-100)
opproximotely AD 45-100). The Hebrew Bible hos the some text os the English
Bible's Old Testoment, but divides ond orronges it differently.

@ fh" Old Testqment wos written moinly in Hebrew, with some Aromoic. The New
Testoment wos written in Greek.

@ The books of the Bible were collected ond qrronged ond recognized os inspired
socred outhority by councils of robbis ond councils of church leoders bosed on
coreful guidelines.
A popyrus codex is o bound volume mode Fine quolity onimol skins from colves or
Before ihe printing press wos invented, the Bible wos copied by hond. The ontelope (vellum) ond sheep or goots
from sheets folded ond sewn together,
Bible wqs copied very occurotely, in mony coses by speciol scribes who (porchment) were used for over 1 O0O yeors
developed intricqte methods of counting words ond letters to insure thqt no to moke copies of the Bible opproximoiely
AD 300-1400.
errors hqd been mode.
Two of the oldest vellum copies {AD 325-
350) thot exist todoy ore the Voticon Codex
@ The Bible wos the first book ever prinied on the printing press with moveoble ond the Sinoitic Codex.
type (Gutenberg Press, 1455, Lotin Bible).
Bible Copied on Papyrus Bible Copied on Fine
@ th"r" is much evidence thot the Bible we hove todoy is remqrkqbly true to the Animal Skins
originol writings. Of the thousqnds of copies mode by hqnd before AD 1500,
more thon 5,300 Greek monuscripts from the New Gstoment olone still exist
todoy. The text of the Bible is better preserved thon the writings of Coesor,
Ploto, or Aristotle.
Wycliffe Bibles were inscribed by hond on
,1300s-l4OOs.
vellum in the Some copies
@ rhe discovery of the Deod Seo Scrolls confirmed the ostonishing reliobility of
"Althorgh took ien months to two yeors to produce
some of the copies of the Old Testoment mode over the yeors. sore
spelling vqriotions exist, no voriotion offects bosic Bible doctrines.

@ nt the Bible wqs cqrried to other countries, it wos tronsloted into the common
longuoge of the people by scholors who wonted others to know God's Word.
Todoy there ore still 2,000 groups with no Bible in their own longuoge.

gy AD 200, the Bible wos tronsloted into seven longuoges; by AD 500, '13
@ The Bible is now printed on poper in mony
versions ond longuoges. lt is olso on tope
longuoges; by AD 900, 1 Z longuoges; by AD 1400, 28 longuoges; by 1 800,
comRutlrs
52 longuoges; by 1 9OO, 537 longuoges; by 1 980, 1 ,1 00 longuoges.
Source Ihe World Ch,istion Fncyclopedio.
1".'::"' lnd
-'l'_"'oin:: :":
Bible Printed by Prinling The Bible, God's Word to
i, ...".-',,',-ll
Press after 1455 The World
Old Testqment events ore
writen down in Hebrew
(portions in Aromoic) over
centuries. ln Exodus, the
Lord tells Moses to write
in o book. Other Old
Testoment wriiers, inspired
by God, include leoders,
kings ond prophets.
Together, these writings
on leother scrolls ond
olher moteriols ore colled
the Hebrew Scriptures or
Old Testoment.
Romqn Empire declines.
Germonic migrotions
(AD 379-600) couse new
longuoges fo emerge.
The Mqsoretes ore speciol
Jewish scribes enirusted with
the socred tosk of moking
copies of the Hebrew
Scriptures (Old Testoment)
opproximoiely AD 500-900.
They develop o meticulous
system of counting the
number of words in eoch
book of the Bible to moke sure
they hove copied it occurotely.
Any scroll found to hove on
error is buried occording to
Jewish low.
Ezro, o priest ond scribe,
collecis ond orronges some
of the books of the Hebrew
Bible-the Old Testqment-
obout 450 BC, occording to
Jewish trodition.
The Sepfuogint is the
Greek tronslotion of the
Hebrew Bible (the Old
Testoment). li is tronsloted in
250-l O0 BC by Jewish scholors
in Alexondrio, Egypf. (The
word Septuoginf meons
seventy, referring to the
trodition thot Z0 or 72 men
tronsloted it. lt is often
obbrevioted XX, the Romon
numerol for seventy.)
Christionity reqcheg
Britoin before AD 300, but
Anglo-Soxon pogons drive
Christion Britons into Woles
(AD 450 600). ln AD 5e6,
Augusiine of Conterbury
begins evongelizotion ogoin.
Coedmon, on illiterote
monk, retells portions of
Scripture in .A,nglo-Soxon
(Old English) poetry ond
song (AD 6761.
Aldhelm of Sherborne,
AD7O9, is soid to hove
tronsloled the Psolms.
The books ore orronged by
subiect: historicol, poetic,
ond prophetic. lt includes
the Apocrypho (meoning
"hidden") referring lo seven
books thot were included in
the Hebrew Bible until lo qo
when they were removed by
Jewish elders.
A Scribe
Bede
Popyrus, o plont, is cut
into strips ond pressed inlo
sheets of writing moteriol
ond con be mode into o
scroll or o codex. The New
Testoment books were
probobly first written on
popyrus scrolls. Loter
Christions begin to copy
ihem on sheets of popyrus
which ore bound ond
ploced between fwo pieces
of wood for covers. This
form of eorly book is known
os o codex.
Bede, o monk ond scholor,
mokes on Old English
(Anglo-Soxon) tronslotion of
portions of Scripture. On his
deothbed in 235, he finishes
tronsloting the Book of John.
Alfred The Greot, King
of Wessex, 871-901 , os the Conferbury Toles
tronslotes portions of Exodus,
Psolms, ond Acts.
Aldred, Bishop of Durhom,
inserts o tronslqtion in the
Northumbrion diolect
between the lines of the
Lindisforne Gospels (950).
Aelfric, 955-1 O2O, tronslotes
portions of the Old Tesfoment.
Papyrus
Normqns (onquer
Englond (1066) ond moke
French the officiol longuoge.
No English tronslotion work
,l300s.
produced until the
Middle English emerges,
populorized by works such
ond Richord Rolle's
Pso/ter (l 340).
John Wycliffe
Time of Jesus 4 BC-AD 33?
Jesus quotes the Old
Testoment (Scriptures) often.
He soys thot He did not come
to destroy the Scriplures, but
to fulfill them. He soys to his
disciples, "These ore lhe
words which I spoke unto
yoU, . . . thot oll things must
be fulfilled, which were
written in the low of Moses,
ond in the prophets, ond in
the psolms, concerning me."
Then opened he their
understonding, thot they
might understond the
scripiures. Luke 24:44-45
Firsf English Bible is
,l382
tronsloted from Lotin in
ond is colled the Wycliffe
Bible in honor of priest ond
Oxford scholor John
Wycliffe. During his lifetime,
Wycliffe hqd wonted
common people to hove the
Bible. He olso criticized o
number of church proctices
ond policies. His followers,
derisively colled Lollords
(meoning "mumblers")
included his criticisms in the
prefoce to the Wycliffe Bible.
This Bible is bonned ond
burned. Forty yeors ofter
Wycliffe's deoth, his bones
ore exhumed ond burned
for heresy.
Followers of Jesus
Motthew, Mork, Luke, John,
Poul, Jomes, Peter, ond Jude
write the Gospels, history,
letters to other Christions,
ond the Revelotion between
AD 45 ond l0O. The writers
quote from oll but eight of
the Old Testoment books.
These writings in Greek ore
copied ond circuloted so thot
by obout AD l50 there is
wide enough use of them to
speok of the "New Testo-
ment" ("New Covenoni").
The new covenont God mode
with people wos promised in
Jer. 3l:31-34 ond referred to
by Jesus lLk.22:2ol ond Poul
(t Cor. t 1:25)ond in the
letter to the Hebrews.
ln 1408, in Englond,
it becomes illegol to
lronslote or reod the Bible
in common English without
permission of o bishop.
World's first printing
press with moveoble metql
,l455
type is invented in in
Germony by Johonn
Gutenberg. This invention is
perhops the single most
importont event to influence
the spreod of the Bible.
Early Coptic
Translation
The Gutenberg Bible is
the first book ever printed.
This Lotin Vulgote version is
often illuminoted by ortists
who hond point letiers ond
ornoments on eoch poge.
Gutenberg
Bible Poge
Old Testoment
Apocrypho
Evidence derived from first
century AD writers Philo ond
Josephus indicotes thot the
Hebrew conon did not
include the Apocrypho.
m AD 400 the stondord of 27
Eorliesf Trqnslotions
AD 200 300 Lotin, Coptic
(Egypt), ond Syrioc (Syrio).
Church fothers occept the
writings of the Gospels ond
Poul's letters os cononicol
{from o Greek word
referring to the rule of foith
ond truth). Origen lists 2l
opproved New Testoment
books. Eusebius lists 22
occepted books.
Erosmus, o priest qnd Greek
scholor, publishes o new
Greek edition ond o more
occurote Lotin tronslotion of
'l
ihe New Tesioment in 5]6.
His gool is thot everyone be
oble to reod the Bible, from
the former in the field to the
weover of the loom.
Erosmus's Greek text forms
the bosis of the "textus
receptus" ond is used loter
by Moriin Luther, Williom
Tyndole, ond the King Jomes
tronslotors.
The New Testqment Jerome storts lronsloting the
books ore collected ond Scripiures intrc Lotin in AD 410
circuloted throughout the ond finishes 25 yeors loter.
Mediterroneon obout the time This tronslotion, colled the
of Constontine, the Romon Lotin Vulgole, remoins the
emperor who legolizes bosic Bible for mony centuries.
Christionily in AD 313. By
New Testoment books is
occepted in ihe Eqst ond West
os confirmed by Athonosius,
Jerome, Augustine ond three
church councils. The 27 books
of the New Testoment were
formolly confirmed os
cononicol by the Synod of
Corthoge in AD 397, thus
Saint Mallhew recognizing three cenfuries of
Lindisfarne Gospels
use by followers of Christ.
Approximotely AD 900
Jerome
Williom Tyndole, priesi Tyndole is colled the "Fother
ond Oxford scholor, trons- of the Engltsh Bible"
lotes the New Testoment becouse his fronslotion
from Greek (1525), but forms the bosis of the King
connot get opprovol to Jomes Version. Much of the
pubhsh it in Englond. He siyle ond vocobulory we
moves to Germony ond know os "biblicol English" is
prinis Bibles, smuggling troceoble to his work.
them into Englond in socks
of corn ond flour. ln 1535 he
publishes pori of the Old
Testoment tronsloted from
,l536,
Hebrew. ln Tyndole is
strongled ond burned ot the
stoke. His finol words ore
Erasmus "Lord, open the King of
Englond's eyes."
Morfin luther tronslotes
the New Testomeni inio
Germon in 1522.
William Tyndale
 The Coverdole Bible The Motthew's Bible,
is tronsloted by Miles r.o;'Lt"i by.tohn nos"r,
Coverdole (,l535) ond under the oen nome
dedicoted to Anne Boleyn, 'fhorno, Motthew," is the
one of King Henry Vlll's first Bible publlshed with the
wives. This is the first king's permission ( I 537).
complete Bible to be printed Printed just one yeor ofter
in English. Tyndole! deoth, its New
Iestoment relies heovily on
Tyndole's version, ond even
1539 Grent Bible is
ploced in every clrurch by
order of Thomos Cronmer,
orchbishop under King
Henry Vlll. lt is reod oloud
except during services ond
sermons. This Bible is
choined to the church pillors
to discouroge theft.
Englond's Queen Mory
bons Protestonl lronslotions
of the English Bible. John
Rogers ond Thomos
Cronmer ore burned of the
stoke. Loter some 300 men,
women ond children ore
olso burned.
John Colvin, Bezo, Knox, Bishops Bible
ond Whittinghom. h is the A new fronslotion begins
first Bible to use Romon type under Queen Elizobeth in
,l568.
insieod of blockletter. This is lt is tronsloted by
the Bible of Shokespeore severol bishops of the
ond the one corried to Church of Englond in
Americo by the Pilgrims in onswer io the Genevo Bible.
,t620.
The 1640 edition is
the first English Bible to omit
the Apocrypho.

ffii Tyndale's Initials

printed in the
hos o kibute to him on the
lost poge of the Old Testo-
ment. Tyndole's initiols ore
printed in 2'l
inch block
letters. Loter Thomos
Cromwell, odvisor to King
The Genevo Bible
Exiles from Englond flee to
Genevo, Switzerlond, ond
in 1560 print ihe Genevo
Bible, o complete revision of
the Greot Bible with the Old
Rheims-Douoi Bible
tronsloted into English from
the Lotin Vulgote by Cotholic
scholor Gregory Mortin,
while in exile in Fronce
wos

Henry Vlll, entrusts Testoment tronsloted from

Moithew's Bible Coverdole to revise 11582/16091. li becomes the
Hebrew. The Genevo Bible
Motthew's Bible to moke stondord tronslotion for the
The "Chqined contoins theologicol notes
Colholic church.
the Greot Bible.
Bible" from Protestont scholors Queen Mory

@ 1998 Rose Publishino. lnc.

4455 Torronce Sl'd., *)59
Torronce. Colifornio 90503 U.S.A.
AII riohti ,eserued.
Printed in the United Stotes of Americo.
Emoil: roseoublishino@ool.com a o--
.m. rose-publishin{com '=< E
llen 4o7x llwwe @ ke Bible ll is illegol to photocopy or reproduce this 9o a
pomphletinonywoy. 13 1415 16 06 Os 04 03 C E
This chort is olso ovoiloble os a 19" x26" woll chort. C .o
a
c(d
(d' p.9 i; a c)
The editors ore groteful to the following contributors: Phiii W >O i>@ .c) o 6 U)
Confort, Ph.D., Visiiinq Professor, New Testomeni ( o8o-9o), Wheoton Colleqe.
Senior Editor of lyndole House Publishers; Enol F. Rhodes, Asst. Dir, Bible Study
ond
-m gs3 9xx
O
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Helps, Americon ilible Society; John McRqy Ph.D., Ptof . o[ New Testomenl ond .0)
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Archoeoloqy, Wheoton Colleqe Grod. Sch.; lo-rence Scrivoni; Michoel Cochone. .? Lo
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M.A.. Semific lonouooes. Oriqinql Ari: Rick Humohrev Photo Credits:
Jerome, Wyclif[e.but""nb"rg Bi-ible poge. Northwind Piclure Archives; frosmus.
>n\a c)
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Deod Seo Sc'olls. lsoioh scioll, Erich Lessinq; Oueen Mory l, Sco/o; lindislorne d!+ C (d
Gosoels. Eridoemon/Art Resources: Scribe.-Bib/iotique Nocionoi Poris; Cooiic LU3 E
ms.,'The Briliil librory; Williom Tyndole, The Principal. Fello*s ond Scholo'' of c(u
Hartford College. Oxford. Used *ith permission.
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Chart idea and dates courtesy al Back to the Bible Broadcast, Lincoln, NE. Used by permission
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Sto(k #4O7x How We Got fhe Bible Pomphlet
Retoilers:Pockoge of I 0 pomphlets- stocl# / I r'X {lsBN l'890941 05-9)

King James Bible
Poge from l6l I version
King Jomes Version or
Authorized Version
King Jomes I of Englond
commissions 54 scholors
to undertoke o new Bible
ironslotion. Over the next six
yeors, six teoms of scholors
using the Bishops Bible ond
Tyndole's Bible, os well os
ovoiloble Greek ond
Hebrew monuscripts,
complete lhe new version
in 161,l. The KingJomes
Version (olso colled the
"Authorized Version," even
though King Jomes never
gove the finished version his
royol opprovol) is revised
severol times.
The edition used todoy wos
revised in 1769.|t is the
most populor Bible for more
thon 300 yeors.
King James
Older Monuscripts
Discovered! Between
1629 ond 1942, severol of
the eorliest known copies of
the Bible ore found.
Codex Alexqndrinus
o copy of the New
Tesioment from AD 400,
perhops the best copy of the
book of Revelotion, is mode
ovoiloble to western
scholors in 1629.
Codex Sinoiticus
(eorliesi complete copy of
the New Testoment, copied
in AD 350) is found in St.
Cotherine's Monostery neor
Mt. Sinoi.
The Revised Version
The Revised Version
(AD lBB5) ln 1870, scholors
in Englond decide to revise
the King Jomes Version to
reflect the findings from the
monuscripts discovered the
two previous ceniuries.
Their gool is io use better
Hebrew ond Greek texts
ond to retronslote words
bosed on new linguistic
informofion obout oncient
Hebrew.
Codex Vqticqnus
(eorliest ond probobly best
copy known of the New
Testoment from AD 325) is
releosed to scholors in I889
by the Voticon Librory.

Modern Trnnslqfions t93r 1970 l97t

The knowledge from newly Smirh-Goodspeed, An New English Bible The Living Bible
discovered monuscripts hos Americqn Trqnslotion "Timeless" modern English. Populor porophrose.
,l989.
led to hundreds of new Modern Americon English. Revised in
tronslqtions.
19'52
c I 845 The Revised Stondqrd
c
.o
a .o The English Revised Version (R.S.V.) 1970
0) c) c c c o
Version A revision of the A.S.V. New Americon Bible
1976
.9 .o c) c) ,l971
o
U)
(d .9
o U) o A British revision of the King New Testoment revised The Good News Bible
q) E o q)
-o o (N.A.B.) Officiol version of
c) -o (U -c
o_
c) in (d Jomes Version. (Todoy's English Version)
-o -o
in
in E
c(U ($
6c a -c o I 958 the Cotholic Church.
Vernoculor English
i! _c .9. c
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tronslotion.
c)
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--) UJ
a Americqn Stondord Testqment in Modern I 986.
=o_ (d
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uJ cd
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_o I,U
O) E Version (A.S.V.) English A porophrose,
E
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'5 Revision of the King Jomes originolly mode for youth
E ,'c o
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c)
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t- Version in Americon English
I P z=c) z0)= 1966 t97t
c=)
z. zc=) 1926 Jerusolem Bible New Americon t97a
Moffott Bible Tronslotion by Cotholic Stondqrd Bible New lnternotionol
A very populor modern- scholors in Jerusolem. The Revision of the A.S.V. Very Version (N.l.V.)
longuoge version. New Jerusolem Bible, 1985. literol. Dignified, reodoble.
The Deod Sea Scrolls,
found in o cove in 1947 by
shepherd, conloin the oldest
known copies of portions of
the Old Testoment. These
copies were mode between
lOO BC ONd AD IOO.
A Qumrsn Cave
nedr the Dead Seol
t9a2
New King Jqmes
Version
Modernizolion of the K.J.V.
using the some monuscripts
r 949
Jewish New Teslqmenf
English tronslotion using
troditionol Jewish
expressions.
r 989
New Revised Stondord
Version "Gender neutrol"
revision of the R.S.V.
A Scroll of lsoioh thot
J**"y^,*.1*--*LJ' *u*
o is port of the Deod Seo 1'r*5r'vv5oxr gxti'I 1 1 sgrufl {
Scrolls is the oldesi complete
lbjeni ?lr xtqattlt'pJJ ?txr 4.x, s
monuscript of ony book ty. -v {o},*rne*nti *-,.*'l' ,'', ,
",t,
of the Bible (copied oround *J. -ry.*,1. xp*a6y, uJ..r *i *r.'
Jx.r.r'.r yn. nl, urro
100 BC). The copies of ".-.
lsoioh discovered in the
Qumron coves prove to be tsut !$rnr .{}r}dtil}tq
lu[r a* lr*rryrrl n
remorkobly close to the
stondord Hebrew Bible,
vorying slightly in the Scroll of Isaiah
spelling of some nomes.
They give overwhelming
confirmotion of the reiiobility A Ugoritic Grommqr
of the Mosoretic copies. is published in the '1960s.
,l900s
Ugoriiic is on oncienl
During the more thon longuoge similor to Hebrew
o hundred New Testomeni ond helps scholors
monuscripls qre found in understond Hebrew
Egypt. vocobulory ond poetry.
t99t 2000
Contemporory English Holmon Christion
Version "Noturol, Sfondord Bible (H.C.S.B.)
uncomplicoted" Fnglish. (New Testomenr) Bolonce
belween word-for-word ond
though-for-thought.
1995 200t
God's Word
Contemporory English.
tnglish Stondord
Version (E.S.V.) Literol
updote of the R.S.V.
1996 200r
New Living Trqnslofion Todoy's New
A revision of The Living lnfernqtionql Version
Bible lo moke it o (T.N.l.V.) (New Tesroment)
tronslofion. Modernizotion of the N.l.V.