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]