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How We Got the Bible
Ten Key Points
1 The Bible is inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16-17; 2 Peter 1:20-21).
2 The Bible is made up of 66 different books that were written over 1600 years
(from approximately 1500 BC to AD 100) by more than 40 kings, prophets, leaders,
and followers of Jesus. The Old Testament has 39 books (written approximately
1500-400 BC). The New Testament has 27 books (written approximately AD 45-100).
The Hebrew Bible has the same text as the English Bible’s Old Testament, but divides
and arranges it differently.
3 The Old Testament was written mainly in Hebrew, with some Aramaic. The
New Testament was written in Greek.
4 The books of the Bible were collected and arranged and recognized as inspired
sacred authority by councils of rabbis and councils of church leaders based on
careful guidelines.
5 Before the printing press was invented, the Bible was copied by hand. The
Bible was copied very accurately, in many cases by special scribes who
developed intricate methods of counting words and letters to insure that no errors
had been made.
6 The Bible was the first book ever printed on the printing press with moveable
type (Gutenberg Press, 1455, Latin Bible).
7 There is much evidence that the Bible we have today is remarkably true to the
original writings. Of the thousands of copies made by hand before 1500, more
than 5,300 Greek manuscripts from the New Testament alone still exist today. The
text of the Bible is better preserved than the writings of Plato or Aristotle.
B
8 The discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls confirmed the astonishing reliability of
some of the copies of the Old Testament made over the years. Although some
spelling variations exist, no variation affects basic Bible doctrines.
W
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As the Bible was carried to other countries, it was translated into the common
language of the people by scholars who wanted others to know God’s Word.
Today there are still 2,000 groups with no Bible in their own language.
10 By AD 200, the Bible was translated into seven languages; by 500, 13 languages;
by 900, 17 languages; by 1400, 28 languages; by 1800, 57 languages; by 1900, 537
languages; by 1980, 1,100 languages; by 2006, 2,426 languages have some portions of
the Scripture.
Source: The World Christian Encyclopedia; Wycliffe, International. T
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Old Testament Written New Testament Written
(approx. 1500-400 BC) (approx. AD 45-100)
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Scrolls of leather, and later of
n papyrus, were used to
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the Scriptures.
AD 500 AD 600
Roman Empire Christianity reaches A
declines. Germanic Britain before 300, but o
migrations (378-600) Anglo-Saxon pagans drive tr
cause new languages Christian Britons into E
to emerge. Wales (450-600). In 596,
Augustine of Canterbury
begins evangelization
The Masoretes are again. A
special Jewish scribes D
entrusted with the sacred tr
task of making copies of N
the Hebrew Scriptures Bede b
(Old Testament) Caedmon, an illiterate
L
approximately 500-900. monk, retells portions of
Scripture in Anglo-Saxon Bede, a monk and
They develop a meticulous scholar, makes an Old
system of counting the (Old English) poetry and
song (676). English (Anglo-Saxon)
number of words in each translation of portions A
book of the Bible to make of Scripture. On his tr
sure they have copied deathbed in 735, he O
it accurately. Any scroll Aldhelm of Sherborne, finishes translating the
found to have an error 709, is said to have Book of John.
is buried according to translated the Psalms.
Jewish law.
www.rose-publishing.com © 2008 Rose Publishing, Inc. Bible Reference Made Easy
Permission granted to the original purchaser to print out. It is illegal to sell, email, replicate, duplicate, or post any part of this on the Internet.
More than 70 Bible reference charts and PowerPoints® available. Download catalog and sign up for Rose Bible e-Charts at www. rose-publishing.com
Title: How We Got the Bible Product Code: 407X ISBN-13: 9780965508261
scriptures.” Luke 24:44-45 (1
le
AD 1300
Alfred The Great, King Normans conquer First English Bible
of Wessex (871-901) England (1066) and is translated from Latin I
translates portions of make French the official in 1382 and is called the it
Exodus, Psalms, and Acts. language. No English Wycliffe Bible in honor of tr
translation work produced priest and Oxford scholar in
until the 1300s. John Wycliffe. During w
his lifetime, Wycliffe had a
Aldred, Bishop of wanted common people
Durham, inserts a
Middle English emerges,
popularized by works such to have the Bible. He
translation in the also criticized a number
as the Canterbury Tales and
Northumbrian dialect of church practices and
Richard Rolle’s Psalter (1340).
between the lines of the policies. His followers, W
Lindisfarne Gospels (950). John Wycliffe derisively called Lollards p
(meaning “mumblers”), m
included his criticisms in in
the preface to the Wycliffe J
Aelfric (955-1020) Bible. This Bible is banned in
translates portions of the and burned. Forty years s
Old Testament. after Wycliffe’s death, his e
bones are exhumed and s
burned for heresy.
AD
AD1500
1500
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m Latin In 1408, In 1408, in England,
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Gutenberg Bible
Gutenberg BiblePage
Page
AD 1900
Modern Translations 1931 1966 1971 1
The knowledge from newly Smith-Goodspeed, An Jerusalem Bible The Living Bible N
discovered manuscripts American Translation Translation by Catholic Popular paraphrase. (
has led to hundreds of new Modern American English. scholars in Jerusalem. c
translations. The New Jerusalem
1952 1976
Bible, 1985. 1
1885 The Revised Standard The Good News Bible
J
The English Revised Version (RSV) 1970 (Today’s English T
Version A revision of the ASV. New New English Bible Version) (TEV)
Vernacular English E
A British revision of the Testament revised 1971. “Timeless” modern u
King James Version. translation.
1958
English. Revised in 1989. e
1901 J.B. Phillips’ New 1970 1978 1
American Standard Testament in Modern New American Bible New International N
Version (ASV) English A paraphrase, (NAB) Official version of Version (NIV) S
Revision of the King originally made for youth. the Catholic Church. Revised Dignified, readable. “
James Version in New Testament in 1986. o
1965 1982
American English.
The Amplified Bible 1971 New King James 1
1926 Uses word-for-word ASV New American Version (NKJV) C
Moffatt Bible with added words to Standard Bible (NASB) Modernization of the E
A very popular modern- communicate insights on Literal word-for-word KJV using the same “
language version. original texts. translation. Updated in 1995. manuscripts. E
AD 2000
1987 1995 2002
New Century Version God’s Word The Message (MSG)
(NCV) Puts biblical Contemporary English. A paraphrase from the
concepts into natural terms. original languages.
1996
1989 New Living 2004
Jewish New Translation (NLT) Holman Christian
Testament A revision of The Living Standard Bible
Bible to make it a (HCSB) Balance between
English translation
translation. word-for-word and
using traditional Jewish
thought-for-thought.
expressions. 1996
1989 New International 2005
New Revised Reader’s Version Today's New
Standard Version (NIrV) International Version
“Gender neutral” revision A simplified version of (TNIV) Modernization of the
of the RSV. the NIV with a 3rd- or New International Version.
4th-grade reading level. 2005
1991
Contemporary 2001 New English
English Version English Standard Translation (NET)
Version (ESV) Literal Available only on the
“Natural, uncomplicated”
update of the RSV. Internet, with extensive
English.
translator’s notes.
www.rose-publishing.com © 2008 Rose Publishing, Inc. Bible Reference Made Easy
Permission granted to the original purchaser to print out. It is illegal to sell, email, replicate, duplicate, or post any part of this on the Internet.
More than 70 Bible reference charts and PowerPoints® available. Download catalog and sign up for Rose Bible e-Charts at www. rose-publishing.com
Title: How We Got the Bible Product Code: 407X ISBN-13: 9780965508261
translation for the several times.
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! Chart idea and dates courtesy of Back to the Bible Broadcast, Lincoln, NE. Used by permission.
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