COMMENTARY
ON
THE MEN BEHIND THE KING JAMES MANUSCRIPT'S ORIGINS
(Ps 12:6-7 [KJV])
The words of the LORDare pure words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. 7 Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this generation for ever.
To understand the Bible versions of today, we must also understand the men behind the translations. Start from the bottom of this page and move forward by paging up in time and follow the men that God used to contribute to the preservation of His Holy Word.
Summary: Our research findings show that the King James translators worked on materials (textus receptus that largely came from the vulgate) that originated from Saint Jerome. To conclude our findings as laid out in this document, we believe that God has indeed preserved his Holy Word throughout history and he used men that were dedicated to their faith in God as well as their personal ideals (as in the case of Erasmus, a humanist). Also, read the birthplace of manuscripts.
REM: Go to the bottom of this page and page up to go forward in history.
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (1466-1536):
Erasmus was responsible for the Textus Receptus (Latin: “received text”) it is the name given to the succession of printed Greek texts of the New Testament which constituted the translation base for the original German Luther Bible, the translation of the New Testament into English by William Tyndale, the King James Version, the Spanish Reina-Valera translation, the Russian Synodal Bible and most Reformation-era New Testament translations throughout Western and Central Europe. The series originated with the first printed Greek New Testament, published in 1516 – a work undertaken in Basel by the Dutch Catholic scholar and humanist Desiderius Erasmus.
Erasmus had been working for years on two projects: a collation of Greek texts and a fresh Latin New Testament. In 1512, he began his work on a fresh Latin New Testament. He collected all the Vulgate manuscripts he could find to create a critical edition. Then he polished the Latin.
TTGM: Erasmus trusted the works of St. Jerome and from this, he put together the Textus Receptus (Greek and Latin translation) of the Bible. The Textus Receptus was then used in the making of the King James version and others as stated above.
Byzantine text-type manuscripts -> Vulgate ->Textus Receptus -> King James, German Luther Bible, New Testament into English by William Tyndale, Spanish Reina-Valera translation, The Russian Synodal Bible and others as mentioned above.
See also William Tyndale a contemporary of Erasmus
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John Wycliffe (1320-1384):
Wycliffe attacked the privileged status of the clergy, which was central to their powerful role in England. He then attacked the luxury and pomp of local parishes and their ceremonies.
Wycliffe was also an advocate for translation of the Bible into the vernacular. He completed a translation directly from the Vulgate into Middle English in the year 1382, now known as Wycliffe’s Bible. It is probable that he personally translated the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John; and it is possible he translated the entire New Testament, while his associates translated the Old Testament.
Wycliffe’s Bible appears to have been completed by 1384, with additional updated versions being done by Wycliffe’s assistant John Purvey and others in 1388 and 1395.
TTGM: John Wycliffe trusted the works of St. Jerome and from this, translated the Bible into the language of the people. The Wycliffe Bible came from the Vulgate; the vulgate in turn came from the Greek manuscripts that originated from Antioch.
Byzantine text-type manuscripts -> Vulgate -> Wycliffe Bible
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Saint Jerome (347-420):
Returning to Antioch in 378 or 379, he was ordained by Bishop Paulinus, apparently unwillingly (TTGM: shows humility) and on condition that he continue his ascetic life. Soon afterward, he went to Constantinople to pursue a study of Scripture under Gregory Nazianzen.
He seems to have spent two years there, then left, and the next three (382–385) he was in Rome again, as secretary to Pope Damasus I and the leading Roman Christians.
Invited originally for the synod of 382, held to end the schism of Antioch as there were rival claimants to be the proper patriarch in Antioch. Jerome had accompanied one of the claimants, Paulinus back to Rome in order to get more support for him, and distinguished himself to the pope, and took a prominent place in his councils.
He was given duties in Rome, and he undertook a revision of the Latin Bible, to be based on the Greek manuscripts of the New Testament. He also updated the Psalter containing the Book of Psalms then at use in Rome based on the Septuagint. Though he did not realize it yet, translating much of what became the Latin Vulgate Bible would take many years and be his most important achievement.
TTGM: Saint Jerome spent time in Antioch where the Byzantine text-type manuscripts originated; also known as the majority text. Jerome had direct access to the original Greek manuscript copies of the New Testament and from this, he translated it into Latin; hence the birth of the Latin Vulgate Bible. Again, the Latin Vulgate was based on the Byzantine text-type manuscripts that came from Antioch. Proof of this can be seen when we use the comparison method between the two works (Vulgate = majority text/Byzantine text-type).
Byzantine text-type manuscripts -> Latin Vulgate
^ ^ FROM HERE ^ ^ | ^ ^ FROM HERE Start with Jerome and page up ^ ^ | ^ ^ FROM HERE ^ ^
Birthplaces of manuscript lines and a key to identifying God’s Word
- In Acts 13, Saul becomes Paul (vs. 9) and is part of the church at Antioch. (vs. 1) Paul and Barnabus are separated out from the rest “for the work whereunto I have called them”, God said. (vs2) They preached in a number of places (nowhere near Egypt) and by verse 49 we learn the keys words, “And the word of the Lord was published throughout all the region.” (This phrase is a key to understanding which text is the true word of God).
So, where was the word of the Lord published – Alexandria or Antioch?
- If we trace the manuscripts back to their origins, there are only two sources for them – Antioch and Alexandria. Text types that represent a time period or location are traceable back to one of two families of manuscripts – the Majority text and the Minority text – the Majority text originating in Antioch, Syria, and the Minority text originating in Alexandria, Egypt.
- The Majority text (literally) includes approximately 99% of the 5,000+ extant manuscripts (meaning manuscripts that are in existence today). These manuscripts include the ones used by the King James Bible translators and they have a high level of agreement with each other. The Minority text (literally) includes the remaining less than 1% of extant manuscripts. These manuscripts include those used by all modern versions and they have a high level of disagreement between each other (For example, Sinaiticus and Vaticanus, the two principal Alexandrian manuscripts by far, disagree with each other in over 3,000 places in the four gospels alone – see chart below).
a. The Differences BetweenSinaiticus and Vaticanus in the Four Gospels:
Matthew – 656+
Mark – 567+
Luke – 791+
John – 1022+
Total – 3036+
b. Modern translators have sub-divided the two families into Alexandrian, Western, Caesarean, and Byzantine categories, but this division obscures the fact that only two origins exist. The first three categories originate from Alexandria and the latter from Antioch;
c. Other names given to the Majority text include: the Antiochiantext, Byzantine text, Traditional text, Apostolic text, the Eastern text and the Textus Receptus (Latin for Received Text).
d. Therefore, we will refer to the two lineages based on their origins: Antioch/Antiochianand Alexandria/Alexandrian.
Read More for further study (TTGM: considered an accurate source)
Other References for further study:
Alexandrian text-type (this is what the minority text was written in and it came from Alexandria, Egypt)
Byzantine text-type (this was what the majority text was written in and it came from Antioch)
Vulgate (taken from Byzantine text-type – confirmed)
Codex Vaticanus (TTGM: accuracy in question)
Codex Sinaiticus (TTGM: accuracy in question)
Textus Receptus (came largely from Latin Vulgate)
School of Antioch (majority text came from here)
RELATED TOPIC
The Bible CODES: Our Amazing Book
Understanding the Power of WORDS
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Understanding how to gain the gift of ETERNAL LIFE (SALVATION)
Read about the Many (to Hell) and the Few (to God’s Kingdom)
Understanding the Old and New Covenant – Explaining the Gospel
Understanding what is Iniquity (not keeping the commandments of God/Torah)
Why the FEW keep the commandments as written in the Torah (videos – watch the first).
A historical account that explains why the modern church moved away from the Way (the commandments of God) – watch the first video
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