HISTORY OF THE BIBLE

How did we get the Bible?

The Bible is a book of revelation, revealing the great plan of God for humankind. It is a book of communication from God to man. God inspired many people over a period of time, from different places, revealed His purpose and plan for humankind. Thus the Bible in its written form is a sum total of oral traditions of faith communities spanning a period of about 1500 years. The “authors” were inspired by God to write with the result that in spite of diversity of writers there is oneness and a systematic unfolding of God’s plan of salvation for humankind.

The Bible is divided into two sections, one is called the Old Testament, and the other is called the New Testament. The Old Testament is written in Hebrew language and the New Testament in Greek language. A few sections of the Old Testament and a few words in the New Testament are written in Aramaic language.

Writing Materials :

In ancient times, various materials served as writing surfaces. Texts cut in stones were often found popular. Later on, wood and metals were also used as writing surfaces. Over a period of time clay, bone, wood, leather, various metals, potsherds, and parchment were used as writing surface.

Both the Old Testament and New Testament were written on parchment (made from specially treated animal skins) or papyrus (marsh reeds hammered together), which were rolled up for storage. The writing on the scroll was done using reed pens and ink made from carbon, gum and oil.

CodexDuring the second century A.D. the scroll began to be replaced by “codex”, the ancestor of our book with pages. The codex was made of pages folded and fastened together. Sometimes codex had covers like modern books. Codex became popular because it was easy to be carried and also it was easier to find a particular passage as compared to the scroll.

Translations:

The first translation of the Scriptures was the translation of the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek in Alexandria during 3rd century B.C. In the 2nd century A.D. the Bible was translated into Latin and was called Latin Vulgate. In the 5th century A.D. the Bible was translation into Anglo Saxon language. In the 14th century A.D., it was translated into English. The printing process was not yet invented at that time so copies were made by handwriting.

Printed Bible:

When John Gutenberg made the printing machine in Europe, the first book to roll out of this printing press was the Latin Bible. The first English New Testament was printed in 1525 A.D. The most popular translation of the Bible in English is called the King James Version, which was published in the year 1611 A.D. This Bible is used in many universities around the world for teaching English language. Later on, many other translations in English like RSV, NIV, GNB, and many other versions were published. The translation of the Bible in other languages of the world also continued. As on today the Bible has been translated and printed in 364 languages of the world.

Christian following in India is as old as Christianity itself. A very strong tradition attests that one of the disciples of Christ, Saint Thomas preached Christianity to the Southwest of our country in the first century A.D. However the Bible movement took off in a big way only about two centuries ago with the pioneering and prolific translations work in several languages undertaken by the Serampore trio of missionaries led by William Carey. This tradition was concurrently upheld and is carried on to the present by the movement of the Bible Society of India which took its birth in Calcutta in 1811 A.D.The motto of the Society is to translate the word of God in languages, which people can understand, and produce the scriptures (normally in book form) at a price people could afford to buy. The Bible Society works together with many organizations in India to translate the Bible into various languages of India. The Bible is now available in 49 Indian languages.

Contents of the Bible:

Old Testament contains
Narratives beginning from the creation of the worldMan’s separation from GodManifestations of God’s grace and love.God’s dealing with people, the Ten CommandmentsThe history of the Jewish peoplePoetry and wisdom literatureProphetic writings


New Testament contains
Gospels narrating the birth, teachings, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.Activities of the disciples of Jesus ChristWritings of the disciples of Jesus ChristProphetic writing

COURTESY: BIBLE SOCIETY OF INDIA