Bible History
All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:
INDEX:
INTRODUCTION:
When I began to study the Scriptures as an adult, I purchased the The Quest Study Bible New International Version. After some time, it became apparent to me that this version was not an entirely accurate translation of the Scriptures.
The problem I had with the NIV was in its use of the words 'servant' and 'slave'. While it appeared that the NIV wanted to use the terms interchangeably I knew this was not the case. A slave does volunteer, a slave does NOT know his master's business and a slave is not free to quit. After consulting the Strong's Concordance, I found that the word slave is used once in the TeNaKh (Jeremiah 2:14) and the word slaves is used once in the B'rit Chadasha (Revelation 18:13). The word 'servant' however was used over 491 times and the word 'servants' almost as many times. In an attempt to find a more accurate translation I decided to go back in time so I purchased a copy of the King James Version.
As more time passed, I began to see instances where the King James Bible was not an entirely accurate translation of the Scriptures. Once again I decided to go back in time and began to seek a Bible that was written before the King James Bible. What I discovered almost caused me to lose my faith. Prior to the King James it seemed there were literally dozens of Bibles in print.
As I continued to seek the most accurate translation it became apparent that they all contained differing degrees of inaccuracies since none of them totally agreed with each other. When I realized that the only remains of original scripture in existance are clay potshards and pieces of stone inscriptions in museums around the globe, I decided that I would study the history of the Scriptures in an attempt to get the most accurate translation and enable myself to discern the Word of God Almighty as it was originally given.
Listed below is a compilation of my research to date.
Bible Version Date Chart:
| Version | Written | Translated From |
Translated To |
Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Restoration Scriptures True Name Edition |
2003 CE. |
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| The ISR Scriptures | 1993 CE. |
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| New World Translation (NWT) | 1950 CE. |
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| Scofield Reference Bible | 1909 CE |
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| American Standard | 1901 CE |
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| Youngs | 1898 CE. |
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| King James a.k.a. Authorized Version |
1604-1611 CE, 1611 CE |
Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman (WWW.BIBLEBELIEVERS.ORG.AU) (2013/0126) |
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| Clementine Vulgate | 1592 CE |
Pope Clement VIII published his revised edition of the Vulgate |
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| Rheims (Douai) Edition | 1582 CE |
Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman (WWW.BIBLEBELIEVERS.ORG.AU) (2013/0126) |
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| Bishop's Bible | 1568 CE |
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| Geneva Edition | 1540-1557 CE; 1560 CE |
Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman (WWW.BIBLEBELIEVERS.ORG.AU) (2013/0126) |
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| Cranmer Edition | 1539 CE |
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Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman (WWW.BIBLEBELIEVERS.ORG.AU) (2013/0126) |
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| Coverdale Edition | 1535 CE |
English |
Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman (WWW.BIBLEBELIEVERS.ORG.AU) (2013/0126) |
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| Tyndale Edition | 1526 CE |
English |
Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman |
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| Textus Receptus | 1516 CE |
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| Gutenberg Bible | 1455 CE |
Famous edition of the Vulgate. | ||
| Wycliffe, Wiclif, Vickliffe | 1380 CE |
Latin Vulgate |
English |
Facts Are Facts by Benjamin H. Freedman |
| The Leningrad Codex | ~ 1008 CE | |||
| Masoretic Text | ~ 1000 CE | |||
| The Aleppo Codex | ~ 930 CE | Once the oldest complete copy of the Masoretic Text, but now missing its Torah section. |
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| The Syriac Bible of Paris | 585 CE | |||
| Vulgate | 402 C.E. | |||
| 400 C.E. | Hebrew | Latin | Jerome translates the TeNaKh from Hebrew to Latin. Treatise on the Biblical Calendar, second edition by Herb Solinsky |
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| The Peshitta | < 300 C.E. | The Old Testament portion was probably created at different times spanning the 1st and 2nd centuries CE. Some of it was translated by Jews working from mostly the Hebrew sometimes consulting the LXX. Except for Sirach, the books of the Apocrypha were translated from the Greek. The New Testament section was translated near the end of the 4th century or in the 5th century. |
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| The Age of the Messiah | ||||
| the Septuagint Text | 285 - 246 BCE 200 - 150 BCE |
Hebrew | Greek |
At first, the Septuagint (LXX) consisted only of the Pentateuch (Torah, first five books of the Bible). Different books were translated from the Hebrew over a span of two centuries, including the books of the Apocrypha, and were added to the LXX. GREEK TRANSLATIONOn the eighth of Tevet, King Ptolemy of Egypt forced 70 Jewish scholars to gather and translate the Hebrew Bible into Greek. Even though the Talmud relates to us that this project was blessed with a miracle -- the 70 scholars were all placed in separate cubicles and yet they all came up with the same translation -- the general view of the rabbis of the time towards this project was decidedly negative. The Talmud records that when this translation became public "darkness descended on the world." This translation -- the Septuagint -- eventually became the basis for the Old Testament section of the Christian bible a few centuries later. The Greek translation of the Bible also further aided the advance of the agenda of the Hellenist Jews to bring Greek culture into Jewish life, and to attempt to reform Judaism in the image of Greek values and lifestyle. The "koshering" of the Greek language by its use in translating the Hebrew Bible had wide ramifications in Jewish society and undermined some of the efforts of the rabbis in combating the allure of Greece in Israel of then. |
| Dead Sea Scrolls | 408 BCE - 318 CE |
Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek | ||
Bible Versions:
American Standard (1901)
Hebraic Roots Bible (2009)
The Authorized King James Bible Cambridge Edition
The King James Version of the Holy Bible
Leningrad Codex
Masoretic Text
NWT
The ISR Scriptures (1993)
Restoration Scriptures True Name Edition Study Bible (3rd Edition) (2004)
Syriac Bible
Vulgate
Wycliffe (1380)
Youngs
Apocraphal Books:
Enoch - (NLT 200 BC/BCE)
The Book of Enoch With YAHWEH's Name Restored (WWW.YAHWEHSWORD.ORG)
Jasher
The Book of Jasher (WWW.SACRED-TEXTS.COM) (2014/0804)
Jubilees - (~160 BC/BCE)
The Book of Jubilees (WWW.YAHWEHSWORD.ORG)
Maccabees
Lexicons:
Definition: A Lexicon is a dictionary; a stock of terms used in or of a particular profession, subject or style.
Pronunciation: Lek-si-kon
Ancient Hebrew Research Center - Ancient Hebrew Lexicon Bible
Brown, Driver, Briggs (BDB)
Thayer's
History:
English Bible (WWW.GREATSITE.COM) (10/09/09)
Pre-Refomation History of the Bible From 1,400BC to 1,400 AD (WWW.GREATSITE.COM) (10/09/09)
NOTE: This site makes no mention of the Dead Sea Scrolls or the fact that at least five books of the B'rit Hadasha were originally written in Hebrew and NOT Greek.
The History of the New Testament Scriptures (WWW.BIBLELIFE.ORG) (07/16/09)