Montgomery County sentinel. [volume] (Rockville, Md.) 1855-1974, 1880-10-01
Selected Mistellaup.
REVISION OF THE BIBLE.
Another Version of the New Tesla
ment Finished.

The revision of the New Testament, which
has been under way in the hands of tho most
eminent English and American Protestant
divines, has been completed, and copies of
the new book, from the hands of the Queens
printer, Mcmillan, who alone is authorized
to print the Bible or any portion of it in
England, are expected to reach this country
in very short time. No literary work has
ever attracted more universal attention than
this modern revision of the Holy Scriptures.
The revision is joint work of the new and
old worlds; of all branches of the Protestant
Church; of learning and picty joined hand
in hand; priest and laymcn, prelate and
scholar, working together. A correspond
ent of the Chicago Times has written a
lengthy correspondence to that paper upon
the matter, from which we copy the main
portion, and which will doubtless interest
our readers.
HOW THE REVISION WAS MADE.
The principles Of the revision were mark
ediy conservative AS few alterations in
the present text ms faithiulness to the origi-
nal would permit was the first and great
commandment; but it was understood that
"faithfulness to the original required great
many changes No change was retained
without two-thirds vote in each commit
tee. The Original text was selected in the
same manner from the oldest and best un-
cial manuscript In America and here, fol-
lowing in part the plan Of the King james
translators, the committee divided, the He
braists taking the Old Testament, the Hell
lcnists the New Testament These did not
subdiyidG the work, however, and each mcm-
Der Of the New Testament committee be.
came responsible for the correctness Of the
entire work The method Of labor was this {.
Both committees took up, let us say, the first
syu0ptic The Americans revised IT, The
English revised IT, The work was then cx-
changed, and each committee compared the
revision with its own. Where they agreed
agreed the work was again gone over, ex-
planned and exchanged, this being confined
until agreement was had. There was very
little disagreement, however, and the pre-
caution provided for final disagreement was
not necessary
The progress of the work has been kept
secret by special arrangements. Alarming
reports of sweeping changes have from time
to time appeared, frightened the timd and
the neutrality-suspicious. but nothing was
given out by authority until now, when the
whole work, approved unanimously by a
committee, is presented to Christendom for
II verdict In considering the changes that
have been made it may be proper % insist
upon the fact being kept in view that no
more cautious and conservative body OF
Christian scholars, enjoying 80 wide n repu-
tation and such high respect throughout the
world, could possibly be gathered together;
that no change has been made in the pres
ent English version except by two-thrds
vote in both bodies that the doubt has al
ways been exercised in behalf Of the pres
Gnu VGTslDHt lnc HcCtSsiby w bh'h NH""b'
having 10 DC proven clearly and unmistaka-
bly,, and the only danger has been from the
first that the rcvisors would exercise undue
caution and refuse 10 accept corrections that
should be made in the interests of truth be-
cause the evidence against them lacked some
technicality, producing work that the non
Christian would not and ought not 10 be
asked % accept az a correct version Of the
original.
WHY THE REVISION WAS NEEDED.
Great AS has been the bulk Of information
disseminated concerning the Scriptures, some
facts Of the first importance are little known.
One Of them is that there never has been a
standard text The editions printed by the
Queens printer for the Bible Society have
widely varied, and since King Jamcs' day
there have been many unauthorized and no
authorized version strictly 80 called. The
American Bible society " even In worse
plight, and has Of late years been adhcring
10 a text Of Il. own after putting several in
the market, while the other societies do not
even adhere 20 one text The King james
translators were strictly charged to follow
the text Of the Bishops Bible, a revision Of
the Cmnmer Bible, which was a revision Of
the Great Bible, itself the Matthew.Tyndale
Bible, without the notes, which had ~ ori-
gin in an English translation from DE Ger.
man. The previous rcyisers were indiyldu-
ais dissatisfied with the version, and their
work was without ecclesiastical authority
The present text Of uhe English version Is
over three centuries old, and during that
tlme the lnnguage haa not nIOne nixon on