The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1894-08-03
THE ENGLISH BIBLE
It's History for the Past Five Hundred
Years.

The Celebrated Version of This Famous
Book Down to the Revised Edition of
the Present.
The history of the English Bible di-
vides itself into two periods-the year Of
labor upon manuscripts and its intro
duction by means of the printing press.
John Wycliffe represents the best achieve
ment of the manuscript period. Almost
hundred years before the press he had
succeeded in giving the Bible to the
English people in the yernacular. Fifty
years after Cations rude press was in
operation William Tyudale issued the
first English New Testament. Traces,
however, of translations from the Scrip
lures are to be found for centuries pre-
ceding the work of Wycliffe. Indeed the
Oldest manuscript in existence is an
English "Psalter" preserved in the
national library in Paris. The early
missionaries to the rude tribes Of Britain
translated portion at least of the Scrip
lures, whose truths they taught. Bede,
of all these early laborers, retains for
the student of today the simplicity and
charm of his native tongue. The work
was continued by Alfred, who prefxed
to his body of laws translation of the
Ten Commandments and versions of
other portions of the Bible. Abbots and
monks were encouraged to present and
circulate among the people the word of
God.
The Norman conquest affected English
scholarship very much as the victories of
Alaric, six centuries earlier, affected the
scholarship of southern Europe. The
work of translating the Scriptures, even
if it did not altogether cease, was
checked. A new language had to be i'm
posed upon the people, The conflict be-
tween the Anglo Saxon and the Norman
French was not to be settled in day.
Both tongues can. be traced in fragments
of translation yet extant; and ID the END
the language which resulted from the
struggle was to all intents and purposes
the language of Wycliffe and Chaucer.
Old forms still fingered, but only to
stamp him who used them as uncouth
and rustic. The day drew near when
translator of the whole Bible Of perma-
nent value could be made. That such a
translation existed already is extremely
improba bic, although Sir Thomas Moore,
Fox, the martyrologist, and Archbishop
Cranmer claim that it did.
THE WYCLIFFE TRANSLATION.
1t was while the language of England
was being nodded and made ready for
Chaucer and Wycliffe that the Bible
received the name by which we know
it today. For time it seemed as il
Jerome's title "The Divi ne Library'
would win it's way to general acceptance;
but in the thirteenth century the Greek
term, 1.-THE Books" passing into the
vocabulary of the West, became, by q
slight grammatical Misrepresentation nc
longer plural, but singular. The
Books" in popular use, was transformed
| into 1.-THE Book" In 1856 John Wycliffe
began the work which has made him
famous, by translating the Apocalypse,
perhaps attracted to that book, as was
Savonarola in the next century, by the
apparent fulfillnent of it's prophecies in
lowed by the Gospels with a common
tary; aud by 1890 he had translated the
whole New Testament, including re-
| vision of the Apocalypse. Wycliffe was
now sixty years old, but it seeemd rs
though he had lived many lives since
his pu bic course began. AS states
man he had supported his sovereign in
his resistance to the Pope, and had in
Cured disfavor for time by his attach.
ment to John of Gaunt. He was a
political reformer. An incessant worker,
be labored in his parish, evangelical
England. toiled for twenty-five years al
translating and spread his doctrines
broadcast over the land.
In 1884 the Old Testament was added
to the New. 1t was completed just in
time, for the noble old man was stricken
with paralysis on the 28th OF December
and died as the New Year dawned
Wycliffe's version was made from the
pune text of the Latin Vulgate current
| in his time A complete revision fol
lowed. prepared by John Purvey. Tn,
work of Wycliffe and of Purvey wal
done at time when the thought of tn,
nation, as we'll as it's speech, was in
| state of transition. Translating as they
did, not from the original, but from tn
Vul gate, there are traces in their vers
| ion of ecclesiastical dominance and O
theological error. The word clergy
which stout James Melville, the Presby
terrain, said smelled of papistry, althougl
used by the congregation of believers