09/09/2025
Bible class today…
Lesson #17: The First Bible
The story of the first English Bibles is really the story of how people risked their lives so ordinary men and women could read God’s Word in their own language.
The Bible began with stories told aloud—accounts of creation, Abraham, Moses, and the prophets were passed down by memory from one generation to the next. In time, people began to record these sacred words on clay tablets, one of the earliest forms of writing in the ancient world. Later, as writing materials improved, the Scriptures were copied onto papyrus sheets, made from reeds in Egypt. Eventually, the papyrus scroll gave way to the codex, an early form of the book with bound pages, which Christians favored because it made the Scriptures easier to carry, read, and share.
The Bible was written in several key languages. Most of the Old Testament was written in Hebrew, with some sections in Aramaic, the everyday language of Jesus’ time. The New Testament was written in Greek, the common international language of the first century. By the fourth century, Jerome translated the Bible into Latin, called the Vulgate, which became the standard Bible in Europe for over a thousand years.
As Christianity spread, so did translations of the Bible. In the 300s, Ulfilas translated it into Gothic for the Germanic peoples. In the 400s, the Bible was translated into Armenian, often called the “Queen of the Versions.” By the 800s, Cyril and Methodius created an alphabet and translated the Scriptures for the Slavic people. During the Middle Ages, portions of the Bible also appeared in French and other European languages during Waldes time, preparing the way for later complete translations, including those in English.
🌟 Cædmon (7th century): - 1st English Christian poem
The journey begins with Cædmon, a humble cowherd at Whitby Abbey who miraculously received the gift of song in a dream. He composed the first known English Christian poem, praising God as Creator. Though not a translation of Scripture, his hymn shows the early desire to express God’s Word in the English tongue.
🌟 Aldhelm (7th century): - Psalm into Old English
Around the same time, Aldhelm, a bishop and scholar, is said to have translated the Psalms into Old English. His work marks one of the earliest attempts to bring actual portions of the Bible into the language of the people.
🌟 Bede (673–735): - John into Old English
Known as the “Father of English history,” Bede wrote many works in Latin but cared deeply for his people’s understanding of Scripture. Tradition says that shortly before his death, he translated the Gospel of John into Old English, continuing the movement toward vernacular Scripture.
🌟 King Alfred the Great (849–899):
- Ten Commandments into Old English
As both king and reformer, Alfred wanted his people not only to be educated but also to know God’s law. In his law code, he included the Ten Commandments and other passages of Scripture in Old English, showing that even rulers valued making the Bible’s teachings available to their people.
🌟 Ælfric (10th century):
- translated Old Testament into Old English
An abbot and teacher, Ælfric translated parts of the Old Testament and wrote sermons (homilies) based on the Bible. His writings explained Scripture in plain Old English, making it more understandable for ordinary Christians of his time.
🌟 Wessex Gospels (c. 990):
- complete translation of the 4 gospels into Old English
The Wessex Gospels represent a major milestone—the first complete translation of the four Gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) into Old English. Translated from the Latin Vulgate, they allowed Anglo-Saxon Christians to hear the words of Jesus in their own language. Several manuscript copies survive today, showing how widely they were valued.
🌟 Richard Rolle (c. 1300–1349):
- translated the whole Bible into Old English
Moving into the Middle English period, Richard Rolle, a hermit and writer, translated and paraphrased parts of the Psalms and New Testament. His best-known work, the English Psalter, made Scripture accessible for prayer and devotion. Rolle’s writings reflect the growing hunger for the Bible in the common tongue.
🌟 John Wycliffe (1320s–1384):
- Produced the 1st Complete Middle English Bible
He was an Oxford scholar, preacher, and reformer often called the “Morning Star of the Reformation.” He believed that the Bible, not the church, was the ultimate authority for Christians, and he taught that everyone should be able to read God’s Word in their own language.
Wycliffe and his followers, the Lollards .produced the first complete English Bible around 1382, translated from the Latin Vulgate.
The Lollards who helped John Wycliffe :
✍️ Nicholas of Herford: Helped create the first draft of the English Bible with his literal Old Testament translation.
✍️ John Purvey: Refined the translation into a more readable English Bible, which became the version most commonly used by Wycliffe’s followers.
Together with Wycliffe, they ensured that the first complete English Bible (1380s) existed, long before the reformation.
Wycliffe’s Bibles were copied by hand and secretly passed among believers. Church leaders opposed him, but his work planted the seeds of a movement that would one day bring the Bible into every English home.
Wycliffe died naturally in 1384, but the opposition did not end. In 1415, the Council of Constance declared him a heretic, and in 1428, officials dug up his remains, burned his bones, and scattered the ashes in the River Swift.
Wycliffe’s life and work showed that no force could destroy the power of God’s Word. Even his ashes, carried by the river into the sea, symbolized how his influence would spread across the world.
7years9monthsold
09.09.2025
We Can Trust the Bible
