The Battle Over Language
“It would be wrong to translate God’s holy Word into English,” the Doctor of Divinity said sternly.
“Only a language like Latin or Greek is able to fully convey God’s truth. English is a vulgar language -fine for plowmen and shopkeepers, but hardly suitable for the Bible.”
William Tyndale’s eyes blazed. He was a highly educated man, fluent in several languages, including Greek and Hebrew. “Not only can an accurate English translation be done, it should be done. The Scriptures of God are being hidden from the people’s eyes. The only way that poor people can read and see the simple, plain Word of God is if it is turned into their mother tongue, English.”
Danger and Determination
In the early 1500s, only scholars could read God’s Word. The only legal Bible was in Latin, which most of the common people could not understand. Since they could not read God’s Word for themselves, they had to rely upon what others told them it said.
It was illegal to own an English Bible or even memorize Scripture in English. In fact, in 1519, seven Christians were burned at the stake in Coventry, England, for teaching their children the Lord’s Prayer and the Ten Commandments in English!
Before long, the two men were arguing heatedly.
Tyndale quoted Scriptures, the doctor quoted man-made traditions and church rules. Finally, the Doctor of Divinity shouted, “It would be better to be without God’s laws than without the Pope’s.”
Tyndale courageously replied, “I defy the Pope and all his laws! In fact, if God spares my life, I intend to make it possible for a common farmer, a plowman, to know more of the Scripture than you do!”
Smuggling the Word
Within a year of Tyndale’s conversation with the Doctor of Divinity, he decided it was no longer safe for him to stay in England, so he traveled to Germany.
There he lived under an assumed name while he worked to finish his translation. When spies from England found him in Germany, he escaped to Belgium, where he printed thousands of his New Testaments.
In 1526, Tyndale’s English New Testament began trickling into England. The Scriptures, now referred to as the “pirate edition,” were made smaller than conventional books. This size was easier to smuggle into bales of cotton and containers of wheat being shipped into England.
As copies poured into England, they were eagerly bought and read by all sorts of ordinary people, who often sat up all night reading them or hearing them read. When the Bishop of London discovered the New Testaments, he bought as many as he could on the black market, paying full price for them. He declared, “I intend to burn and destroy them all.” The merchant who had smuggled them into England gave the money to Tyndale, who then printed three times as many in a revised version. The Bishop of London had unknowingly become Tyndale’s foremost financial supporter!
When Tyndale heard the Bibles were thrown into the fire, he said, “I expected they would burn the New Testaments. I expect they want to burn me too! This may yet happen, if it is God’s will. Even so, I know I did my duty in translating the New Testament.”
Perseverance in Persecution
Within the next ten years, Tyndale’s New Testament was widely distributed throughout England. Bible truths were now available to everyone, and many people discovered they could have a personal relationship with God based on His Word. At the same time, anyone caught with this illegal book faced severe persecution. Prisons were overflowing and thousands of Christians were executed.
Weekly, reports of the persecutions would come to Tyndale, who remained in exile in Europe and continued his translation of the Old Testament. Two of Tyndale’s close friends were burned at the stake. Even church officials, once persecutors, became martyrs after finding truth in Tyndale’s work.
In the spring of 1535, a man named Henry Phillips arrived in Antwerp, where Tyndale had been hiding. In hopes of a reward, Phillips took it on himself to betray Tyndale. He befriended Tyndale, noting that he was “simple and inexpert in the wily subtleties of this world.” Before Tyndale knew what was happening, Phillips had set an ambush for him…
To Be Continued…
Date: 15th April 2023
Martyr: WILLIAM TYNDALE
Location: BELGIUM 1536
Source: Jesus Freaks
Author: DC Talks and The Voice of Martyrs
Suffering Saturday 036
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