a study of bible-第4节

按键盘上方向键 ← 或 → 可快速上下翻页，按键盘上的 Enter 键可回到本书目录页，按键盘上方向键 ↑ 可回到本页顶部！
————未阅读完？加入书签已便下次继续阅读！


　neither。　He　found；　as　he　once　said；　that　there　was　no　room　in　the　palace　of　the　Bishop　of　London　to　translate　the　New　Testament；　indeed；　that　there　was　no　place　to　do　it　in　all　England。　A　wealthy　London　merchant　subsidized　him　with　the　munificent　gift　of　ten　pounds；　with　which　he　went　across　the　Channel　to　Hamburg；　and　there　and　elsewhere　on　the　Continent；　where　he　could　be　hid；　he　brought　his　translation　to　completion。　Printing　facilities　were　greater　on　the　Continent　than　in　England；　but　there　was　such　opposition　to　his　work　that　very　few　copies　of　the　several　editions　of　which　we　know　can　still　be　found。　Tindale　was　compelled　to　flee　at　one　time　with　a　few　printed　sheets　and　complete　his　work　on　another　press。　Several　times　copies　of　his　books　were　solemnly　burned；　and　his　own　life　was　frequently　in　danger。

There　is　one　amusing　story　which　tells　how　money　came　to　free　Tindale　from　heavy　debt　and　prepare　the　way　for　more　Bibles。　The　Bishop　of　London；　Tunstall；　was　set　on　destroying　copies　of　the　English　New　Testament。　He　therefore　made　a　bargain　with　a　merchant　of　Antwerp；　Packington；　to　secure　them　for　him。　Packington　was　a　friend　of　Tindale；　and　went　to　him　forthwith；　saying：　〃William；　I　know　thou　art　a　poor　man；　and　I　have　gotten　thee　a　merchant　for　thy　books。〃　〃Who？〃　asked　Tindale。　〃The　Bishop　of　London。〃　〃Ah；　but　he　will　burn　them。〃　〃So　he　will；　but　you　will　have　the　money。〃　And　it　all　came　out　as　it　was　planned；　the　Bishop　of　London　had　the　books；　Packington　had　the　thanks；　Tindale　had　the　money；　the　debt　was　paid；　and　the　new　edition　was　soon　ready。　The　old　document；　from　which　I　am　quoting；　adds　that　the　Bishop　thought　he　had　God　by　the　toe　when；　indeed；　he　found　afterward　that　he　had　the　devil　by　the　fist。＇1＇


＇1＇　Pollard；　Records　of　the　English　Bible；　p。　151。


The　final　revision　of　the　Tindale　translations　was　published　in　1534；　and　that　becomes　the　notable　year　of　his　life。　In　two　years　he　was　put　to　death　by　strangling；　and　his　body　was　burned。　When　we　remember　that　this　was　done　with　the　joint　power　of　Church　and　State；　we　realize　some　of　the　odds　against　which　he　worked。

Spite　of　his　odds；　however；　Tindale　is　the　real　father　of　our　King　James　version。　About　eighty　per　cent。　of　his　Old　Testament　and　ninety　per　cent。　of　his　New　Testament　have　been　transferred　to　our　version。　In　the　Beatitudes；　for　example；　five　are　word　for　word　in　the　two　versions；　while　the　other　three　are　only　slightly　changed。＇1＇　Dr。　Davidson　has　calculated　that　nine…tenths　of　the　words　in　the　shorter　New　Testament　epistles　are　Tindale's；　and　in　the　longer　epistles　like　the　Hebrews　five…sixths　are　his。　Froude's　estimate　is　fair：　〃Of　the　translation　itself；　though　since　that　time　it　has　been　many　times　revised　and　altered；　we　may　say　that　it　is　substantially　the　Bible　with　which　we　are　familiar。　The　peculiar　genius　which　breathes　through　it；　the　mingled　tenderness　and　majesty；　the　Saxon　simplicity；　the　preternatural　grandeur；　unequaled；　unapproached；　in　the　attempted　improvements　of　modern　scholars；　all　are　here；　and　bear　the　impress　of　the　mind　of　one　man；　William　Tindale。〃＇2＇


＇1＇　The　fourth　reads　in　his　version；　〃Blessed　are　they　which　hunger　and　thirst　for　righteousness〃；　the　seventh；　〃Blessed　are　the　maintainers　of　peace〃；　the　eighth；　〃Blessed　are　they　which　suffer　persecution　for　righteousness'　sake。〃

＇2＇　History　of　England；　end　of　chap。　xii。


We　said　a　moment　ago　that　Wiclif's　translation　was　the　standard　of　Middle　English。　It　is　time　to　add　that　Tindale's　version　〃fixed　our　standard　English　once　for　all；　and　brought　it　finally　into　every　English　home。〃　The　revisers　of　1881　declared　that　while　the　authorized　version　was　the　work　of　many　hands；　the　foundation　of　it　was　laid　by　Tindale；　and　that　the　versions　that　followed　it　were　substantially　reproductions　of　Tindale's；　or　revisions　of　versions　which　were　themselves　almost　entirely　based　on　it。

There　was　every　reason　why　it　should　be　a　worthy　version。　For　one　thing；　it　was　the　first　translation　into　English　from　the　original　Hebrew　and　Greek。　Wiclif's　had　been　from　the　Latin。　For　Tindale　there　were　available　two　new　and　critical　Greek　Testaments；　that　of　Erasmus　and　the　so…called　Complutensian；　though　he　used　that　of　Erasmus　chiefly。　There　was　also　available　a　carefully　prepared　Hebrew　Old　Testament。　For　another　thing；　it　was　the　first　version　which　could　be　printed；　and　so　be　subject　to　easy　and　immediate　correction　and　revision。　Then　also；　Tindale　himself　was　a　great　scholar　in　the　languages。　He　was　〃so　skilled　in　the　seven　languages；　Hebrew；　Greek；　Latin；　Italian；　Spanish；　English；　and　French；　that；　whichever　he　spoke；　you　would　suppose　it　was　his　native　tongue。〃＇1＇　Nor　was　his　spirit　in　the　work　controversial。　I　say　his　〃spirit　in　the　work〃　with　care。　They　were　controversial　times；　and　Tindale　took　his　share　in　the　verbal　warfare。　When；　for　example；　there　was　objection　to　making　any　English　version　because　〃the　language　was　so　rude　that　the　Bible　could　not　be　intelligently　translated　into　it；〃　Tindale　replied：　〃It　is　not　so　rude　as　they　are　false　liars。　For　the　Greek　tongue　agreeth　more　with　the　English　than　with　the　Latin；　a　thousand　parts　better　may　it　be　translated　into　the　English　than　into　the　Latin。〃＇2＇　And　when　a　high　church　dignitary　protested　to　Tindale　against　making　the　Bible　so　common；　he　replied：　〃If　God　spare　my　life；　ere　many　years　I　will　cause　a　boy　that　driveth　a　plow　shall　know　more　of　the　Scriptures　than　thou　dost。〃　And　while　that　was　not　saying　much　for　the　plowboy；　it　was　saying　a　good　deal　to　the　dignitary。　In　language；　Tindale　was　controversial　enough；　but　in　his　spirit；　in　making　his　version；　there　was　no　element　of　controversy。　For　such　reasons　as　these　we　might　expect　the　version　to　be　valuable。


＇1＇　Herman　Buschius。

＇2＇　This　will　mean　the　more　to　us　when　we　realize　that　the　literary　men　of　the　day　despised　the　English　tongue。　Sir　Thomas　More　wrote　his　Utopia　in　Latin；　because　otherwise　educated　men　would　not　deign　to　read　it。　Years　later　Roger　Ascham　apologized　for　writing　one　of　his　works　in　English。　Putting　the　Bible　into　current　English　impressed　these　literary　men　very　much　as　we　would　be　impressed　by　putting　the　Bible　into　current　slang。


All　this　while；　and　especially　between　the　time　when　Tindale　first　published　his　New　Testament　and　the　time　they　burned　him　for　doing　so；　an　interesting　change　was　going　on　in　England。　The　King　was　Henry　VIII。；　who　was　by　no　means　a　willing　Protestant。　As　Luther's　work　appeared；　it　was　this　same　Henry　who　wrote　the　pamphlet　against　him　during　the　Diet　of　Worms；　and　on　the　ground　of　this　pamphlet；　with　its　loyal　support　of　the　Church　against　Luther；　he　received　from　the　Roman　pontiff　the　title　〃Defender　of　the　Faith；〃　which　the　kings　of　England　still　wear。　And　yet　under　this　king　this　strange　succession　of　dates　can　be　given。　Notice　them　closely。　In　1526　Tindale's　New　Testament　was　burned　at　St。　Paul's　by　the　Bishop　of　London；　ten　years　later；　1536；　Tindale　himself　was　burned　with　the　knowledge　and　connivance　of　the　English　government；　and　yet；　one　year　later；　1537；　two　versions　of　the　Bible　in　English；　three…quarters　of　which　were　the　work　of　Tindale；　were　licensed　for　public　use　by　the　King　of　England；　and　were　required　to　be　made　available　for　the　people！　Eleven　years　after　the　New　Testament　was　burned；　one　year　after　Tindale　was　burned；　that　crown　was　set　on　his　work！　What　brought　this　about？

Three　facts　help　to　explain　it。　First；　the　recent　years　of　Bible　translation　were　having　their　weight。　The　fugitive　copies　of　the　Bible　were　doing　their　work。　Spite　of　the　sharp　opposition　fifty　thousand　copies　of　Tindale's　various　editions　had　actually　been　published　and　circulated。　Men　were　reading　them；　they　were　approving　them。　The　more　they　read；　the　less　reason　they　saw　for　hiding　the　Book　from　the　people。　Why　should　it　not　be　made　common　and　free？　There　was　strong　Lutheran　opinion　in　the　universities。　It　was　already　a　custom　for　English　teachers　to　go　to　Germany　for　minute　scholarship。　They　came　back　with　German　Bibles　in　Luther's　version　and　with　Greek　Testaments；　and　the　young　scholars　who　were　being　raised　up　felt　the　influence；　consciously　or　unconsciously；　of　the　free　use　of　the　Bible　which　ruled　in　many　German　universities。

The　second　fact　that　helps　to　explain　the　sudden　change　of　attitude　toward　the　Bible　is　this：　the　people　of　England　were　never　willingly　ruled　from　without；　religiously　or　politically。　There　has　recently　been　a　considerable　controversy　over　the　history　of　the　Established　Church　of　England；　whether　it　has　always　been　an　independent　church　or　was　at　one　time　officially　a　part　of　the　Roman　Church。　That　is　a　matter　for　ecclesiastical　history　to　determine。　The　foundation　fact；　however；　is　as　I　worded　it　a　moment　ago：　the　people　of　England　were　never　willingly　ruled　from　without；　religiously　or　politically。　They　were　sometimes　ruled　from　without；　but　they　were　either　indifferent　to　it　at　the　time　or　rebellious　against　it。　Those　who　did　think　claimed　the　right　to　think　for　themselves。　The　Scotch　of　the　north　were　peculiarly　so；　but　the　English　of　the　south　claimed　the　same　right。　There　has　always　been　an　immense　contrast　between　the　two　sides　of　the　British　Channel。　T