Evotional - The History of the Bible

There has never been another book that can compare to the Bible.

Many have tried.

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.
Hebrews 4:12

I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. Psalms 119:16

shakach (shaw-kakh'); to lay aside, to forget, to take for granted or neglect.

One of the problems with us and the Bible is that concept. We forget about it and for the most part we take it for granted. One of the things that can help us not to neglect the Bible is to understand where it comes from. We have it available and for free. But it has not always been that way.

Here is the history of the Bible.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. John 1:1-2

History Timeline

• 1400 - 1500 BC: God wrote the 10 Commandments in ancient Hebrew on stone.
• 500 BC: 39 books that make up the Old Testament were completed and preserved in Hebrew on scrolls.
• First Century AD: New Testament had been completed and was preserved in Greek on papyrus.
• 393 AD: Synod of Hippo officially approved the New Testament for the entire Church.
• 500 AD: Bible had been translated into over 500 languages.
• 600 AD: Bible was restricted to only Latin. All other versions were considered illegal.
• 400-1400 AD: Known as the “Dark Ages.”
• 500’s - 1300’s: Secret Bible society made up of the “Culdees” continued to study God’s word.
• 1380: John Wycliffe (often called the Morningstar of the Reformation) translated the Bible into English.
• 1415: John Hus burned at the stake for his stance for the Bible. Wycliffe’s bibles used to start the fire.
• 1517: Martin Luther nailed his famous 95 Thesis on the church door at the church in Wittenberg.
• 1526: William Tyndale printed the first English Bible.
• 1536: Tyndale was incarcerated before he was strangled and burned at the stake. Before dying, Tyndale prayed, “Oh Lord, open the King of England’s eyes".
• 1539: King Henry VIII finally allowed (and even funded) the printing of an English Bible.

Do Not Neglect God’s Word

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:1-2, 14

The idea of God giving us a record of His character in written form is not a new one. The question is what will we do with it? Not a single one of us will be on the run for a having the Bible in a language we can read. Others who came before us paid the price so that we could be able to have it.

The question is will we shaw-kakh it? Will be neglect God’s Word and the power it can have to change our life?

I delight in your decrees; I will not neglect your word. Psalms 119:16