| The First English Bible, AD 1383 | |
| When the Norman French conquered England in
1066, they also took over the English church, and required the use of the Latin
Bible. Over the centuries, the language of the invaders and the Saxon and
other languages spoken by the conquered inhabitants of Britain began to blend
together, forming the basis of modern English. One
of the first to realise the importance of the new English language was the controversial
religious activist, John
Wycliffe. Wycliffe organised a band of “poor priests”, much
as St Francis had, to live simply and to give the message of Christ to the ordinary
people in a way that they could understand. These “Lollards”, as
many called them, travelled all over England preaching in homes, at crossroads,
and in fields, and ministering to the spiritual needs of the people. Wycliffe soon came to realise that people needed a Bible in English, and set out to provide one. With the aid of Nicholas de Hereford and some others, he completed a first translation into English, based on the Latin Vulgate, in 1383. In the following year, immediately after Wycliffe’s death, a revision was made, and circulated through the country by the Lollards. About two hundred manuscripts of the Wycliffite versions still survive, mostly from the early 15th century, which indicates a high level of demand. Although a single copy cost a sum equivalent to the wages of a labourer working for 2000 days, these texts were eagerly sought, even only single pages. One man gave a whole load of hay, which would have given him much of his year’s income, for the few pages containing the Epistle of James. However, the church authorities feared that trouble might follow if people without education tried to read and understand the Bible for themselves, and they prohibited Bible-reading by any but the clergy. Punishments were sometimes severe. View
Matthew 6.9-13 (Lord's Prayer) in Wyclif's translation (1380) |
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to read more? The Making of the Old Testament The First Translations, mid-3rd century BC The Making of the New Testament, AD 40-150 Translating the Bible into Latin, AD 383-410 The Earliest English Translations, AD 735 The First English Bible, AD 1383 The First Printed Bible, AD 1456 Luther and the German Bible, AD 1522-34 The First Printed New Testament in English, AD 1525 The First Complete Printed Bible in English, AD 1535 | |