The Accuracy of the Modern Bible

Time is a long corridor down which history's facts must flow.  There is always a danger that details will be changed through the ages by dishonest men.  Even recent history (past 300 years) has seen revision by those who do not appreciate the principles upon which this country was founded.  While we are not concerned with American history in this article, it does make one wonder whether the Bible has passed through that long corridor of time unchanged.  After all, we do not have any of the original parchments upon which the inspired men first wrote.  Can we conclude that our present day Bible is the same as that which they penned long ago?  Have the Scriptures passed safely down to us?

There are some (even in the religious world) who would tell us that they have not, and as you can imagine, there many in the secular world who also affirm their corruption.  The Mormons are a good example of those who outwardly claim to follow the Bible, but upon further inquiry deny it's trustworthy nature.  The humanist wants us to believe that the Bible has evolved over time, just as he asserts that the animal kingdom has.  As we will see in this study, there is not only a pronounced absence of "missing links", but also a missing original of a different nature from which all since has evolved.

For the purpose of brevity, we will concentrate this article on the New Testament.  The Old Testament has additional elements that verify it's age and integrity.

The Catholic Origin Argument...

Many would have us believe that the Roman Catholic Church changed the teachings of the scriptures over time.  However, this is impossible to reconcile with known history.  Note the following time table, and how the first Catholic version of the Bible fits into it:

First English Bible (John Wycliffe)         1382
William Tyndale's Translation               1535
Miles Coverdale's Translation                1535
John Rogers' (Matthew's Bible)              1537
The Great Bible                                     1539
The Geneva Bible                                   1560
The Catholic Douay Version                    1609
The King James Version                          1611

The only version listed above which was commissioned and completed by the Catholic Church was the Douay Version.  All of the others were done by Protestants, who were hardly sympathetic to the Catholic Church.  How could anyone conclude that the Catholic Church shaped the Bible into it's own likeness?  The only version (listed above) completed after the Douay Version was the King James Version, and it was commissioned five years before the completion of the Catholic Version!

What Do the Catholics Say?...

It is interesting to note that Catholics will many times take credit for the scriptures having been preserved down to the present.  While the Catholic Church has preserved several manuscripts as "museum pieces" through the years, it is not true that we have the Bible solely through their efforts.  In fact, during some periods of the past, people had the Bible in spite of the efforts of the Catholic Church.  This is just one of several absurd claims made by Catholicism.

Another claim is that the Catholic church confiscated and burned Bibles during the middle ages because they contained heresy.  Those versions exist today, and a comparison with any authorized Catholic version doesn't show enough difference to even hint at heresy.

A third claim is often made when you invite a Catholic to Bible study.  They will confidently assert that they (Catholics) have all of the Bible; whereas we only have part of it.  They are referring to several books that are not universally accepted as belonging that are not universally accepted as belonging in Scripture.  These works cannot be verified as being written in the time they claimed to be.  And even if they could, they contain no definitive doctrine that is essential to salvation.

Skeptics sometimes make the Dark Ages argument.  The Dark Ages ran from about the fifth to the tenth centuries AD.  During this time, it is supposed that the Catholic Church (or some other candidate) changed the teachings of scripture to conform with Catholic Dogma.

This idea would be very compelling for one who needed a way to justifiably disregard the clear teachings of the scriptures (e.g., the Mormons); but it totally overlooks the truth holding up modern translation of the scriptures.  Note what we do possess to work from:

Greek Manuscripts:
1          125 AD                    John 18:31-33 and 18:37-38
3          100 - 400 AD            New Testament manuscripts found in Egypt
200+      before 8th cent.     New Testament (whole & fragments)
2,500     8th cent. & after    New Testament (whole & fragments)

Early Translations:
Peshitto Syriac     2nd cent.          Aramean translation.
Old Latin              2nd cent.          Latin translation.
Latin Vulgate        385 AD              Latin in it's common form.

Early Authors:
Clement, Ignatius, Polycarp, etc.     90-160 AD     Quote nearly all of the New Testament
                                                                       when all authors considered together.

Conclusion...

So who was it that changed the content of the New Testament?... and when was it that they made these changes?  Such charges are nothing but the rubbish of desperate attempts to disregard the clear teachings of God's word.  God's word had safe passage down the corridor of time that we might have the full assurance of salvation in Christ.  The Bible is worthy of your attention, and the time it takes to read and study it.

Bob Pulliam

Top of the page