This is why, as we will discover, the papyrus manuscripts that have survived have come from the dry sands of Egypt. Furthermore, moisture is the enemy of papyrus, and it causes them to disintegrate over time. In addition, these texts were not stored in such a way as to secure their preservation they were actively used by the Christians in the congregation and were subject to wear and tear. With this persecution from the Roman Empire came many orders to destroy Christian texts. It must be remembered that the Christians suffered intense persecution during intervals in the first 300 years from Pentecost 33 C.E. Really, the better question would be how come so many of our Bible manuscripts survived in comparison to secular ancient manuscripts? The primary materials used to receive writing in ancient times were perishable papyrus and parchment. One may wonder why more Old and New Testament manuscripts have not survived. How Our Bible Manuscripts Survived the Elements How can we be certain that what we have in our Bible translations is really an accurate translation of what the authors originally wrote? We know that the thousands upon thousands of original language manuscripts (Hebrew OT/Greek NT) and the versions all read differently, as there are hundreds of thousands of scribal errors. However, a question arises because the copyists who were making copies for thousands of years were not moved along by the Holy Spirit. We still have translations of these writings today that can be read by almost everyone on earth.
This means that these sixty-six books possessed perfect content (fully inerrant/infallible) with no errors, mistakes, contradictions. These 40+ men were moved along by the Holy Spirit so that what they produced was not theirs alone but belong to one author, the Creator of all things, God himself. The authors came from every walk of life from lowly fishermen and shepherds to a military general, a physician, a tax collector, kings, and the like. There was something different about this library of sixty-six books that had been penned over a 1600-year period. They would soon be joined by another 27 books, the second most important collection that was written some 2,000 years ago, covering the birth of the Roman Empire and the birth of the Son of God, as well as the birth and foundation of Christianity. These 39 books became the most important collection of literature that the world has ever known. Andrews is the Chief Translator of the Updated American Standard Version (UASV).īetween 3,500 years ago and 2,460 years ago some 32+ authors penned 39 books in the Middle East, compiling a history of the world from its creation, to the flood of Noah, the confusing of the languages at Babylon, Abraham entering Canaan, to the formation of the Israelite nation, to the rise and fall of the Egyptian, Assyrian, Babylonian, Medo-Persian Empires. ANDREWS (AS in Criminal Justice, BS in Religion, MA in Biblical Studies, and MDiv in Theology) is CEO and President of Christian Publishing House.
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