BEFORE the King James Bible

I had read the King James Bible for many, many years before I realized the primary translator was William Tyndale. Tyndale’s translation work began more than 85 years BEFORE the 1611 King James Bible. His English translation of the New Testament was published in 1526. He published a revised edition in 1534.

It is not a well known fact that Tyndale contributed so much to the 1611 King James Bible. However, nearly 80% of the New Testament comes directly from Tyndale’s translation work. In the Old Testament, Tyndale’s influence is there, too, but his life was taken in 1536 before he could finish.

In his lifetime, Tyndale published the Five Books of Moses (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) and the Prophet Jonah. After Tyndale’s death in 1536, more of this Bible translation work was published (Joshua through 2 Chronicles) in the 1537 Matthew Bible.

I remember very clearly in April 2007 when I first learned of Tyndale’s work and his great sacrifices. It made a big impact on me.

Thanks for reading. Kind Regards to all who stopped by this small corner of the internet! If you wish, leave a comment or question.

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No pressure from me — for anyone — to buy anything.

I am truly encouraged by all who visit here. I hope you learned something about William Tyndale and his work and of course, learned more about God’s Word, too.

However, if you are curious about owning a William Tyndale New Testament? Check out our small Store. Orders are fulfilled by Christianbook Distributors located in Peabody, Massachusetts, USA.

The British Library paid over one million pounds in 1994 for an original copy of the 1526 New Testament. A facsimile (digital photocopy) of this same New Testament is available in our store — for a very reasonable price.

We have items in the store related to William Tyndale and items related to the King James Bible. Some are very inexpensive.

One example, you can rent via streaming the “Man with a Mission” documentary which features Tyndale scholar, David Daniell. It is very low cost, but quite an interesting video.

For full disclosure, I do earn a small advertising fee, if you purchase something.