Important Dates Regarding the Bible
[Condensed from “The Ancestry of Our English Bible,” by Ira Maurice Price, Sunday School Times Company, Philadelphia] B. C. 284-132.—Probable date of the translation of the Septuagint. A. D. 128.—Aquila's Greek translation of the Old Testament. About 150.—The Syriac Old Testament. 180-192.—Theodotion's Greek translation of the Old Testament. 193-211.—Symmachus' Greek translation of the Old Testament. In 200.—The Old Latin Version of the Bible extant. 186-254.—Origen: Hexapla of the Old Testament. 260-340.—Eusebius of Cæsarea: Revision of Origen's Greek text. Before 311.—Lucian's revision of the Septuagint. Before 311.—Hesychius' revision of the Septuagint. 310-383.—The Gothic Version of Ulfilas. 383-404.—Jerome's revisions and translations. About 400.—The Ethiopic Version. About 400.—The Armenian Version. After 400.—The Targums in written form. 400-500.—The Georgian Version. About 590.—The Sahidic Version. About 670.—Cædmon's Paraphrases of the Bible. About 700.—The Bohairic Version. 674-735.—Venerable Bede—the Gospel of John. Before 709.—Aldhelm of Malmesbury—first Anglo-Saxon translation of the Psalms. Before 709.—Egbert—a translation of the Gospels. 848-901.—King Alfred—embodied Pentateuchal laws in his national code. About 950.—Aldred—interlinear Anglo-Saxon paraphrase of the Gospels (Lindisfarne Gospels). 970-1000.—Abbot Ælfric produced “the Durham Gospels,” also an Anglo-Saxon version of the Pentateuch, Joshua, Judges, etc. About 1215.—The Ormulum—metrical version of parts of the Gospels and the Acts. About 1320.—Psalter in English prose, credited to William of Shoreham. About 1340.—Rolle of Hampole translated the Psalter into English. 1380.—Wyclif's translation of the New Testament completed. 1382.—Wyclif's Bible with help of Nicholas of Hereford completed. 1388.—Purvey's harmonization of Wyclif and Hereford's work. 1454.—Printing from movable types invented. 1455.—First complete Bible—the Vulgate—printed. (1503.—First Hebrew grammar published.) (1506.—First Hebrew lexicon published.) 1516.—First Greek New Testament—Erasmus'—appeared. 1522.—Luther's New Testament in German. 1523.—Tyndale goes to London to translate the Bible. 1524.—Tyndale withdraws from London to Hamburg and Wittenberg. 1525.—Tyndale's New Testament printed at Cologne and Worms. 1526-9.—Tyndale's New Testaments burned at St. Paul's in London. 1528.—Latin Bible of Pagninus. 1529.—Zurich Bible completed. 1530.—Tyndale printed his translation of the Pentateuch. 1534-5.—Sebastian Muenster's Latin Version of the Old Testament. Tyndale's revision of his Pentateuch and New Testament. 1535.—Olivetan's French Bible. Coverdale's Bible reaches England. 1536.—Tyndale strangled and burned at Vilvorde Castle, October 6. 1537.—Coverdale's Bible licensed by royal authority. John Rogers's “Matthew” Bible distributed by authority of Henry VIII. 1539.—“The Great Bible,” edited by Coverdale, authorized by Cromwell. 1540.—The Great Bible issued with Cranmer's Preface. 1543.—Royal restrictions on public and private reading of the Bible. 1545-6.—Council of Trent, establishing Roman Catholic canon of the Bible. 1546.—Wholesale destruction of Bibles. 1551.—Castalio's Latin Bible. Stephanus' Greek New Testament. 1553-8.—Persecution and martyrdom of Cranmer, Ridley, Latimer, John Rogers, and hundreds of others. 1557.—Geneva New Testament, by Whittingham. 1560.—Genevan Version of the Bible. 1568.—The Bishops' Bible. 1579.—The Latin Old Testament by Tremellius. 1578.—The Reims New Testament. 1609-10.—The Douai Old Testament. 1611.—The “Authorized Version.” 1614.—Slightly altered edition of “Authorized Version.” 1629.—A revision of the “Authorized Version.” 1701.—Bishop Lloyd's Bible with Usher's chronology. 1762.—Cambridge Bible by Paris. 1844.—Tischendorf discovers ancient Greek manuscript at Mt. Sinai. 1857.—Scrivener's Critical Greek text of Revelation. 1870.—First definite step toward revision. 1881.—Revised Version of New Testament complete. 1885.—Revised Version of Bible complete. 1901.—American Standard Revised Version.