Bible Fact · Acts 20:24 — 'But I do not account my life of any value nor as precious to myself, if only I may finish my course and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus.'
William Tyndale: The Man Who Died for Your Bible
The Fact
William Tyndale was a scholar at Oxford and Cambridge who in the 1520s became convinced that ordinary English people needed the Bible in their own language. The Catholic Church vigorously opposed vernacular translations, fearing (correctly) that it would undermine clerical authority. When Tyndale said to a clergyman, 'If God spare my life, ere many years I will cause a boy that driveth the plow shall know more of the Scriptures than thou dost,' he was making a declaration of war. Tyndale fled to Europe (Germany and Antwerp) to do his work in exile. His English New Testament — translated from the Greek, not Latin — was printed in 1526. Copies were smuggled into England, burned by church officials, and eagerly bought by the public. He completed most of the Old Testament before being betrayed, arrested in Antwerp, strangled, and burned at the stake on October 6, 1536. His last words were reportedly: 'Lord, open the King of England's eyes.' Within a year, Henry VIII authorized the Great Bible for use in all English churches — built largely on Tyndale's translation.
Context
About 80% of the King James Bible's New Testament comes directly from Tyndale's translation. He is the most influential figure in the history of the English Bible, yet died without seeing the fruit of his work.
Significance
Every English Bible you read carries Tyndale's DNA. His life and death transformed the English language, English Christianity, and the course of the Reformation.
Reflection
Tyndale died praying for a man who had persecuted him. His prayer was answered posthumously. Is there someone whose spiritual eyes you have been praying for — maybe for years — without apparent fruit? Keep praying.