William Tyndale’s translation of the Greek New Testament into English was now completed. Haunted by the fear of discovery and death, he fled secretly from Eland to Hamburg, where friends sheltered him during his tremendous work.
The problem was now to find someone who would print the New Testaments. This work would be as dangerous as Tyndale’s own. To whom should he turn?
From various secret sources he eventually learned of a printer named Peter Quenell, living in Cologne. This man would risk all he had to get the English New Testament printed. Again secretly, Tyndale moved to Cologne. Each night he would creep to Quenell’s printing press and check each new sheet, making sure that no errors were made on the printed page. Everyone involved in the work was sworn to secrecy.
One night while Tyndale was at the press, a white-faced apprentice rushed in.
“Tyndale, fly!” he gasped. “You are betrayed! The building is to be searched.”
Gathering all the precious pages together, Tyndale rushed away. He was none too soon. His enemies entered and searched every possible hiding place. Happily, no suspicion of an English New Testament was found.
John Cochlaeus was the betrayer, and learning that Tyndale had got away he advised the king of England to have all the ports watched.
Tyndale was, in fact, making for the city of Worms by way of the River Rhine. Friends there would shelter him, and hopefully he would find a printer to finish the work. His faith was rewarded. Within a few months the first bound copy of the New Testament was in his hands.
Hundreds of copies were soon ready to be smuggled to England. Hidden in barrels of flour and other goods, they were taken by sympathetic merchants to ports on the English coast. Enemies were constantly on the look out and whenever New Testaments were found, they were ruthlessly burned. Many did get through, however, and the joy of those who received them knew no bounds.
Tyndale continued this work until one tragic day when he was again betrayed. This time he was imprisoned and condemned to death “by burning at the stake.” His last words were a prayer which became famous—“Lord, open the king of England’s eyes”—and the Lord answered that prayer.
Within one year of his death, a whole Bible which had been mostly his work, but was partly that of a man named Coverdale, was being sold in England with the King’s approval! This was the first printed whole Bible in English.
Things improved so much that in September 1538 a Royal Proclamation stated that a Bible must be placed in every church in England. In some churches the Bibles were chained, and as in the days of the Lollards people who could not read came to hear others read it to them. Some of these Bibles still exist today.
ML-08/05/1979