Article April 5, 1900 Issue

The Bible's History

From Earliest Manuscripts to Latest Revision.

M. C. Hazard

Topeka Daily Capital

I. Manuscripts.—The larger part of the Old Testament orginally, of course, was written in Hebrew. It was perpetuated by being copied by scribes. Errors crept in, sometimes by the carelessness of the scribes, sometimes by misunderstanding words when they were writing from dictation, sometimes by the incorporation into the test of remarks made upon the margin, etc. The Massoretic text was the result of an effort to purify the text of corruptions. The work of the Massoretes has stood the test of time. It was their text which was made use of by the revisers in the revision of 1884. The Massoretic manuscripts are divided into those regarded as:

1. Holy.—These are the synagogue rolls, in the transcription of which the greatest pains have been taken to guard against errors. They contain only the Pentateuch, with the addition sometimes of the five Megilloth (Canticles, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes, and Esther), and sometimes of sections from the prophets.

2. Private or Common.—These are written upon rolls, paper, and also appear in book form with the Massoretic punctuation marks. When complete they are called Greater Massora; when abridged, Less Massora. The oldest of these manuscripts, the Prophet Codex, is assigned to A.D. 916; the most ancient covering the whole Hebrew Bible, to A.D. 1009. The oldest manuscripts are the most accurate.

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