Why The Reformation Is Not Complete - An Overview of The Bible Versions and Day of Worship Controversies
Why The Reformation Is Not Complete - An Overview of The Bible Versions and Day of Worship Controversies
Why The Reformation Is Not Complete - An Overview of The Bible Versions and Day of Worship Controversies
May 2010
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1. Which Bible Should We Trust?
“No sooner was the work of Evangelists and Apostles recognized as the necessary counterpart and complement
of God's ancient Scriptures and became the 'New Testament,' than a reception was found to be awaiting it in the
world closely resembling that which He experienced Who is the subject of its pages. Calumny and
misrepresentation, persecution and muderous hate, assailed Him continually. And the Written Word in like manner,
in the earliest age of all, was shamefully handled by mankind. Not only was it confused through human infirmity
and misapprehension, but it became also the object of restless malice and unsparing assualts.” - Dean Burgon,
Traditional Text, p.10.
In the past wars have been fought over the Bible. It was persecuted by the early chuch, banned in the middle
ages, and again came under attack during the Reformation. Today, essentially, the argument is not between the King
James Version and other English versions, but between the traditional “Received Text” and the Alexandrian
manuscripts (the Vatican B and the Siniatic Aleph).
The original manuscripts that came from Syria and Jerusalem, where the Apostles preached, have been lost and
all we have is copies of copies. The oldest manuscripts originate from the Alexandrian texts. However, there are
thousands (1900) in almost every language from the traditional texts. Also, there are verses missing in the
Alexandrian versions that are in the traditional texts. But there are letters written between church fathers that are
older than the Alexandrian texts that include these missing verses.
David Otis Fuller, D.D., says fundamentally, there are only two streams of Bibles. The first stream which
carried the Received Text in Hebrew and Greek, precious manuscripts were preserved by such as the church at Pella
in Palestine where Christians fled, when in 70 A.D. the Romans destroyed Jerusalem; by the Syrian Church of
Antioch which produced eminent scholarship; by the Italic Church in northern Italy; and also at the same time by the
Gallic Church in southern France and by the Celtic Church in Great Britain; by the pre-Waldensian, the Waldensian
and the churches of the Reformation. These manuscripts have in agreement with them, by far the vast majority of
copies of the original text. So vast is this majority that even enemies of the Received Text (Textus Recepticus) admit
that nineteen-twentieths of all Greek manuscripts are of this class. - Les Garrett, 1982, Which Bible Can We Trust?
Christian Centre Press, p.64.
The second stream is a small one of a very few manuscripts. These last manuscripts are represented:
a) In Greek: The Vaticanus MS., or Codex B (prominent for counter-reformation), in the library at Rome; and
the Sinaitic, or Codex Aleph (found in 1844, youngest find and oldest document).
b) In Latin: The Vulgate or Latin Bible of Jerome (383 AD).
c) In English: Many modern versions and the Jesuit Bible of 1582, which later with vast changes is seen in the
Douay-Rheims.
“It must be emphasized that the argument is not between an ancient text and a recent one, but between two
ancient forms of the text, one of which was rejected and the other adopted and preserved by the Church as a whole
and remaining in common use for more than fifteen centuries.” - Les Garrett, 1982, Which Bible Can We Trust?
p.46.
“We need to understand, that many of the new translations are taken from old manuscripts. People think that
these are more reliable. In actual fact they are saying, that a manuscript found in a waste paper basket in a cave in
Mt. Sinai and questionable manuscripts from Alexandria in Egypt, are more reliable than the Received Text.”- Les
Garrett, Which Bible Can We Trust? p.15.
“So the present controversy between the King James Bible in English and the modern versions is the same old
contest fought out between the early church and rival sects; and later, between the Waldenses and the Papists from
the fourth to the thirteenth centuries; and later still between the Reformers and the Jesuits in the sixteenth century.” -
“Which Bible” and “True and False”, edited by David Otis Fuller.
Before 1900 any Bible in any language in the world was based on the Received Text except the Jesuit and
Vulgate versions. With modern Greek scholarship many of the verses in the modern versions have better translation
than in the older versions. But, if the grammar is improved it does not necessarily mean that the context has to be
improved.
In 1881 AD The Westcott and Hort Greek Text was introduced upon which all modern versions are based. This
text departed from the Textus Receptus and follows the Vatican and the Sinaitic corruptions. Tischendorf (1815-74),
Tregelles (1813-75), Wescott (1825-1901), Hort (1828-92), and other contemporary scholars insisted that as a result
of their labours the true New Testament text had at last been discovered after having been lost for well-nigh fifteen
centuries.
"When Eberhard Nestle, in 1898, presented the first edition of Novum Testamentum Graece, he had achieved a
work of which the consequences were not only unknown to him at the time, but also to the Wurtenberg Bible
Society that made the edition possible. If the Textus receptus at that time still had a number of defenders, the science
of the 19th century had however, finally proved it to be the worst text of the New Testament. There the editions of
Tischendorf (since 1841, the finalized edition of editio octava critica maior of 1869/72), Tregelles (1857/72) and
Westcott/Hort (1881) controlled the field. But in practiced terms at the level of university, church and school, the
edition of the Textus receptus was still largely used internationally as for example by the British Bible Society till
1904. Only with the release of the Nestle text did the rule of the Textus receptus come to an end here also.
“Naturally Hort regarded those manuscripts as most trustworthy which give the readings recognized by Origen;
and these no doubt were the readings which in the third century were most preferred at Alexandria. Thus Hort's
method inevitably led to the exclusive adoption of the Alexandrian text.”- Our Authorized Bible Vindicated,
Benjamin G. Wilkinson, 1996.
Westcott and Hort had various non-Christian views, as their own writtings testify. And given their stated
hostility towards the Received Texts, it is obvoius that such translators would not have produced a faithful, orthodox
bible manuscript. Most of the following quotes are from books written by the sons of Westcott and Hort (published
in 1896): The Life and Letters of Brooke Foss Westcott and The Life and Letters of Fenton John Anthony Hort.
Douay
Council of Trent, fourth session, 1546 "Whoever shall not receive as sacred and canonical all these books and
every part of them, as they are commonly read in the catholic church, and are contained in the old Vulgate Latin
edition, or shall knowingly and deliberately despise the aforesaid traditions, let him be accursed."
"The Douay is like the Revised. On this change R. George Milligan says: "Acts 16:7,... the striking reading, 'the
Spirit of Jesus' (not simply as in the Authorized Version 'the Spirit') implies that the Holy Spirit had so taken
possession of the Person of the Exalted Jesus that He could be spoken of as 'the Spirit of Jesus." - Milligan,
Expository Value, p.99.
Missing Verses Revisions Additions/Omissions
Acts 13:42 Luke 4:8, 2:33, 11:2-4
2 Tim. 4:1 Acts 16:7
Col 1:14 1 Cor. 5:7
Heb. 7:21
Matt 6:13
Moffat
Revision: Luke 23:44 "...till three o'clock, owing to an eclipse of the sun."
The Apocrapha
Bewitching art: Tobias 6:4-8. Works: Tobias 12:9 Prayer for dead: 2 Maccabees 12:43-46
Rebuke: Mark 16:17, Acts 16:18. Rebuke: 1 Pet. 1:18-19. Rebuke: John 1:7.
The Vulgate
Council of Trent (1545-1563) proposed the Vulgate Latin Bible as the only authentic translation. Pope Sixtus V
declared the Vulgate infallible but Clement III in 1592 ordered a better edition and 2000 changes
were made.
2 Tim. 3:16 - All Scripture is God- Heb.11:21 - Jacob worshipped as Rev. 22:14 - Blessed are they that
breathed. he leaned on top of his staff. wash their robes (Codex Vaticanus)
Douay- All scripture inspired of God Vulgate- Jacob adored the top of KJV - Blessed are they that do his
is profitable. his rod. commandments.
1. Why Do (Some) Protestants Worship On Sunday?
“Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh
day is the sabbath of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy
manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the LORD
made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the
sabbath day, and hallowed it.” (Ex 20:8-11 KJV)
“It is a sign between me and the children of Israel for ever: for in six days the LORD made heaven and earth,
and on the seventh day he rested, and was refreshed.” (Ex 31:17 KJV)
Some churches have services on multiple days but the prime day of worship for the majority of the congregation
should be the solemn day. The sabbath, translated as Saturday, was in Old Testament (pre-Christ) times the day of
worship given by the fourth commandment. If the OT is definite on this issue then we have to know if and where the
New Testament denies the solemnity of the sabbath or shifts it to another day (Sunday) for very explicit and
understandable reasons. That the case for Sunday must be nearly obvious is necessary not only because the large
majority of Christians hold to the solemnity of Sunday but also because the Bible (the OT & NT) is one continuous
document of revelation, and the Word of God surely does not contradict Himself.
2. A Multi-Issue Question
Given that the Bible is inerrant in content, complete in truth, and authoritative in teaching, the issues related to
the keeping of the sabbath can be summarised as such:
The sabbath was given to man as weekly day of peace, refreshment, and rest from work (Ex. 20:9,10, Mark 2:27).
By legislating one day as a non-work day the state would likely align itself with some branches of Christianity and
church denominations. A neutral position could be two days of rest per week and operations allowed on Sunday.
3. Biblical Theology
Why would the disciples, early church fathers, or the Church itself desire to commemorate some important event
by making solemn the day it occured? Where would they get the authority to do this? Why would the entire body of
Christ since them follow their teaching? How can this be possible if God and His law doesn't change (Heb. 13:8,
Matt. 5:17-19)? Instead, we should honour Christ by obeying Him (John 14:15 15:10, 1 John 5:3) and worship Him
in Spirit and in truth (John 4:24). Surely we should not trangress God's commandments with tradition (Dan.7:25,
Ezek. 22:26,28; Matt. 15:3, Mark 7:9).
4. Historical Theology
4.1 Definition of the day of the week
The sabbath is the seventh day of the week from Friday at dusk to Saturday at dusk (Mark 16:1-2; Ex. 20:10,
Acts 20:7). New dictionaries say that Sunday is the day after Saturday and before Monday.
“Monday was the moon's day, and with the assimilation of the Anglo-Saxon and Scandinavian pagan gods, Tyr,
one of the oldest gods of Norse mythology, became identified with Mars and thus we have Tys dagr or Tuesday;
Wednesday is derived from Woden, also known as Odin; and Thor, the thunder god of the early Germanic peoples
became synonymous with Thursday equated as he was with the Roman god Jupiter; while Friday is named afte
Frigg, the wife of Odin and the mother of another pagan god, Balder. The day of Saturn or Saturday was followed
by Sunday, the day of rest and recreation, as it is observed today.” – The Sun in Myth and Art UNESCO, p.90.
“Sabbath... A Hebrew word signifying rest...Sunday was a name given by the heathens to the first day of the
week, because it was the day on which they worshipped the sun.” - John Eadie, D.D., LL.D. A Bible Cyclopedia,
p.561.
“Sunday ... so called because this day was anciently dedicated to the sun, or its worship.” - Webster's
International Dictionary, 19th ed.
“Sunday (Dies Solis of the Roman calendar, 'day of the Sun,' being dedicated to the sun), the first day of the
week.” - Schaff-Herza Encyclopedia, Sunday.
“The Adventists are the only body of Christians with the Bible as their teacher, who can find no warrant in its
pages for the change of the day from the seventh to the first. Hence their appellation, “Seventh-day Adventists.”
Their cardinal principle consists in setting apart Saturday for the exclusive worship of God, in conformity with the
positive command of God himself, repeatedly reiterated in the sacred books of the Old and New Testaments,
literally obeyed by the children of Israel for thousands of years to this day, and endorsed by the teaching and
practice of the Son of God whilst on earth.
No Protestant living today has ever yet obeyed that command, preferring to follow the “apostate church”
referred to than his teacher the Bible, which, from Genesis to Revelation, teaches no other doctrine, should the
Israelites and Seventh-day Adventists be correct. Both sides appeal to the Bible as their “infallible” teacher. Let the
Bible decide whether Saturday or Sunday be the day enjoined by God. One of the two bodies must be wrong, and,
whereas a false position on this all-important question involves terrible penalties, threatened by God Himself,
against the transgressor of this “perpetual covenant,” we shall enter on the discussion of the merits of the arguments
wielded by both sides.”
There was no getting around this, for the Protestants' own statement of faith -- the Augsburg Confession, 1530
-- had clearly admitted that “the observance of the Lord's day” had been appointed by “the Church” only.
The challenge issued by Rome over 100 years ago remains: Either the Catholic Church is right, or the Seventh
Day Adventists are right. There can be no other choice. And if one choose neither, then the whole doctrine of Sola
Scriptura collapses, and with it, the pillar upon which all of Protestantism stands. What one has left is an invented
religion, an invented God, and an invented set of beliefs that suits man's purpose, and not the Creator's. Like Satan
and Luther before them, Protestants have spoken the creed, in action and in thought, if not in word,"I Will Not
Serve." - www.immaculateheart.com/maryonline, December 2003
God Loves You
For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him
shall not perish, but have eternal life (John 3:16).
All Are Sinners
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).
As it is written, “There is none righteous, not even one” (Romans 3:10).
Jesus Christ: God’s Remedy for Sin
For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord
(Romans 6:23).
But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to
those who believe in His name (John 1:12).
For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins
according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day
according to the Scriptures (1 Corinthians 15:34).
Our Response
If we confess our sins, He is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from
all unrighteousness (1 John 1:9).
Whoever will call on the name of the Lord will be saved (Romans 10:13).
Assurance As a Believer
That if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised
Him from the dead, you will be saved (Romans 10:9).
Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal
life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death and into life (John 5:24).
But these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and
that believing you may have life in His name (John 20:31).
Next Steps
But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ (2 Pet. 3:18).
Straightening up, Jesus said to her, “Woman, where are they? Did no one condemn you?” She
said, “No one, Lord.” And Jesus said, I do not condemn you either. Go, and sin no more (John
8:10-11).