Customer Reviews

The Journey from Texts to Translations: The Origin and Development of the Bible

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A handsome book! 462 pages in a smyth-sewn hardcover for under [price], the paper is not however, certified ANSI acid-free stock.

Wegner does a fine job of introducing the average Christian to the sources of their English Bibles. It is clearly written and professionally laid out (despite some lingering software/printing errors). It has numerous images and charts, many of important persons (Westcott, Gerrit Verkuyl et cetera) and of numerous Biblical manuscripts (many from the Van Kampen collection in Florida). The book is a fine work for use in a classroom situation as well as private learning. It also serves as a quick general reference text for data related to the text and editions of the English Bibles.

My only complaint is that Wegner is biased towards the text as found in Egypt, as seen in his discussion of the KJV debate beginning on pages 337 ff.. His language downgrades the Byzantine text-type, which is too bad. He does admit that just because the Egyptian text-type has been discovered, and is dated as the earliest text or manuscripts -- does not automatically mean that it/they must therefore be the most accurate, but he unfortunately does not abide by his observation! He laments that no early copies of a Byzantine text has yet been found (yet papyri P46, P66 and many other MSS found in Egypt do DISPLAY Byzantine readings) [or, more technically - Antiochian readings]. He is a good writer, but he should have withheld his uninformed judgment here! Also he seems to be unaware of the many errors lying in the apparatuses of the Nestle/Aland and UBS Greek New Testament text editions!

A fine book, useful and well worth the price. Be sure to purchase the corrected edition -- on the publication data page it will say -- "Corrected printing, December 2000", in which many images and layouts are corrected. Some still remain, yet a small hinderance they be. ...

Nicely written, with excellent illustrations, sidebars, charts, &c., this book will guide complete novices into a better understanding of where their favourite English version(s) came from. Technical subjects (for example, textual criticism) are handled simply, but not simpistically. Wengert most successfully realizes his goal--to "enable those in the church to determine the validity of charges leveled against modern versions, as well as to instill an appreciation of the difficulties of producing new translations of the Bible" (p. 17).

God's promise to uphold and protect His Word is a precious and reassuring promise. To observe how God has accomplished this throughout the ages is edifying and faith strengthening. The Journey from Texts to Translations by Paul D. Wegner is a meticulously researched and richly illustrated treatment of the Bible's transmission and translation, from ancient manuscripts to popular English Bibles, showing us the practical means by which God has sovereignly guided the development of Scripture.

After covering some preliminary matters regarding the Bible--it's nature, it's purpose, and some brief introductions into each section of the Bible--Wegner begins the journey at the ground level, with a discussion of the earliest forms of writing and their subsequent development. After some investigation into the history of language, Wegner arrives at the Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek dialect and examines some important factors regarding the languages of the Old and New Testaments.

Wegner continues the journey with a lengthly discussion of canonicity, covering such topics as the Old Testament canon, the New Testament canon, the apocrypha and the pseudepigrapha. In this section we learn how both the Old Testament and New Testament canons were formed and what factors determined why certain books were placed into the canon and why other books were left out.

Textual criticism is treated at length as well, as Wegner examines a host of sources for both Old Testament and New Testament, demonstrating the manifold manuscripts and textual witnesses that provide abundant evidence for the both testaments. Despite the fact that we do not possess the original manuscripts, we are able to construct, by the existing copies we do posses, an extremely accurate text for all the Scripture. God has protected His Word!

From here we are taken to the history of the English Bible. We are introduced great men like Wycliffe and Tyndale, and provided the opportunity to trace the legacy of the English Bible from its beginnings in 14th century England, to its prominence in modern day America. Some noteworthy English translations that are examined are the King James Version, New King James Version, American Standard Version, the Living Bible and the Message. Each translation is studied in terms of its historical development, specific qualities, translation approach and concluded with brief critique.

On the whole, this is an edifying and informative read. It is just over 400 pages, and is thick with charts, pictures, mini-biographies and a host of other helpful materials. It will benefit any student of the Bible who desires to better understand the history of the Bible, whether they read it from cover to cover, or only use it as a reference.

I just finished this book, and found it to be accurate and highly readable. Wegner obviously did an excellent job researching for his treatise. The book builds systematically upon how we got the Scriptures. The sections on the different Bible versions are thorough and informative. I highly reccomend this book!

I must confess that I do not personally own a copy of the book, nor have I held a finished copy in my hands. However, I have gone a step further. I have taken the class for which this text was written and therefore, the notes that I was given serve as an abstract to the book. If you have little to no knowledge of where we really get our present Bible from (which is about 99.9% of Christians today) then this book is a must have... You will learn so much from Dr. Wegner, and his passion for the material will be clearly evident in all of it. This is deffinitely a book that will answer a lot of questions that you may have on the Bible that we use today... Trusting in Christ, Paul Hefft

This is a great book. I was looking for a book as an "Honors" extra, to read for The Theology Program at [...]. This is an easy and exciting book to read that follows right along with our 10 week semester on Bibliology and Hermeneutics. It has provided extra insight for understanding and discussion of "How do we know that we have the right Bible? How can my 1988 NIV Bible be the same as 400 BC Old Testament? 100 AD New Testament? I had little knowledge of this subject before this semester and this book was very helpful, yet not "Over my head."

If you are not a Theology graduate student, but you are deeply interested in the basic aspects of the origin, composition, transmission and translation of the Bible, then this is just the book for you. It does not go too deep technically, but just enough to stimulate further and deeper study of the Scripture. In the presentation of the difficult aspects regarding the above named biblical characteristics, this book does a very good job - especially because the text is fluid and easy to understand, and there is no sign of undue partiality from the author, just the natural enthusiasm of a true believer in the God-inspired nature of the Bible.

The Journey from Texts to Translations: The Origin and Development of the Bible is a highly detailed explanation of how the Bible that Christians use today came to be in its present form. Explaining how various books of the bible came to be collected into a single canon text, describing how the Bible was passed through generations, discussing how and why early versions were produced, exploring myriad subtle differences in English translations, and more. Black-and-white photographs illustrate this extensive and fascinating documentation, as informative and compelling for lay readers as for professional scholars.

This was just a neat book to read. Have you ever wondered where the Bible came from? Did it just fall out of the sky and land in someone's lap? If you've ever wondered how the Bible was compiled, this is the book for you. It will answer all of your questions. I will likely read it again in the future.

I was excited to get this book - when it arrived, I liked it immediately. It is handsomely bound, with a beautiful glossy cover, in a comfortable size and weight, and with a very user-friendly typeface.

I've been searching for a good, modern, doctrinally neutral history of the Bible text from ancient manuscripts to compilation/recension to modern translation, and thought I might have finally found it. But I was mistaken.

After four chapters worth of heavy-handed doctrinal polemics, I decided to close the book and look elsewhere. I want a research thesis, not a Sunday School theology lesson! The author seems unable to set aside his desire to promote his own pet theological bias (and to denegrate all others), and just focus on the objective history of the Bible text. Which is fine for a church lesson-book, but inappropriate in a scholarly treatise in layman's language.

I bought the book based on the strength of several of the reviews I read here on amazon's site, as well as the praise from the back cover, all from sources I respect. But I just couldn't go with the crowd on this one, I have to call it as I see it. A real disappointment.

I got much more benefit from OUR AGELESS BIBLE by Thomas Leishman and THE MAKING OF THE ENGLISH NEW TESTAMENT by Edgar Goodspeed, both of which are basic introductory texts, but unfortunately out-of-print.