William Tyndale: Lesson 4 - Determined to Translate

Introduction:

Last time we left William Tyndale, he was in London meeting with an important Bishop, Cuthbert Tunstall.

William met with Bishop Tunstall to seek permission to translate the Bible into English.

Bishop Tunstall was afraid of what might happen if people had the Bible in English and they were to misunderstand and misinterpret Scripture.

What answer would Bishop Tunstall give to William’s request?

Unfortunately, the moment that William had hoped for turned into a great disappointment.

While Bishop Tunstall was an educated man, he was more afraid of people misunderstanding and misinterpreting the Bible if they had it in their own language.

Therefore, Bishop Tunstall told William Tyndale that he, the Bishop, would not give William permission to translate the Bible into English.

Can you imagine how disappointed William must have been?

How would the people know about Jesus’ love, sacrifice, and resurrection if they did not have the Bible in their own language?

How would William translate the Bible into English now that he would have no official permission and would have to do so illegally, facing the possibility of punishment, even death?

When visiting with Sir Humphrey Monmouth who arranged the meeting with Bishop Tunstall, Humphrey made a suggestion to William that would change his course and give him the opportunity to translate the Bible into English.

Sir Humphrey Monmouth was a merchant.

As a merchant, he dealt with various goods being brought by ship into London and other places.

Sometimes, the ships carried more than just what it seemed like they were carrying.

Sir Humphrey Monmouth explained to William that maybe they could bring in William’s translated English Bible with their other goods.

What do you call it when you hide something with the other things to sneak it inside somewhere?

Smuggling

While smuggling is normally done for reasons to hurt other people, William realized that this might be the way to get to the people what they needed the most: God’s Word in their own language.

William Tyndale now has a means of getting an English copy of the Bible into England secretly.

However, who will print something that is illegal?

No one in England would print the Bible for him in English because they knew they would be breaking the law and punished.

Where could he go to find someone who would print his work to translate the Bible into English?

William knew that there were people in Germany who were skilled printers and would be willing to print copies of his English Bible.

So William decided to leave his home in England to travel to a different country so that he could print the Bible in English and have it sent back to England.

Can you imagine leaving your home to go to a place where you don’t know anyone?

Why was William willing to do this?

William believed that God wants the English speaking people to have the Bible in their language.

William was willing to sacrifice whatever he needed to so that he could get God’s Word to the people.

William knew that God’s Word is so precious and worth the risk.

Psalm 19:10 “10 They are more desirable than gold, yes, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the drippings of the honeycomb.”

William ended up living in a town in Germany called Cologne.

In Cologne, Germany William found a printer by the name of Peter Quentel.

Peter Quentel agreed to print William Tyndale’s translation of the New Testament in the Bible into English.

This is great news!

The people of England will begin having the Bible in their own language!

Can you imagine William’s excitement over this dream come true for his people?

However, the printing of the Bible into English still had to remain a secret because if anyone found out, William could still be captured and punished.

One day at Peter Quentel’s printshop, a visitor by the name of Cochlaeus happened to notice a piece of paper that had one sheet of the New Testament on it.

Cochlaeus then took this information to a local authority by the name of Rincke.

Rincke did not want the English people to have God’s Word in English!

Rincke immediately arranged to have Peter Quentel’s shop raided and the printing of the New Testament in English stopped.

Would William Tyndale also be captured in the raid and punished?

Would the printing of the New Testament into English continue?

Conclusion: Next week, we’ll learn what happened to Peter Quentel’s shop and to William Tyndale.