Grateful for William Tyndale

Pastor Gary Oser

There are some important people in church history with whom we need to be acquainted. One of them is William Tyndale. Without him we likely would not have the Bible in the English language as we do today.

When Tyndale came on the scene, 16th century England was engulfed in spiritual darkness. The knowledge of the Scriptures (the Bible) had been almost extinguished from the country. Priests read the Bible to the people in Latin, which they could not understand.

In considering the spiritual state of England, Tyndale concluded that it was impossible for people to be established in truth unless they could have the Word of God (the Bible) in their mother tongue. Therefore, he dedicated his life to translating the Word of God into the English language. His mission was to see that “the common plowboy in the field might have a better knowledge of the Word of God than the pope.”

In 1523, Tyndale sought authorization for a sanctioned translation and publication of an English Bible. Such an idea was considered heresy (a belief contrary to church tradition and standards), and he was refused. As a result, he fled from his home country of England and became a fugitive for the rest of his life as he translated the Word of God into English.

Tyndale had to constantly move from place to place so as not to be arrested. He hid Bibles in bales of cotton in order to get them into the country undetected. There is much more that could be shared about Tyndale’s persistence in the midst of great opposition, but eventually he was captured. On October 6, 1536 he was executed and burned at the stake. Just before being put to death, Tyndale gazed into heaven and cried out in prayer, “Lord, open the king of England’s eyes.”

God has answered Tyndale’s prayer, and as a result, we can read the Bible in a language we can understand. When you open your Bible, thank God for men like William Tyndale and others who made the English translation of the Bible possible. Value it and spend time in it daily.