III. Jerome enters the arena of translating manuscripts
In 382 AD Pope Damascus (Saint) requested Jerome to undertake a revision of the old Latin
Vulgate version. Jerome complied with this request and thus produced the "Latin Vulgate," the
official Bible of the Roman Catholic Church.[22]
A. What was the "Old Latin Vulgate?"
The Old Latin Vulgate was the Greek Vulgate (that which is popular) [23] This text prevailed in
the Church, previous to the introduction of the modern Vulgate of Jerome" [24] In fact, this text
is the text of the oldest Bible translation called the "Peshitta" (2nd. Century) [25] many years
before the days of Jerome. (340-420 AD)
B. Who was Jerome?
Jerome was a most learned of the early Church fathers of the Latin Church. He was saint
Jerome (or Eusebius Hieronymus 340?-420? AD) Born in Strido, Dalmatia of a wealthy family
Jerome, Saint / Early Life Encyclopedia Britannica
In Aquileia (Italy) he (Jerome) was linked with an ascetic elite—including Rufinus, a writer and
scholar, who translated in the 3rd-century. An Alexandrian theologian as Origen was.
Encyclopedia Britannica
Jerome was accused of being a Ciceronian, a follower of the 1st.Century BC. Roman philosopher
—rather than a Christian. Encyclopedia Britannica – Jerome
Jeromeadmired Origen's exegesis. He spent almost three years (379–382 AD) continuing
his pursuit of scriptural studies. An enthusiastic disciple of Gregory of Nazianzus, Jerome also
came to know Gregory of Nyssa and the theologian Amphilochius of Iconium at the Council of
Constantinople (381 AD). Under such influences he improved his knowledge of Greek and
developed an admiration for Origen's exegesis. He translated fourteen of Origen's homilies
(sermons) on Old Testament books into Latin. Here too he translated the church historian
Eusebius' Chronicon (Chronicles) and continued it to the year 378 AD Encyclopedia Britannica – Jerome
Jerome translated two sermons of Origen on the Song of Solomon. Encyclopedia Britannica - Jerome
In 382 AD Pope Damascus (Saint) requested Jerome to undertake a revision of the old Latin
Vulgate version. Jerome complied with this request and thus produced the "Latin Vulgate," the
official Bible of the Roman Catholic Church.[22] More importantly, he (Jerome) revised the Old
Latin version of the Gospels on the basis of the best[46] Greek manuscripts at his command.
(Encyclopedia Britannica – Jerome)
Jerome defended Mary as a perpetual virgin and wrote a defense of the perpetual virginity of
Mary, Jesus' mother (383 AD) Encyclopedia Britannica – Jerome
Jerome translated from Eusebius and his biblical production in Bethlehem includes...
translation and adaptation of Eusebius. Encyclopedia Britannica – Jerome
Jerome - used a revision of the Old Latin version of the Septuagint based on Origen's Hexapala
(an edition with the Hebrew text in Hebrew and Greek characters, and four different Greek
versions arranged in six parallel columns) Encyclopedia Britannica - Jerome
C. What did Jerome use to "revise" the Old Latin?
History reveals that Jerome's Revised Vulgate is largely in agreement with two extant manuscripts
that Eusebius had compiled for Constantine, when he produced the fifty (50) official Bibles for the
Church. These two manuscripts we know today as, the Codex Sinaiticus and Vaticanus. [26]
"With the spread of Roman power Latin was carried to every part of the ancient world and
become the dominant tongue of Western Europe. Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, Vol.15, p.432-4340
Church History:By 392 AD Theodosius went even further when he outlawed heathen worship. It now came under
penalty of death for anyone to have any religious connection other than that of the established Roman Church. Those
considered heathen as well as those considered to be heretical in their doctrine were openly persecuted. What a
complete turnabout of events! By 484 AD the cap stone to the whole Babylonish system became complete, and the
Dark Ages was coming upon the Church. (The Dark Ages lasted a 1000 years) Man failed, but God DID NOT!
"If we believe not, yet He abideth faithful: He cannot deny
Himself...and none can stay His hand." (2Tim.2:13, Heb.6:16, Dan.4:35, Rom.9:20)
God remained Sovereign and Providential,
"watching" over His Word to perform it. (Jer.1:12, Matt.5:17-19)
NOTES
1. The Amplified Bible - Explanation of Arbitrary Punctuation. Italics
2. God Only Wrote One Bible, J.J. Ray, p.23 / English Revised Version, Preface, pp.9-10 / Westscott. History of the
English Bible, pp.321- 325
3. Evaluating Versions of the New Testament, E.W. Fowler, p.13
4. Samuel Hemphill - History of the Revised Version, p.54-55 / Evaluating Versions of the New Testament, p.4
5. The King James Defended - E. F. Hills, Chap.8,6.(a),p.225
6. Funk & Wagnalls Encyclopedia, Vol.21, p.288
7. Eusebius. Ecclesiasstical History, Book 3, Chap.24
8, 9, 10. Funk & Wagnalls, Vol.19. p,441
11. Encyclopedia Britannica, (Origen)
12. Ante-Nicene Fathers, Vol.1, pp.434-435
13. Present day Truths - Iverson, p.14-15
14. Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, "Constantine"
15. Eusebius, Ecclesiastical History, Book 5, Chap.8 / Encycloptian Tatian
16. Encyclopedia Britannica. "Arius" Arius was a ascetical, moral leader of a Christian community in the area of Alexandria,
and attracted a large following through a message integrating Neoplatonism, which accented the absolute oneness of the divinity as the highest
perfection, with a literal, rationalist approach to the New Testament texts.
17. Constantine - Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
18. Sir Robert Anderson, L.C.B.L.D. p.48, The Church and the Bible / E. H. Broadbent - The Pilgrim Church, pp.21-22
19. Dr. Ira M. Price - Ancestary of the Englisah Bible, p.70 / God Only Wrote One Bible- J.J. Ray, p.18
20. Encyclopedia Britannica, "Eusebius"
21. Dr. Ira M. Price - Ancestry of the English Bible, p.70 / Hurst - History of the Christian Church, Vol.1 pp.36-37 / God Only Wrote One Bible J.J.
Ray, p.18 22.
Origen- "Platoist." Isaac Newton’s The Chronology of Ancient Kingdoms Amended ( London : 1728),11. The Newton Project—University of Sussex, East
Sussex London: 2007, www.newtonproject.sussex.ac.uk.
22. The Facts of the New Testament Criticism. The King James Defended, Edward F. Hills, p.119
23. Hort's Introduction, p.138
24. Dr. Fredrick Nolan - Integrity of the Greek Vulgate, pp.17-18
25. The King James Defended - E.F. Hills, Chap.5, p.119 / Thompson chain reference Bible, #4220, p.181
26. Burgon and Miller - The Traditional Text, p.163 / Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol.4, -.86 / Gregory - The Cannon and Text of the New Testament, p.345 / Dr.
Ira M. Price - Ancestry of the English Bible, p.70 / A.T. Robinson - Introduction to the New Testament, p.180 / Dr. Phillip Scahff - Companion to Greek
Testament, p.115 / Dr. Scrivener - Introduction to New New Testament, Vol.pp.36-37
27. Interpreting the Scriptures - K. J. Conner / K. Malmin
28. Thompson Chain Ref. Bible - The origin and Growth of the English Bible, English Versions. p.181
29. Interpreting the Scriptures - K. J. Conner / K. Malmin, p.31
30. Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
31. Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia Jan Hus, 1996
32. Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
33. Interpreting the Scriptures - K. J. Conner / K. Malmin, p.34
34. The King James Defended, Chap.8, p.199 / Works of Luther - Philadelphia: Muhlenberg Press, 1932 Vol.6, pp.476-89
35. The King James Defended - E.F. Hills, Chap.8, p.203
36. The King James Defended - E.F. Hills, Chap.,8 (e), p.198
37. The King James Defended - E.F. Hills, Chap.8, p.202
38. The Priesthood belongs to the people, the Body of Christ, NOT the Scholar. (1Peter.2:5-9, Rev.1:6; 5:10, Deut.31:9-11)
39. Thompson Chain Ref. Bible , F.C. Thompson, D.D., Ph.D
40. The King James Defended - E.F. Hills, Chap.8 (f), p.199
41. The Catholic Counter Reformation - Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
42. The Catholic Counter Reformation - Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
43. The Catholic Counter Reformation - Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
44. The History of Roman Catholicism, New Religious Order - Encyclopedia Britannica
45. The Catholic Counter Reformation - Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia, 1996
46. The best Greek Manuscripts - What we must remember that these manuscripts had been corrupted by Origen, and copied into the 50
official Bibles by Eusebius. (Review: ) Now the corruption (or the tares) continue among the wheat. (Matt.13:24-30, 36-43)
Vetus Latina ("Old Latin" in Latin), also known as Vetus Itala ("Old Italian"), Itala ("Italian") [n 1] and Old Italic, is the collective name given to the
biblical texts in Latin that existed before the Vulgate, the late fourth-century Latin translation of the Bible that later became the Catholic Church's
standard Latin Bible. As the English translation of Vetus Latina is "Old Latin", they are also sometimes referred to as the Old Latin Bible,[1]
although they are written in the form of Latin known as Late Latin, not that known as Old Latin. The Old Latin manuscripts that are preserved
today are dated from 350 to the 13th century AD.
Replacement[edit] Vulgate
With the publication of Jerome's Vulgate, which offered a single, stylistically consistent Latin text translated from the original tongues, the Vetus
Latina gradually fell out of use. Jerome, in a letter, complains that his new version was initially disliked by Christians who were familiar with the
phrasing of the old translations. However, as copies of the complete Bible were infrequently found, Old Latin translations of various books of the
Bible were copied into manuscripts alongside Vulgate translations, inevitably exchanging readings; Old Latin translations of single books can be
found in manuscripts as late as the 13th century. However, the Vulgate generally displaced the Vetus Latina as the new Latin translation of the
Bible to be used by the church after the Council of Trent. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia)
46. The History of the Revised Version - Samuel Hemphil, pp.54-55
47. Wescott and Hort in their theory of the text built the work of several earlier men, such as Griesbach, Lachman, and Tischendorf, who around 1775 AD
published texts differing in many places from the Received Text. - E.W. Fowler. Evaluating Versions of the New Testament, p.4
48. The History of the Revised Version - Samuel Hemphil, pp. 54-55 / Evaluating Versions of the New Testament - E.W. Fowler, p.28
49. Evaluating Versions of the New Testament - E.W. Fowler, p.9
50. Core, New Commentary, Part.3, p.721
51. The Life and letters of Fenton John Hort - 2 Vols; London: MacMillan and Co. Ltd., 1896, 1211
52. The King James Defended, E.F. Hills, Chap.8,6, (a), p.225
53. The Traditional Text - Burgon Miller, p.163 / Catholic Encyclopedia, Vol.4, p.86 / The Cannon and text of the New Testament, p.345 / The Ancestry of
the - Dr. Ira M. Price, p.70 / A.T. Robertson, Intro of the New Testament, p.180 / Dr. Phillip Schaff. Companion to Greek Testament, p.115./ Intro to the
New Testament - Vol.2, p.270
54. Evaluating Versions of the New Testament, E.W. Fowler, p.4 / B.F. Westcott and F.J. Hort. The New Testament in the original Greek, Vol.ii, Introduction
and Appendix (New York Harper and Brothers, 1882, p.277 / The King James Defended - E.F. Hills. Chap.3,p.66
55, Evaluating Versions of the New Testament, E.W. Fowler, p.4-5