On this Reformation day and since 2026 marks the 500th anniversary of Tyndale’s work of translating the New Testament into the common English language, I’m posting some of Tyndale’s story.
For the first time ever in history, the Greek New Testament was translated into English. Before his martyrdom in 1536, Tyndale would go on to translate into clear, common English not only the New Testament but also the Pentateuch, Joshua to 2 Chronicles, and Jonah. All this material became the basis of the Great Bible issued by Miles Coverdale in England in 1539 and the basis for the Geneva Bible published in 1557 — “the Bible of the nation,” which sold over a million copies between 1560 and 1640.
John Foxe tells us that one day an exasperated Catholic scholar at dinner with Tyndale said, “We were better be without God’s law than the pope’s.”
In response, Tyndale spoke his famous words, “I defy the Pope and all his laws. . . . If God spare my life ere many years, I will cause a boy that driveth the plow, shall know more of the Scripture than thou dost.”
Just two to three years after Tyndale’s death, King Henry VIII reversed his stance and authorized the distribution of English Bibles—starting with the Matthew Bible and Miles Coverdale’s work, both of which heavily relied on Tyndale’s translations.
Tyndale’s pioneering translations formed the backbone of later English editions, including the King James Version, directly influencing the development of the English language,
“We don’t want to forget him because every time you pick up your Bible, you have a debt to pay to William Tyndale.” John MacArthur
For more history of the Bible and Tyndale…
