William Tyndale, English Bible Smuggler
Published on April 6th, 2015
Why Smuggle Bibles?
Jesus said, “Go into all the world and spread the gospel.” (See Mark 16:15.) He knew some places in the world would have laws against obeying his command. When officials told Peter and the other apostles not to teach people about Jesus, the apostles said, “We ought to obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29).
Bible smugglers through the centuries have agreed with the apostles. They have taken Bibles into countries where officials do not approve of their activity.
William Tyndale
A long time ago, nobody in England could read the Bible in English. Bibles were written in Greek, Hebrew, and Latin, but not English. Church leaders could read the Bible, because they had studied different languages in school. But few others knew what God’s Word really said.
The king of England and the church leaders did not want just anybody reading the Bible. “If anyone teaches the Bible in English, they must be punished!” the leaders said.