In this episode of “Liana’s Favorite Books,” Dr. Liana Lupas takes you on a tour of the 1537 “Matthew Bible,” which was the second printed edition of the Bible in English.
The title page of this Bible lists its translator as “Thomas Matthew,” which was a pseudonym for John Rogers, a Protestant Bible scholar, pastor, and martyr. With the Matthew Bible, Rogers completed the Bible translation work that William Tyndale, also a martyr, had started before his untimely death in 1536. Most notably, this English translation was based on the original biblical languages of Greek and Hebrew rather than the Latin text.
Officially licensed by King Henry VIII, this Bible was intended to be distributed to every shire in his kingdom, so that everyone in England could engage with Scripture in the common tongue.
We hope you enjoy this treasure from the early days of the Bible translation movement!
