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Wycliffe Bible (1382, 1388 versions) - 1850 Forshall-Madden Oxford Edition Facsimile 4-Volume Set

We are delighted to offer this extraordinary four-volume facsimile set of the 1382/1388 Wycliffe text. In translating the Bible into English, John Wycliffe emerged as a powerful influence for revival and reform. As a result of his work, historians have termed Wycliffe the "Morning Star of the Reformation." 

Bound in Yuma cherrywood leather and accented in gold, with a coordinating slipcover, this facsimile set represents an impressive work of art.

The Wycliffe Bible, as has become the common description, is the first English translation (Middle English) from the common Vulgate translation of Jerome, which was originally transcribed in Latin in 382. A number of portions of Biblical text and reference materials appeared between 1382-1395 associated with John Wycliffe and several co-laborers. These men were instrumental in the translation work and necessary scribal work of writing out the manuscript texts. Nicholas Hereford, John Purvey, and John Trevisa are prominent figures involved in the translation work from the Latin Vulgate, which was the standard text of western Christianity. That text had been first prepared by St. Jerome in 382 under Pope Damasus and it would be Rome's Bible for nearly a millennia until 1384 and the introduction to the Wycliffe Bible.

There are really two distinct versions of the Wycliffe Bible. The earlier was done while Wycliffe was yet alive. It is a very literal, word for word translation and extremely difficult to capture. The second or later version is a revision that is largely attributed to John Purvey with some assistance from Nicholas Hereford, who aided Wycliffe in the earlier version.

The Wycliffe Bible was handwritten and took as much as six months to complete, yet thousands of copies were meticulously copied and distributed across Europe. Many copies lacked official identity and thus were included in many of the priests study sources in spite of their forbidden usage. The Wycliffe Bible texts are the most prevalent extant Middle English texts of our day, with over 250 surviving on vellum and rag paper. When the Ryrie Collection was auctioned in 2016, one first-edition copy sold for $1,692,500. These elaborately embellished handwritten copies were a masterpiece of artistic compliment to the marvelous compilation of Bible truth in the language of the common man.

 

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