A recently discovered handwritten draft of the King James Bible offers new insights into its creation process. This draft, dating back to the early 17th century, was found in a notebook owned by Samuel Ward, one of the translators. It reveals that the bible was not a direct divine inspiration, as commonly believed, but a meticulous process of revision and collaboration.

The draft contains partial texts for the Apocrypha, books included in some versions of the bible, but not universally recognised. It also shows that translators used the Bishops’ Bible as the base text, making modifications as they saw fit. This contradicts the long-held belief that translators worked from the original Greek, Hebrew, and Aramaic texts.

The discovery also sheds light on the division of labour among the translators. It appears that each was assigned a particular book of the bible to translate and then revise their colleagues’ work. This collaborative approach resulted in a consistent style, making the King James Bible a masterpiece of English literature.

This finding, therefore, challenges the traditional narrative surrounding the bible’s creation, showing it to be a product of human collaboration and revision rather than divine inspiration.

Go to source article: http://www.salon.com/2015/10/28/let_there_be_light_handwritten_draft_of_king_james_bible_reveals_the_secrets_of_its_creation_partner/