Draw Near – 365 Guides to Greater Intimacy with GodSample

LOCKED UP IN ST. PETERSBURG Some of the oldest manuscripts of the Bible are locked up in the library at St. Petersburg, Russia. Discovered many years ago, these Hebrew copies are said to have belonged to the Jews of the Dispersion. They show the meticulous care translators took in reproducing God's Word. According to the Talmud, one scribe wrote in the vowel-points; a third translator reviewed the work of the first two; and a fourth scribe carefully recorded the work of all three in the "Masorah." This system was designed to keep men from adding their own comments to the text. Because they are unaware of how we got our Bible, many people ask, "How can we be sure that what we read is what the prophets wrote?" Even a casual study of the Bible will convince a person that great care has been taken to assure correct and literal translation. Recent discoveries of unknown manuscripts reinforce this premise. Translators understand how urgent it is to pass along correct copies since the Bible warns against distortion of the truth. Note that God exalts His Word above His name. John adds that Jesus became the fulfillment of that Word (John 1:14). The Bible is not made up of the words of mere men: For prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit (2 Peter 1:21). Because the Bible is a "holy" book, we must handle it carefully and make it a living guide for our lives. The Bible is not man's view of God. Rather, it is God speaking to man.