A major and original account of the theological importance of the father of the English Bible.

William Tyndale is one of the most important of the early reformers, and particularly through his translation of the New Testament, has had a formative influence on the development of the English language and religious thought. The sources of his theology are, however, not immediately clear, and historians have often seen him as being influenced chiefly by continental, and in particular Lutheran, ideas. In his important new book, Ralph Werrell shows that the most important influences were to befound closer to home, and that the home-grown Wycliffite tradition was of far greater importance. In doing so, Werrell shows that the apparent differences between Tyndale's writings from the period before 1530 and his later writings, in the period leading up to his arrest and martyrdom in 1526, are spurious, and that a simpler explanation is that his ideas were formed as a result of an upbringing in a household in which Wycliffite ideas were accepted. Werrell explores the impact of humanist writers, and above all Erasmus, on the development of Tyndale's thought. He also shows how far Tyndale's theology, fully developed by 1525, was from that of the continental reformers. He then examines in detail some of the main strands of Tyndale's thought - and in particular, doctrines such as the Fall, Salvation, the Sacraments and the Blood of Christ - showing how different they are from Luther and most other contemporary reformers. While Tyndale, in his early writings, used some of Luther's writings, he made theological changes and additions to Luther's text. The influences of John Trevisa, Wyclif and the later Wycliffite writers were far more important. Werrell shows that without accepting the huge influence of the Wycliffite ideas, Tyndale's significance as a theologian, and the development of the English Reformation cannot be fully understood.

While Tyndale's importance in the history of biblical translation is well understood, his theology has been much less studied. Ralph Werrell has become the leading authority on his theology, and in The Blood of Christ in the Theology of William Tyndale, he explores the background to and influences on one of Tyndale's central theories. Werrell shows that Tyndale's ideas were developed independently, based on a wide range of earlier theology, and - in particular - from Wycliffite thought. He explains the way in which Old Testament sacrifice featured in Tyndale's thought, explaining his many references to the Epistle to the Hebrews, linking as it does Christ's sacrificial blood with the sacrifices of the Old Testament. Tyndale believed that man died spiritually through Adam's disobedience, and that it was brought back to life by Christ's blood. In this volume, Werrell brings out the differences between the covenant theology of Tyndale and both Luther's theology of the cross and Calvin's forensic justification, showing clearly the originality of Tyndale's beliefs.

Traces the life of William Tyndale, the first person to translate the Bible into English from the original Greek and Hebrew and discusses the social, literary, religious, and intellectual implications of his work.

What motivated the men who gave us our Bible in English? Much of the answer lies in the turbulent religious history of the era, but there are clues which can be found in the prefaces published with each new edition. This collection of the prefaces to the main translations of the Bible into English between 1525 and 1611 has been prepared to coincide with the four-hundredth anniversary of the fi rst edition of the Authorised or King James Version. An introductory chapter delineates the key events, and this is followed by each of the texts, with notes indicating the sources of the various quotations and allusions. This collection therefore provides the historical and theological ancestry of a much loved translation, and readers can hardly fail to be challenged by the spiritual concerns of the translators. Gerald Bray is Director of Research for the Latimer Trust. Prior to this appointment he taught church history and historical theology at Beeson Divinity School, Samford University from 1993, having previously served as lecturer in theology and philosophy at Oak Hill College in London.

Part One: The History (What do we know?) This brief historical introduction to William Tyndale explores the social, political and religious factors that formed the original context of his life and writings, and considers how those factors affected the way he was initially received. What was his impact on the world at the time and what were the key ideas and values connected with him? Part Two: The Legacy (Why does it matter?) This second part explores the intellectual and cultural ‘afterlife’ of William Tyndale, and considers the ways in which his impact has lasted and been developed in different contexts by later generations. Why is he still considered important today? In what ways is his legacy contested or resisted? And what aspects of his legacy are likely to continue to influence the world in the future? The book has a brief chronology at the front plus a glossary of key terms and a list of further reading at the back.