William Tyndale, from his exile in Germany, produces the first complete English New Testament to be translated from the original Greek. A true linguistic genius, Tyndale was determined to translate the Bible into English that even the plough-boy could understand. He succeeded. His translation work, which he continued to revise until his martyrdom just ten years later, has impacted all subsequent translations into English—indeed, all subsequent writing in English. Many estimate that the revisors working for King James followed Tyndale more than 80% of the time. Though he is often forgotten today, it is impossible to fully measure the influence that Tyndale’s labor of love has had on the course of English speaking Christianity.
