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January --- 2008 --- October
News and Notes - CONVENTION REMINDER
Apology [defense] of the Augsburg Confession - part 1II
2008 ILC Delegate Convention report
ILC President's Report, 2008
The Superiority of the Received Texts- convention paper - m.e..l

Cross of Christ Lutheran Churchin Midland, MI

Memorial: On Sat. Jan. 12, Lucile E. Kregel was called home by our Lord & Savior Jesus Christ from Brittany Manor, Midland,MI., following a lingering illness. She was 96. Lucile joined our congregation back in Aug. of 2002 and we used to have services once a month at her place in Pinconning,MI., before she was moved to Brittany Manor. She was born in Elkhart, Ind., Jan.20,1911, and was buried by the family Wed., Jan. 16, at Oak Grove Cemetery, Dundee, MI. A memorial service for her was held on Sat., May 3, by the Pastor at the home of her daughter Suemarie Allard, in Linwood,MI. Attending were the congregation, some family, & friends. The Lord giveth and the Lord taketh away, blessed be the name of the Lord.

Church: A new roof (shingles,etc.) was placed on the parsonage in April.

Eternal Savior Ev. Lutheran Churchin Arbor Vitae, WI

Confirmation: John Eric Yeomans was confirmed in the Holy Christian Faith before the congregation on June 29, 2008. and received into communicant membership.

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Grace Ev. Lutheran Church
of New Lenox, IL
will be hosting
the 2009 delegate convention
(likely at Morris' location).
Dates are set for
June 17, 2009
(pastors) and
June 18-19, 2009
(for delegates and pastors)

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Apology
[defense]
of the
Augsburg Confession
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III. Of Christ

52] The Third Article the adversaries approve, in which we confess that there are in Christ two natures, namely, a human nature, assumed by the Word into the unity of His person, and that the same Christ suffered and died to reconcile the Father to us; and that He was raised again to reign, and to justify and sanctify believers, etc., according to the Apostles' Creed and the Nicene Creed

~ ~ ~
To Be Continued

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~~~ JOURNAL REPORT ~~~

for
The 30th Annual
ILC Delegate Convention
Hosted by
Eternal Savior Ev. Lutheran Church of Arbor Vitae, WI
Mark E. Latsch - Pastor

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[day 1]

THURSDAY June 19, 2008

About 9:00 a.m., the opening worship service was conducted by Pastor Sempert, and Pastor Latsch preached the sermon on Isaiah 59:12-21.

There were 40 souls present.

After a quick recess to set up, the meeting opened with 11 men present.

Conference Reports:

- President Pr. Latsch read his report [attached] which was accepted with a motion passed by all to print it in the ILC Journal.

- Secretary Mr. Yeomans read through the 2007 Convention report.

Accepted with note of one misspelled name - Job [Adkins] should be spelled Jobe.

- Treasurer Mr. Clubb presented the ILC financial statement. Acceptance was moved and passed.

- Missionary at Large: office still vacant at this time.

Pastor Latsch reminds us that Pastor Popp was right in always stating that we are all missionaries-at-large: that every one of us has the duty to witness for Christ as we have opportunity.

- Visitor: Pastor Finke reported that no calls were required.

- Lutheran Reformation Hour: Pr. Latsch reported that Mrs. Gea Popp told him that sermons are now available to hear online and she has had one inquiry from someone who listened online.

Lutheran Theological Studies Center:

- Pr. Schilling reported that Mr. Randy Pedersen is doing some sermons.

- Pr. Finke reported that his student is not currently active due to family health issues.

- Pr. Sempert reported no students.

- Pr. Latsch reported no active students at this time.

- Pr. Latsch reported that Pr. Popp's 3 students do not wish to continue instruction with another pastor at this time.

After the lunch break, meeting resumed with Congregational reports:

~ Cross of Christ Lutheran Church in Midland, MI:

They are meeting at the parsonage; they make CD's each week to send out; 5 communicant members and 4 regular guests. They lost 1 member - Mrs. Kregel - who was called to heaven Jan.12, 2008.

They also put on a new roof on their building.

~ Eternal Savior Ev. Luth. Church in Arbor Vitae, WI: reported they are still meeting at the Bolger Funeral Chapel in Woodruff, WI. There are 19 souls in regular attendance plus occasional visitors; 10 communicants; 2 in confirmation class; 5 children attend Sunday School. Weekly worship services are followed by Sunday School and Confirmation Class, then Adult Bible Study in which they are up to chapter 20 in a study of Revelation.

~ Grace Ev. Lutheran Church of New Lenox, IL:

Average attendance: 45; communion: 27; Sunday School: 7; Bible Class: 10; 5 in confirmation class plus 2 guests. Still meeting at the Lions Community Center, New Lenox as their building plans are not yet solidified. 1 member in convalescent care, and also: visits to the sick.

~ Our Savior's Ev. Lutheran Church in Morris, IL:

Average attendance: 20; communion: 15; Sunday School: 2; Bible class: 8; and 4 in confirmation class, and 2 baptisms. Building roof is "being" fixed. Some visitations to sick are also made.

~ Reformation Lutheran Church in Tinley Park, IL:

Meeting at LaQuinta Inn. Average attendance: 12; infrequent visitors; 10 regular communicants; 2 confirmands.

~ St. James Lutheran Church of the Reformation in Columbia Falls, MT:

There are 7 souls meeting every week using CD's for the services.

~ Trinity Lutheran Church of Ballwin, MO:

A little while after the passing of Pastor Popp, Trinity Church requested ILC Pastoral Visits.

-via Mrs. Gea Popp: Pastor Schilling visits every other month (average attendance: 20) and they use CD's or read sermons for the other weeks.

~ California mission endeavor:

Three souls meet every week for worship using CD service recordings.

Brief discussion followed regarding other independent churches and groups.

Updated church information was exchanged for postings in the ILC Journal.

It was moved and passed to have open floor discussions instead of committees:

Doctrine: No controversies among us to discuss.

Education: Discussion Re: conference calling, etc.

Missions: Expanded discussion about conference calling - Motion made to accept Pr. Sempert's volunteering to research conference-wide conference calling for group Bible studies, etc., and report to ILC president by Aug. 1, 2008 as to feasibility and cost with the goal of implementation before Sept.1, 2008 - God willing! Motion passed by all.

Budget: Discussion regarding the usual donation to LRH pending contact with them.

Motion was then made to keep the same budget as last year. After a bit of discussion the motion was tabled till tomorrow.

Pastor Latsch presented his concluded paper on "The Superiority of the Received Texts (parts 3-4)" followed by some comments and discussion.

Afterward, the motion was made and passed to accept the paper for printing in the ILC Journal.

The day's meeting closed about 5:15p.m. with hymn 422 and prayer.

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[day 2]

FRIDAY June 20, 2008

About 9:00 a.m. Meeting opened with a short devotion.

Previous day's notes were read and accepted with a few corrections/additions.

Pastor Latsch reported the high points of his evening phone conversation with Tim Popp.

Tim, on behalf of Trinity of Ballwin stated:

- They are thankful for Pastor Schilling's visits and the ILC's support and prayers.

- They intend to continue on.

- Attendance is fairly constant (except for summer vacations, etc.).

- They wish Pastor Schilling to continue visiting every other month.

Re: the LRH Tim stated:

- It will continue, God willing.

- Funds have been adequate

- They have been promised an $18,000 gift from the family of a woman who listened to the broadcasts but has passed away.

- Broadcasts are linked to the internet for free via Short Wave WWCR while that station continues broadcasts of the LRH.

Short Wave costs about $150/week for 1/2 hour broadcast.

-Regular letters are received from listeners in Africa, some in Nebraska, and some in Europe.

- Thankful for the $1,000 donation from the ILC.

- LRH is considering asking all ILC pastors for recorded services/sermons for LRH use. This will be discussed further.

- Tim plans to speak with Charles Clubb about what he has accomplished regarding sermons on CD's, etc.

After a quick recess, about 10:15 motion was made to pass a slightly modified budget instead of the same budget as last year.

Motion made and passed to send the LRH $1,000 of the allotted amount.

Discussion followed regarding reimbursements for pastoral visits.

It is noted that the ILC currently pays a visiting pastor on official requested visits $400 per service, with lodging and meal reimbursements on submitted receipts.

Motion was made and seconded that the ILC update the fuel reimbursement policy for this current year to 32 cents per mile in addition and review this policy annually. Motion passed, but 1 'Nay' vote.

There was some discussion regarding ILC website issues.

Motion made and passed that a report about the ILC website be made each year with other conference reports.

Grace church of New Lennox, IL will host 2009 delegate convention (likely at Morris' location).
Dates are set for
June 17, 2009 (pastors) and
June 18-19, 2009 (for delegates and pastors).

Paper assignments for the 2009 convention:

1) Pastor Sempert volunteers to present a paper - topic yet to be determined.

2) Pastor Finke volunteers to present a paper also.

Motion made and passed by all to retain current officers in their positions.

The ILC officers listing remains as follows:

- Other items of discussion:

Motion is made and seconded to gift Pastor Sempert $500 for the purchase of a new computer system so that he can better execute his elected duties - motion passed by all.

Motion made and passed to send an official letter of support and encouragement to Trinity of Ballwin congregation for their church and the LRH.

Motion made and passed to officially thank Eternal Savior Church for hosting this year's conference.

Discussion regarding sharing of Sunday School materials and other educational materials of sound doctrine. A list of such will be compiled and shared.

Closing was about noon with reading of Psalm 146, prayer, and singing of Hymn 412.

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Illinois Lutheran Conference

President's report, 2008

This year's annual ILC delegate convention is the 30th such gathering. Many changes have taken place in the visible Christian Church at large during the past 30 years, and for the most part they have not been changes for the better, but rather for the worse. We have witnessed a continued drift away from the true Word of God and the true doctrines of Holy Scripture even among what were once conservative Lutherans.

During the past year our Conference has seen a major change in that we lost the last of its remaining founding pastors when brother Wayne Popp was taken from this vale of tears to be with the Lord Jesus in heaven, and we miss brother Wayne's voice of experience, and his God-given wisdom and guidance. There were some outside of our Conference who predicted its collapse when pastor Shekner went to be with the Lord, and I would not be surprised if there were similar predictions with the passing of pastor Popp. Nevertheless, by God's grace we still remain a group dedicated to serving our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ; and we still have God's true Holy Word and Luther's doctrine pure.

Our numbers are admittedly few, but our Lord assures us: "Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom." (Luke 12:32) My friends, the Lord can sustain and grow us as He sees fit, for He promises: "as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." (Isaiah 55:10-11) Let us never forget that much more important than big numbers is our continuing in God's Word, for Jesus says to us as He said to the Jews that believed on Him: "If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:31-32)

Let us never forget that the founding pastors of the ILC – Wayne Popp and Richard Shekner – knew that having God's pure Word and sound Scriptural doctrine was vitally important because nothing less than the real Jesus Christ can and does save us. May we go forward in that same knowledge, standing firm in the TRUTH, confessing with the apostle Paul: "I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek. For therein is the righteousness of God revealed from faith to faith: as it is written, The just shall live by faith." (Romans 1:16-17) Let us continue to endeavor to heed Jeremiah 6:16, "Thus saith the LORD, Stand ye in the ways, and see, and ask for the old paths, where is the good way, and walk therein, and ye shall find rest for your souls." Yes, "Let us hold fast the profession of our faith without wavering; (for he is faithful that promised;) And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching." (Hebrews 10:23-25) May we, with the help of God the Holy Ghost, continue to cling to Christ Jesus as Savior and Lord, and may we work to spread His saving Word to others in the sin-sick world in which we dwell.

Respectfully submitted by pastor Mark Latsch, ILC president

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THE SUPERIORITY OF THE RECEIVED TEXTS

III. Historical support for the Superiority of the Received Texts

In the previous parts of this paper we saw why the superiority of the received texts is such an important subject, and consequently it behooves us to consider that it has indeed always been an important subject to true Christians throughout history.

As confessional Lutheran Christians we cannot neglect to take into account which Hebrew and Greek Bible texts were the texts of choice of our forefathers. Dr. Martin Luther, when he had spiritually grown and matured, without a doubt considered the Hebrew Masoretic text of the Old Testament and the Greek Textus Receptus of the New Testament the proper and God-given words to base a Bible translation upon, for the aforesaid texts were the basis of Luther's final polished revision of his German translation before his death: the Luther Bible of 1545. While Luther's earlier editions of his German translation reflected a few textual readings that are also present in the modern critical editions of the Hebrew and Greek texts in opposition to the Received texts, Luther expunged those readings before his death. However, after Luther's death the later editions of the German Bible – beginning with the revised edition of 1912 – for the most part returned to the false readings that Luther had rightly eliminated by his edition of 1545, and the revisers added many more false readings, and yet those who made such changes without Luther's approval continued to call their editions of the German Bible the "Luther Bible".

For example, the famous proof passage for the doctrine of the Holy Trinity (1 John 5:7) as found in the Textus Receptus was not included in the earliest edition of the Luther Bible (as reflected also in Luther's early writing on this text in the 1520's [ref. Luther's Works, vol.30]) nor in the first edition of the Greek text of Erasmus which Luther used for his early New Testament translation. Interestingly, Erasmus in his 3rd edition printed Greek text of 1522 included the full text of 1 John 5:7 as genuine, and he rejected the reading of codex Vaticanus which omitted the Trinitarian verse. Erasmus, the leading Greek scholar of the time, had access to the famous (rather, infamous) codex Vaticanus – the favored manuscript of today's critical "scholars," as is evident in the UBS4 and NA27 editions of the Greek New Testament – yet Erasmus rejected it because of its inferiority. A question of interest is this: why did Luther at first omit 1 John 5:7, but later include it? Well, bear in mind that Luther was brought up in the church of Rome and consequently some of his earlier writings do reflect the Roman Catholic church's choice of Biblical text, but as Luther grew in his knowledge of the Bible and its true foundational texts he embraced the Received texts – the texts with the fullest and widest manuscript support – as is evidenced in his 1545 translation of those texts into German. (Look back at part 2 of this paper and you'll see the remarkable agreement between the Luther Bible of 1545 and the English King James Version of 1611/1769) The matured Martin Luther was obviously convinced by the evidence that the Received texts of the Old and New Testaments were faithful representatives of the original Hebrew and Greek words given by God the Holy Ghost.

Unlike the modern so-called "scholars" of today, Dr. Martin Luther did not believe that the true texts of the Holy Scriptures were lost in the sands of time, waiting to be discovered at some future date; no, Luther was sure that he had all of God's Word– Luther believed that God had preserved His Word. Consider the following statements of Luther taken from Luther's Works [underlining for emphasis mine, m.e.l.]: "I am content with this gift which I have, Holy Scripture, which abundantly teaches and supplies all things necessary both for this life and also for the life to come." (Vol.6, pg.329) "God powerfully preserves the Scriptures and His Word among His people. What good would it do if a doctrine were ever so fine and profound but were not preserved and did not abide forever? The devil relentlessly attacks it with the power of kings and princes, with the cunning of schismatic spirits, with the life of false saints. And yet God preserves His Word, so that it abides forever." (Vol.13, pg.360) "Wherever there are heathen—or a country or a city—there the Gospel will penetrate and will convert some to the kingdom of Christ. Regardless of whether all people believe it, still Christ rules wherever there are people: He preserves His Word, His Baptism and Sacrament, despite all devils and men." (Vol.14, pg.13) "...there must still be among us some genuine, pious, holy children of God and true Christians, few of them as there are, otherwise God's word would be among us in vain, which is impossible. Therefore it must also be certain that the Holy Spirit is with us, teaching and preserving his word in purity, giving us the gift of true Christian faith, and adorning us with still other gifts." (Vol.43, pg.280) "...if we conduct ourselves in this way and commend the matter to God, praying in full confidence and daring such danger for his will's sake, then he will be faithful and will not abandon us. He will also find [ways and] means to help us and preserve his Word, as he has done from the beginning of Christendom, especially at the time of Christ and of the apostles." (Vol.49, pg.279) The foregoing examples from Luther's Works [bibliography #8] suffice to prove that he held that God had wonderfully preserved the Holy Scriptures to us.

Statements found in our Lutheran Confessions – the Book of Concord, 1580 – also make it clear that our Lutheran forefathers never doubted that they were in possession of God's Word in its entirety. Consider the following quotes from the Concordia Triglotta [underlining for emphasis mine, m.e.l.]: "We believe, teach, and confess that the sole rule and standard according to which all dogmas together with [all] teachers should be estimated and judged are the prophetic and apostolic Scriptures of the Old and of the New Testament alone, as it is written Ps. 119, 105: Thy Word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path. And St. Paul: Though an angel from heaven preach any other gospel unto you, let him be accursed, Gal. 1, 8. Other writings, however, of ancient or modern teachers, whatever name they bear, must not be regarded as equal to the Holy Scriptures, but all of them together be subjected to them, and should not be received otherwise or further than as witnesses, [which are to show] in what manner after the time of the apostles, and at what places, this [pure] doctrine of the prophets and apostles was preserved." (Pg.777) "First [, then, we receive and embrace with our whole heart] the Prophetic and Apostolic Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as the pure, clear fountain of Israel, which is the only true standard by which all teachers and doctrines are to be judged." (Pg.851) Hence, it is evident that our forefathers did not doubt that they were in possession of God's Word in its entirety.

Orthodox Lutherans of the twentieth century still believed that they had God's Word in its entirety, for The Lutheran Hymnal, copyright 1941, compiled by "the intersynodical committee on hymnology and liturgics for the Evg. Lutheran Synodical Conference of North America," in the General Prayer found on page 13, declared to God: "We praise Thee especially that Thou hast preserved unto us in their purity Thy saving Word and the sacred ordinances of Thy house." [underlining for emphasis mine, m.e.l.] So, we again see that our Lutheran forefathers did not doubt that they possessed all of God's Word in its truth and purity. Nevertheless, it is unfortunate that by the beginning of the twentieth century the authority of the Received texts of Holy Scripture – especially the Greek text of the New Testament – was beginning to be questioned even in the seminaries of the conservative Lutheran Synods, for they shifted away from the Textus Receptus that our forefathers used, and embraced the use of the critical Greek texts of Eberhard Nestle (1st edition was in 1898 and was basically a compilation of his critical predecessors' work– Constantine Tischendorf, B.F. Westcott, and F.J.A. Hort) and later the further slightly modified editions of Kurt Aland, the so-called Nestle/Aland Greek New Testament text (now in its 27th revised edition).

Despite the defection of many from the received texts to the critical texts, and therefore away from the God-given Words of Holy Scripture, we have yet further historical evidence besides that of our Lutheran forefathers for the superiority of the Received Texts: we have the majority of those in the visible Christian Church throughout history! The early Church Fathers quote passages with readings that are distinctive to the Textus Receptus – readings that have been thrown out or changed in the critical editions of the Greek New Testament as not being "authentic" – but how could the early Church Fathers quote them if they did not find them in their copies of Holy Scripture? They couldn't! And consequently the fact that they do quote the readings found in the Textus Receptus is proof positive that the readings were always present in the Holy Scriptures!

The following examples will demonstrate that doctrinally significant New Testament Received Text readings are indeed quoted by early Church Fathers [bibliography #9], despite the fact that the adherents to the critical texts teach that such "distinctively Byzantine" readings were not quoted by them.

(e.g. a seminary teacher by the name of D.A. Carson in his book, "The King James Version Debate" – Baker Book House in 1979 – states on page 44, "There is no unambiguous evidence that the Byzantine text-type was known before the middle of the fourth century.") [Throughout his book it is evident that D. Carson supports and prefers the critical Greek texts and the modern English versions based on them.] In the examples that follow, the KJV (King James Version) will be quoted to demonstrate the Received Text – traditional, Byzantine, Textus Receptus, Stephens/Beza – readings, and the ESV (English Standard Version) will be quoted to demonstrate the Critical Text – Nestle Aland 27/ UBS 4 – readings, because both of the aforementioned English translations are commonly viewed as literal translations of their particular chosen foundational texts.

KJV Matthew 1:25 "And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS."

ESV Matthew 1:25 "but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus."

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "he did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took his wife; and knew her not until she brought forth her firstborn son." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 2)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Tatian before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the second century in which he lived quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Matthew 5:22 "But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire."

ESV Matthew 5:22 "But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother ? will be liable to judgment; whoever insults his brother will be liable to the council; and whoever says, 'You fool!' will be liable to the hell of fire."

Irenaeus, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows in reference to this text in his Against Heresies: "...not only is the actual murderer held guilty of having killed another to his own damnation, but the man also who is angry with his brother without a cause: who commanded [His disciples] not only not to hate men, but also to love their enemies; and enjoined them not only not to swear falsely, but not even to swear at all; and not only not to speak evil of their neighbors, but not even to style any one "Raca" and "fool." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.1, book 2, chapter 32)

Irenaeus, the 2nd century church-father, again writes as follows in reference to this text in his Against Heresies: "Every one who is angry with his brother without a cause, shall be in danger of the judgment." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.1, book 4, chapter13)

Irenaeus, the 2nd century church-father, again writes as follows in reference to this text in his Against Heresies: "he that is angry with his brother without a cause, shall be in danger of the judgment." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.1, book 4, chapter 16)

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "...every one who is angry with his brother without a cause is worthy of the judgement." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 8)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-fathers Irenaeus and Tatian before the middle of the fourth century, for their own writings from the second century in which they lived quote the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Matthew 6:13 "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen."=

ESV Matthew 6:13 "And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. ? "

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "...thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever and ever." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 9)

In the Constitutions of the Holy Apostles from the 3rd and 4th centuries, the doxology of the Lord's Prayer is quoted thus: "for Thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.7, book 3)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-fathers before the middle of the fourth century, for their own writings from the second and third centuries quote the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Mark 1:2 "As it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee."

ESV Mark 1:2 "As it is written in Isaiah the prophet, "Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way,"

Irenaeus, the 2nd century church-father, writes as follows in reference to this text in his Against Heresies: "Wherefore also Mark, the interpreter and follower of Peter, does thus commence his Gospel narrative: "The beginning of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; as it is written in the prophets, Behold, I send My messenger before Thy face, which shall prepare Thy way." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.1, book 3, chapter 10)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Irenaeus before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the second century in which he lived quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Mark 9:44 "Where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched."

ESV Mark 9:44 "?" {verse 44 does not exist in text of ESV}

The Syriac Peshitta [bibliography #10 and #11] – which is a translation of the New Testament from the 2nd century – was consulted, and it contains this verse. An English translation follows: MRD Mark 9:44 "where their worm dieth not, and their fire is not extinguished." [bibliography #12]

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "If thy hand or thy foot injure thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee; for it is better for thee to enter into life being halt or maimed, and not that thou shouldest have two hands or two feet, and fall into the hell of fire that burneth for ever; where their worm dieth not, and their fire is not quenched."(Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 25)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Tatian before the middle of the fourth century, and to the translators of the Syriac version of the New Testament, for their own works from the second and third centuries quote the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Mark 16:9-20 "Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils. And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept. And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not. After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country. And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them. Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen. And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature. He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned. And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover. So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God. And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen." [entire text is included without any notes questioning its genuineness]

ESV Mark 16:9-20 "[[Now when he rose early on the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. She went and told those who had been with him, as they mourned and wept. But when they heard that he was alive and had been seen by her, they would not believe it. After these things he appeared in another form to two of them, as they were walking into the country. And they went back and told the rest, but they did not believe them. Afterward he appeared to the eleven themselves as they were reclining at table, and he rebuked them for their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they had not believed those who saw him after he had risen. And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover." So then the Lord Jesus, after he had spoken to them, was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God. And they went out and preached everywhere, while the Lord worked with them and confirmed the message by accompanying signs.]]" Notice that the ESV double brackets the text "[[ ]]" and then it includes the following marginal note: "Some manuscripts end the book with 16:8; others include verses 9-20 immediately after verse 8. A few manuscripts insert additional material after verse 14; one Latin manuscript adds after verse 8 the following: But they reported briefly to Peter and those with him all that they had been told. And after this, Jesus himself sent out by means of them, from east to west, the sacred and imperishable proclamation of eternal salvation. Other manuscripts include this same wording after verse 8, then continue with verses 9-20" [what doubt and confusion the ESV's notation casts upon the text! (comment mine, m.e.l.)]

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows, quoting information found only in Mark 16:9 in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "And on the First-day on which he rose, he appeared first unto Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 53)

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows, quoting information found only in Mark 16:16 in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "For whosoever believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but whosoever believeth not shall be rejected." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 55)

Irenaeus, the 2nd century church-father, writes as follows in reference to Mark 16:19 in his Against Heresies: "Also, towards the conclusion of his Gospel, Mark says: "So then, after the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, He was received up into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.1, book 3, chapter 10)

In the Constitutions of the Holy Apostles from the 3rd and 4th centuries, Mark 16:16 is quoted as follows: "He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.7, book 6)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-fathers before the middle of the fourth century, for their own writings from the second and third centuries quote the traditional reading.

KJV Luke 2:14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

ESV Luke 2:14 "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!"

Origen, the 3rd century church-father quotes the passage from Luke as follows: "...at the birth of Jesus "a multitude of the heavenly host," as Luke records, and as I believe, "praised God, saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill towards men," (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.4, book 1, chapter 60)

Methodius, the early 4th century theologian and bishop quotes the passage from Luke as follows: "the angels sang on earth, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwill towards men,"

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-fathers before the middle of the fourth century, for their own writings from the third and early fourth centuries quote the traditional reading.

KJV John 3:13 "And no man hath ascended up to heaven, but he that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven."

ESV John 3:13 "No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. ?"

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "And no man hath ascended up into heaven, except him that descended from heaven, the Son of man, which is in heaven." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 32)

Hippolytus, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his against the heresy of one Noetus: "it is not simply that I say this, but He Himself attests it who came down from heaven; for He speaketh thus: "No man hath ascended up to heaven, but He that came down from heaven, even the Son of man which is in heaven." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.5, The Extant Works and Fragments of Hippolytus, Part 2)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-fathers Tatian and Hippolytus before the middle of the fourth century, for their own writings from the second and early third centuries quote the traditional reading.

KJV John 6:47 "Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life."

ESV John 6:47 "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes ? has eternal life."

Tatian, the 2nd century church-father writes as follows on this text in his Diatessaron (harmony of the Gospels): "Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whosoever believeth in me hath eternal life." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.10, section 19)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Tatian before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the second century in which he lived quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Acts 8:37 "And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."

ESV Acts 8:37 "?" [there is no verse 37 in the ESV, but in a footnote it is said: "Some manuscripts add all or most of verse 37: And Philip said, "If you believe with all your heart, you may." And he replied, "I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God."]

Cyprian, the 3rd century church-father writes as follows on this passage in his Treatises: "In the Acts of the Apostles: "Lo, here is water; what is there which hinders me from being baptized? Then said Philip, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.5, The Treatises of Cyprian, Treatise 12, third book)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Cyprian before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the third century in which he lived quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me."

ESV Philippians 4:13 "I can do all things through him who strengthens me."

Origen, the 3rd century church-father quotes the passage from Philippians as follows: "I can do all things through Christ, who strengtheneth me;" (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.4, Origen De Principiis, book 3, chapter 2, On The Opposing Powers)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Origen before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the third century quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV Colossians 1:14 "In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins:"

ESV Colossians 1:14 "in whom we have redemption ?, the forgiveness of sins."

Irenaeus, the 2nd century church-father, writes as follows in reference to Colossians 1:14 in his Against Heresies: "By His own blood he redeemed us, as also His apostle declares, "In whom we have redemption through His blood, even the remission of sins." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.1, book 5, chapter 2)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Irenaeus before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the second century quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

KJV 1 John 5:7 "For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one."

ESV 1 John 5:7 "For there are three that testify: ?"

Cyprian, the 3rd century church-father writes as follows concerning this passage in his Treatises: "again it is written of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, "And these three are one." (Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol.5, Treatise 1 On the Unity of the Church)

Conclusion: The "Byzantine" reading – Received Text – was certainly known to the early church-father Cyprian before the middle of the fourth century, for his own writing from the third century in which he lived quotes the traditional reading and not the critical reading.

The foregoing quotations from several early church-fathers more then sufficiently demonstrate that the traditional text (the Received Text) was known before the 4th century. Thus, it has been proven that the higher-textual-critics and liberal historical-textual-critics who claim the Textus Receptus was a fabrication in the 4th century are wrong. God has kept His promise to preserve His Word, for God's true Word is indeed the Received Texts which have been present from the day that His Holy Spirit caused His Words to be penned, "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that we through patience and comfort of the scriptures might have hope." (Romans 15:4)

IV. The Available Textual Evidence and how it is viewed

Having considered that our forefathers used the traditional text, this paper will now address the subject of the available textual evidence and how it is viewed. For the purpose of this paper, the expression "available textual evidence" refers to the materials currently available for study in regards to the texts of the Holy Bible prior to the invention and widespread use of moveable-type printing (moveable type printing became the norm from the 1500's A.D. onward). The available textual evidence is in the form of manuscripts, which are hand-written copies of Scripture or portions thereof that are available for perusal in museums, universities, textual research facilities, and the like. These manuscripts are either hand-written copies of the Bible itself in its original languages of Hebrew and Greek, or hand-written portions of lectionaries and liturgies used in the early Christian churches, or hand-written early versions of the Bible in various languages. The current evidence found in manuscripts dates from around the year 200 A.D. down to the time when moveable-type printing became widespread. In part 3 of this paper we already considered some quotes from early church-fathers, and while the quotes in this paper have come from English translations of the church-fathers, it is important to remember that the English translations are based upon their original hand-written works– works which were predominantly in Greek and Latin. Remember that the works of the early church-fathers are not included in the statistics on manuscripts that follow, but are a distinct type of evidence, which is why they were considered separately in part 3 of this paper.

It is far beyond the scope of this paper to evaluate all of the available manuscript evidence in great detail, but some general and very important facts and figures will be supplied presently, all of which are taken from the book: A General Introduction to the Bible [bibliography #13]. Regarding the Old Testament manuscripts, it is stated: "The first collection of Hebrew manuscripts, made by Benjamin Kennicott (A.D. 1776-1780) and published by Oxford, listed 615 manuscripts of the Old Testament. Later Giovanni de Rossi (1784-1788) published a list of 731 manuscripts. The main manuscript discoveries in modern times are those of the Cairo Geniza ©. 1890ff.) and the Dead Sea Scrolls (1947ff.) In the Cairo synagogue attic storeroom alone were discovered some 200,000 manuscripts and fragments, some 10,000 of which are biblical. According to J. T. Milik, fragments of about 600 manuscripts are known from the Dead Sea Scrolls, not all biblical. Moshe Goshen-Gottstein estimates that the total number of Old Testament Hebrew manuscript fragments throughout the world runs into the tens of thousands."

And, regarding the New Testament manuscripts, it is stated: "The New Testament rests on a multitude of manuscript evidence. Counting Greek copies alone, the New Testament text is preserved in some 5,366 partial and complete manuscript portions that were copied by hand from the second through the fifteenth centuries. ...Testimony to the fidelity of the New Testament text comes primarily from three sources: Greek manuscripts, ancient translations, and patristic citations. The first source is the most important and can be subdivided into four classes, commonly termed papyri, uncials, minuscules, and lectionaries. The most distinguishing characteristic of each of those classes has been chosen as its designation. The papyrus manuscripts and over two hundred lectionaries were written in uncial letters. The second and third classes are differentiated by the style of writing, because both were written on vellum or parchment. At present there are 88 catalogued papyri manuscripts, an additional 274 uncial manuscripts in codex format, and 245 lectionaries in uncial script. In addition, 2,795 manuscripts and 1,964 lectionaries in minuscule script have been catalogued." [Note: manuscripts written in uncial letters can be likened to capital letters, while manuscripts written minuscule letters can be likened to lower case cursive writing. In fact, minuscules are also known as cursives.]

Thus, there is a sizeable amount of available textual evidence concerning the words of the Holy Scriptures, but how the available textual evidence is viewed varies considerably! There are in fact three main schools-of-thought, or ways of weighing and interpreting the available textual evidence, and they are: 1) The naturalistic viewpoint, in which the Bible is considered to be no different than any other book, and subsequently the biblical textual manuscript evidence is treated no differently than any other ancient writings. God's promises regarding the inspiration and preservation of the Bible are either ignored or rewritten to accommodate man's thoughts and opinions. Those subscribing to the naturalistic method deny that there is anything supernatural in the Bible's production and transmission. 2) The supernatural/naturalistic viewpoint, in which the Bible is considered as having been inspired by God in the original autographs, but subsequently God abandoned the Bible to the sole care of men to copy and pass along as best they could. God's promises regarding the inspiration of the Bible in its original form are accepted as true, but God's promises regarding the preservation of the Bible are either ignored or rewritten to accommodate man's thoughts and opinions. Those subscribing to the supernatural/naturalistic method affirm the divine inspiration of the Holy Scriptures, but they deny the divine, pristine preservation of the Holy Scriptures. 3) The supernatural viewpoint, in which the Bible is considered as having been verbally and plenarily inspired by God in the original autographs, and subsequently preserved in totality by God through the use of His Holy Christian Church on earth, despite variant readings. God's promises regarding both the divine inspiration of the Bible and its divine, pristine preservation are accepted as absolute truth.

The naturalistic viewpoint (view #1) is held by the liberal church bodies of virtually all denominational labels, as well as many non-denominational groups; for example, among Lutherans the ELCA (Evangelical Lutheran Church in America) officially teaches the naturalistic view in its seminaries. The supernatural/naturalistic viewpoint (view #2) is held by almost all of the remaining church bodies that do not hold to view #1; for example, this includes most Lutheran bodies that still like to call themselves conservative, such as the LCMS (Lutheran Church Missouri Synod) and the WELS (Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod). The supernatural viewpoint (view #3) is held by the true conservative church bodies both denominational and non-denominational; for example, among Lutherans our own ILC (Illinois Lutheran Conference) teaches that God has kept His promises regarding both the divine inspiration of the Bible and its divine, pristine preservation; for He has given and preserved His Word to us in a supernatural manner since His Book is like no other. Those church bodies holding to viewpoint #1 or viewpoint #2 primarily use and promote the use of the critical Old Testament and New Testament printed texts, and hold them to be better than the received, traditional Old Testament and New Testament printed texts. Those church bodies holding to viewpoint #3 believe the received texts to be the very Words first given by inspiration of God, preserved to us in their truth and purity as God has promised, because the fact is that over 95% of the available manuscript evidence supports the readings of the Received Text! That's right, the vast majority of manuscripts support the traditional texts of the Holy Bible and not the critical texts.

What is more, viewpoint #3 is the only truly God-honoring approach to the available textual evidence, for the Lord Jesus says: "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away." (Matthew 24:35)In the Greek our Lord's statement about His words not passing away [ouv mh. pare,lqwsi] is quite emphatic, for syntactically speaking, the Greek double negatives ouv mh.{oo may}"are used together to emphasize the negation." [bibliography #6 (CWS)] Sinful human beings contradict Jesus' promise when they hold the naturalistic position concerning how the available textual evidence is to be viewed, and God's Word says: "To the law and to the testimony: if they speak not according to this word, it is because there is no light in them." (Isaiah 8:20) Thus, the naturalistic "scholars" betray that they are unbelievers, and consequently they cannot rightly evaluate textual evidence because they do not approach their study with the proper, God-honoring mind-set. The naturalistic scholars, and those of the supernatural/naturalistic camp, have thrown aside the traditional, Received Texts of the Holy Bible, choosing instead to follow their own faulty principals and reasoning, and a small minority of the available textual evidence, for they in practice set aside 95% or more of the available manuscript evidence! This will be illustrated from one Old Testament example and one New Testament example; hundreds of other examples could be given, but such is beyond the limits of this paper.

Old Testament example:

KJV Genesis 4:8 "And Cain talked with Abel his brother: and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother, and slew him."

NIV Genesis 4:8 "Now Cain said to his brother Abel, "Let's go out to the field." And while they were in the field, Cain attacked his brother Abel and killed him."

Comment: the underlined phrase in the New International Version has no Hebrew manuscript support whatsoever! The NIV includes the following note "t" at the bottom of its page: "Samaritan Pentateuch, Septuagint, Vulgate and Syriac; Masoretic Text does not have Let's go out to the field." Thus, in Genesis 4:8 the NIV translators admittedly fail to abide by the traditional Hebrew text in preference to the reading of a few early translations of the Old Testament. What is more, they even manufacture a Hebrew reading to match their translation and place it into the Hebrew text in brackets on page 9 of The Interlinear NIV Hebrew-English Old Testament [hd<F'h;hk'l]nE] [the-field let-us-go]. They footnote their addition to the Hebrew text with the following words: "This Hebrew reading and translation is conjectured on the basis of the early versions listed above in note t." [emphasis mine, m.e.l. — conjecture is just plain guesswork] It is clear that the translators and editors of the NIV do not believe that God has preserved the Hebrew Old Testament Text in its full truth and purity, for they have the audacity and disrespect to add words to the Hebrew text itself, even though the words they chose to add are not found in the thousands of Hebrew Masoretic text manuscripts currently available. They obviously prefer ancient translations of the Bible to the God-given Hebrew Text itself simply because they choose to do so, for their alteration is unnecessary since the Hebrew text makes sense without their additional phrase. Hence, those people that endorse the NIV obviously hold naturalistic views regarding the transmission of the Old Testament Hebrew Text. The manuscript evidence overwhelmingly does not support the critical conclusions of the "scholars" that have given the public the New International Version of the Bible and its Interlinear Hebrew counterpart.

New Testament example:

The New Testament Greek manuscripts that are represented by the printed editions of the Received Text on the one hand, and the printed editions of the Critical Text on the other hand, display literally thousands of textual differences. Again I will use the familiar lengthy section of Scripture from Mark's Gospel that is double bracketed "[[ ]]" in the Nestle-Aland 27th edition critical text (NA27) and the United Bible Societies 4th edition (UBS4). In the introduction to NA27 on page 50 it is stated: "Double brackets in the text ([[ ]]) indicate that the enclosed words, generally of some length, are known not to be part of the original text. These texts derive from a very early stage of the tradition, and have often played a significant role in the history of the church (cf. Jn 7,53-8,11)." [emphasis mine, m.e.l.] So, the critical scholars that have compiled and edited NA27 do not believe that passages such as Mark 16:9-20 and John 7:53 - 8:11 are part of the original text. It makes one wonder why they bothered to include those passages at all! Could it be that their conscience still bothers them a bit about their expunging those passages? I don't know, because only God can read their heart; however, it is certain from their statements that they do not believe that God has kept His promise of preservation regarding His Word. It is important to look at textual facts rather than "critical opinions" and "decisions by conjecture" that the so-called "scholars" of today would foist upon us.

Mark 16:9-20 (KJV)
9 Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils.
10 And she went and told them that had been with him, as they mourned and wept.
11 And they, when they had heard that he was alive, and had been seen of her, believed not.
12 After that he appeared in another form unto two of them, as they walked, and went into the country.
13 And they went and told it unto the residue: neither believed they them.
14 Afterward he appeared unto the eleven as they sat at meat, and upbraided them with their unbelief and hardness of heart, because they believed not them which had seen him after he was risen.
15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.
16 He that believeth and is baptized shall be saved; but he that believeth not shall be damned.
17 And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues;
18 They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.
19 So then after the Lord had spoken unto them, he was received up into heaven, and sat on the right hand of God.
20 And they went forth, and preached every where, the Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen.

Comments: As we considered previously in part 3 of this paper, Mark 16:9-20 was known to early church-fathers, and therefore it must have been present in the Greek manuscripts they used. In the current section of this paper the available manuscript evidence is the primary concern, so here is a quote from a handbook to the UBS4 critical text (note well that the following data is from those who are opposed to the Received Text): "The last twelve verses of the commonly received text of Mark are absent from the two oldest Greek manuscripts (a and B), from the Old Latin codex Bobiensis (it), the Sinaitic Syriac manuscript, about one hundred Armenian manuscripts, and the two oldest Georgian manuscripts (written a.d. 897 and a.d. 913). ...The traditional ending of Mark, so familiar through the AV and other translations of the Textus Receptus, is present in the vast number of witnesses, including A C D K W X Delta Theta Pi Psi 099 0112 f­ 28 33 al." [bibliography #14] Thus, the critical scholar cites only two Greek manuscripts as evidence for the omission of Mark 16:9-20 while admitting that the verses are present in the vast number of witnesses! NA27 in its critical apparatus lists manuscript "304" as also supporting the omission in addition to Aleph and B, thus bringing the grand total to three manuscripts supporting the omission. NA27 in its critical apparatus also lists additional manuscripts in support of the inclusion of Mark 16:9-20, and they are "2427" and the symbol "M" (= Majority text manuscripts totaling in the thousands). In other words, only a few Greek manuscripts support the omission of Mark 16:9-20, while thousands of Greek manuscripts include Mark 16:9-20!

There is even more proof for the inclusion of Mark 16:9-20, because early Latin, Syriac, and Coptic versions contain the passage. I have checked for Mark 16:9-20 in my copies of the Clementine Latin Vulgate (c. A.D. 383-405) and the Syriac Peshitta (2nd to 4th century A.D.), and the last 12 verses of Mark's Gospel are found in both of those ancient versions. Additionally, a believing textual critic of the 19th century reports in his book on the last twelve verses of Mark: "All the Twelve Verses in dispute are found in every known copy of the venerable Lectionary of the East. Those same Twelve Verses, – neither more nor less – are observed to constitute one integral Lection." [bibliography #15]

It is therefore crystal clear that Mark 16:9-20 is genuine Scripture about which there should be no doubt whatsoever! It is obvious that the higher-textual-critics who love to be called "scholars" have ignored the abundant manuscript evidence that testifies to the genuineness of the last twelve verses of Mark's Gospel simply because they slavishly obey the decrees of "Aleph" and "B" – two 4th century manuscripts "discovered" in Roman Catholic facilities. Thus, the available textual evidence overwhelmingly shows the Received Text to be absolutely correct in its inclusion of Mark 16:9-20. God has preserved His Word intact as He promised! "For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away: But the word of the Lord endureth for ever. And this is the word which by the gospel is preached unto you." (1 Peter 1:24-25)

Conclusion

At the beginning of this paper the importance of the issue of the Superiority of the Received Texts was stated as being the fact that the Bible is the place where God reveals Himself to us not only as the Father and the Holy Ghost, but also as the incarnate Word, Jesus Christ our Lord and only Savior from sin, death, the devil, and hell. It has been demonstrated throughout this paper that the critical texts do indeed attack vital doctrines in regards to the deity of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, as well as doctrines regarding sin and salvation. Additionally, it has been shown that God's promises and God's honor are involved, and these are not things that are to be taken lightly by any Christian. We would all do well to remember that Jesus says: "He that rejecteth me, and receiveth not my words, hath one that judgeth him: the word that I have spoken, the same shall judge him in the last day." (John 12:48) "It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." (Matthew 4:4)

Every Word of God is important! Therefore, it is a matter of necessity to stay with the Received Texts of the Old and New Testaments; and, it is vital that those texts be faithfully translated in a formally equivalent manner and not in a dynamically equivalent manner (dynamic equivalence is a fancy term for paraphrase). The King James Version of the Holy Bible is the ONLY English translation currently available that has the proper foundational texts – the Hebrew Masoretic Text of the Old Testament, and the Greek Textus Receptus New Testament – and is translated in the formally equivalent manner (word-for-word translation). On the other hand, the modern English versions of the Bible (NIV, NAS, ESV, New Living, NKJV, NRSV, Message, etc.) have the faulty foundation of the critical Old and New Testament texts, plus other sources, and they all use the dynamic equivalence method of translation (they all paraphrase to some degree, some more and some less). Therefore, stick with the KJV, for it has the proper foundation, and it utilizes the proper translation technique; it is faithful to the GOD-GIVEN and GOD-PRESERVED original-language texts of the Holy Bible. Remember that Jesus declares: "If ye continue in my word, then are ye my disciples indeed; And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free." (John 8:31-32) Let us continue in Jesus' Word, for then we shall know Him and continue to know Him as the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

Soli Deo Gloria!

m.e.l.

-------------------------

Bibliography

1) All English Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible King James Version 1611/1769 unless otherwise noted. via BibleWorks 7 software or LOGOS Bible software 3 /Libronix DLS

2) All New Testament Greek Scripture quotations, unless otherwise noted, are taken from the Greek Textus Receptus, the F.H.A. Scrivener 1894 - Theodore Beza 1598 Greek New Testament (SCR) unaccented text ASCII edition copyright 1994 by the Online Bible Foundation and Woodside Fellowship of Ontario, Canada. New Testament Greek quotations labeled BNT are from the Novum Testamentum Graece, Nestle-Aland 27th Edition. Copyright (c) 1993 Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, Stuttgart. all via BibleWorks 7

3) All Hebrew quotations are from the Masoretic Text as found in the printed edition of the traditional Hebrew Old Testament text as typeset by the British and Foreign Bible Society in 1866, based on the Ben Chayyim Hebrew MT, Bomberg edition of 1525. Fonts utilized from BHS via Bible Works 7

4) Greek lexical information, unless otherwise noted, is from the abridged Thayer's Lexicon via Bible Works 7

5) Hebrew lexical information, unless otherwise noted, is from the abridged BDB Hebrew Lexicon via BibleWorks 7

6) Grammatical information for the Greek and Hebrew words is from the morphological databases in BibleWorks 7 (BW7); or from the Complete Word Study Bible/Dictionary (CWS), King James Version, AMG publishers, Spiros Zodhiates & Warren Baker editors; via Libronix DLS software

7) Strong's Concordance/Hebrew and Greek Dictionary quotations are from "Englishman-Strong's Concordance, Copyright 1993. via Online Bible or LOGOS Bible software 3 /Libronix DLS

8) Quotations from "Luther's Works" are from the 55 volume American edition of 1957, by Concordia Publishing House and Fortress Press, electronic edition via Libronix DLS

9) Quotations from the "Early Church Fathers" from the set by P. Schaff, (electronic ed. Garland, TX: Galaxie Software) via Libronix DLS

10) THE PESHITTA, Kiraz, G. A. (2002). The Peshitta. Bellingham, WA: Logos Research Systems, inc. via Libronix DLS

11) PES - The Peshitta (Aramaic New Testament). The text of the Aramaic is taken from The Syriac New Testament and Psalms, published by United Bible Societies, specifically the Bible Society in Turkey. In 1905 the British and Foreign Bible Society published an edition of the Gospels in Syriac, reprinted by permission from a revised text of the Peshitta Version which had been prepared by the late Rev. G.H. Gwilliam, B.D., with a Latin translation and critical apparatus, and issued by the Clarendon Press in 1901. via Bible Works 7

12) MRD English translation of the Peshitta via Bible Works 7

13) Quotations from "A General Introduction to the Bible" via LOGOS Bible software 3 /Libronix DLS

14) Metzger, B. M., & United Bible Societies. (1994). A textual commentary on the Greek New Testament, second edition a companion volume to the United Bible Societies' Greek New Testament (4th rev. ed.). London; New York: United Bible Societies. via LOGOS Bible software 3 /Libronix DLS

15) The Last Twelve Verses of The Gospel According to S. Mark vindicated against certain critical objectors and established, by John W. Burgon B.D.; originally published in 1871 by James Parker and Co., Oxford and London; reprinted 2002 by the Dean Burgon Society, box 354, Collingswood, NJ 08108

Copyright information

KJV, KJA, KJG - Authorized Version (KJV) - 1769 Blayney Edition of the 1611 King James Version of the English Bible - with Larry Pierce's Englishman's-Strong's Numbering System, ASCII version. Copyright © 1988-1997 by the Online Bible Foundation and Woodside Fellowship of Ontario, Canada. Licensed from the Institute for Creation Research.

L45 - Luther Bible 1545. This is an electronic version of the original Luther Bible. Public domain.

ESV - English Standard Version. Scripture quotations [labeled ESV] are from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version, copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a division of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

NAS/NAU - The New American Standard Bible (NASB) (NAS [1977] and NAU [1995]). Copyright © 1986, both by The Lockman Foundation. All rights reserved. Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE, © Copyright The Lockman Foundation 1960,1962, 1963, 1968, 1971, 1972, 1973, 1975, 1977, 1988, 1995. Used by permission.

MRD - Peshitta - James Murdock Translation (1852) - James Murdock published The New Testament, A Literal Translation from the Syriac Peshito Version, in 1851, published by Robert Carter & Brothers, New York.

TRIGLOT CONCORDIA, The Symbolical Books of the Ev. Lutheran Church, (German, Latin, English) Concordia Publihing House. 1921. St. Louis, Mo. Reprinted in 1988 by Northwestern Publishing House, Milwaukee, Wi.

NIV - The New International Version. Scripture quoted by permission. Quotations designated (NIV) are from THE HOLY BIBLE: NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION®. NIV®. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved.

A GENERAL INTRODUCTION TO THE BIBLE (Rev. and expanded.). Geisler, N. L., & Nix, W. E. (1996, c1986). Chicago: Moody Press.

THE INTERLINEAR NIV HEBREW-ENGLISH OLD TESTAMENT, one volume edition, John R. Kohlenberger III, editor; copyrighted, Zondervan Publishing House

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(Psalm 1)