Brief Sketch of the Events of 125 Years.
* T. B. Society Quarterly Record April—June Edition.
THIS Society came into being at a time when many great movements were being fostered. From a religious standpoint the eighteenth century had been a period of drowsy content, Church and Nonconformity being lulled into a self-satisfied sleep.
As the century drew to a close the hammer taps on William Carey’s last in his little cobbler’s shop, as he thought and dreamed of carrying the Gospel to far away India, began to make an impression upon the churches of the Midlands. Then, as the nineteenth century dawned Christian people in England suddenly woke up, and in a short time the world was ringing with pleading voices; and God-given eloquence moved the hearts of believers to action. William Carey’s hammer had touched off the spring which set the whole thing in motion, and Societies for various good ends began to spring up everywhere. The torch of missionary effort lit up the need for the printed Scriptures, and out of a simple incident in Wales the British and Foreign Bible Society was born. Other needs engaged the mind of thinking men, and The Aged Pilgrims’ Friend Society and other similar institutions met a deep need among the poor. Thus the consciences of men were aroused to the miseries of the heathen, the poor, and the slaves; and the cause of the oppressed was sponsored from pulpit and platform.
In the course of the first thirty years of the century rapid development of various schemes for the good of those in need revealed the inherent weakness of enthusiastic but hasty organization. This led to much acrimonious controversy and in many cases the splitting up of many of the organizations into a number of parts, each party following some particular view point. Sometimes this resulted in the complete breaking up of the organization, but in other cases it issued in the establishment of Societies working in some respects upon parallel lines, but varying in principles, which has proved to have been all to the good. And in the course of time, as the fires of controversy have burned low, each Society has carried out a useful ministry in its own particular field of labour.
It was during this period of fierce controversy (in 1831) that the Trinitarian Bible Society arose, and out of the flames of conflict was established. The older Society, which had been founded in the early days of the century, was not founded primarily as a religious institution. It had risen from the obvious need for the printed Scriptures, and their sale at a reasonable price everywhere. Consequently its objects were commercial rather than religious. Some of its members, however, felt that a Bible Society should be first and foremost a religious society. This led to a proposition to include prayer in the agenda of each meeting of the Society. This was defeated, and the movers made further attempts, but without success. The desire, however, grew and finally a considerable number of the members of the Society seceded and formed themselves into a new society with a religious basis.
During those turbulent years a strong wave of questioning was sweeping through the churches, and many voices were raised in denial of the deity of Christ. This engulfed large numbers of churches, particularly Presbyterian and Baptist, and many Christian institutions were tottering under the pressure of unbelief. This made the founders of the new Bible Society more wary, for in considering that a Bible Society was a religious institution, they, of necessity, visualised a religious institution based upon the orthodox doctrines of the Christian faith. Moreover, the older Society, constituted as it was, had no means of guarding itself against the onslaught. The founders of the new Society therefore, called it “THE TRINITARIAN BIBLE SOCIETY,” a title which served clearly to distinguish it from the old foundation, but also to evidence its standing as an orthodox religious institution.
Later this basis was firmly settled by the addition of the Rules of the Society of extracts from the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England, and from the Westminster Confession, relating to the deity of Christ and the doctrine of the Trinity.
Thus soundly originated, in the old Exeter Hall, Strand, in 1831, the Trinitarian Bible Society has continued to this day, firmly established upon the foundation laid down by those men who insisted that a Bible Society was a religious institution.
Since those days other controversies have arisen into which it is not necessary to enter here, save to say that chief among them was the question of the circulation of versions of the Scriptures in continental languages, made from the corrupted Clementine version of the Vulgate. This the T.B.S. constantly opposed, believing that a Bible Society has a solemn responsibility before God to send forth His Word in the purest possible forms.
In more recent years the Society has largely developed its circulation rather than its controversial activities, and has considerably enlarged its field of operations.
In 1831 there were but two generally recognized versions of the Scriptures in English, namely the Authorized Version, and the Roman Catholic Douai version. The same distinction applied also to many continental languages; but in 1881 the introduction of the Revised Version commenced a long chain of modernized versions of the Scriptures to which new links are added every year. It is not the purpose of this Society to discuss these various productions, or to estimate their value as translations. The Society is bound by its laws to circulate only the Authorized Version in English, and equivalent versions in other languages. This it does, and there is every evidence of Divine approval.
The founders of the Trinitarian Bible Society seemed to regard the establishment of the Society as a temporary organization rather than one with a long usefulness before it. They had no wish to be separated from the older society, and felt quite convinced that the remaining members of the older society would come to see as they did, and would adopt prayer at their meetings, a guard against Unitarianism, and bar the circulation of Roman Catholic versions. So firmly were they convinced of this that when the 50th anniversary of the older society arrived they conceived it would be a fit time for these things to be done. When they were done the T.B.S. could close down its offices, and its members return to the fold.
To their great disappointment the older society refused to change its position, and the hopeful members of the T.B.S. were forced to retire, consider their empty shelves, and almost empty coffers, and come to the conclusion that the Lord intended that the T.B.S. should still bear its separate witness in the field of Bible distribution.
From this date—1856—the Trinitarian Bible Society made a new start. A new beginning with an entirely new objective—to build a Bible Society which should continue down through the years the witness and work visualised by the founders. This year therefore has a double significance. It is the 125th year of the Society’s existence, and 100 years since the reconstruction.
From that time the Society has never looked back, the first twelve years were hard and seemingly fruitless. Nevertheless, the Society did not stand still. Work was put in hand in hope; and though there was little money coming in, yet, by careful husbanding of all resources, the first courses were laid of a structure which has not merely increased a hundredfold, but a thousand fold. Income, circulation, production and expansion has gone on continuously from that day to this, and we can now look back and praise God for His wonder working over 125 years of circulating the Word of God.
I will give them pastors that shall feed them with knowledge and understanding. Those who take upon themselves to be pastors, and neglect this work of feeding the flock, may, at as cheap a rate, and with equal modesty, renounce Jesus Christ.—John Owen, D.D.