The story of the transmission of the Scriptures is a miracle in itself. Even though we are cut off from original manuscripts, God's providential care over His Word during the long period in which the sacred text was transmitted in copies written by hand is a miracle.

It is inconceivable that Almighty God, Who chose to give His Word to man as the vital and essential instrument in the salvation of His people, would fail in the preservation of His own written revelation.

Both the Hebrew text of the Old Testament and the Greek text of the New Testament have been preserved with remarkable purity.

• The scribes who copied Hebrew manuscripts were keenly aware of the fact that they were handling a sacred and precious revelation. They were trained to exercise the greatest care.
  
• They counted not only the words but the letters, making note of how many times each particular word and letter occurred.
  
• If an error was detected, the entire sheet would be destroyed and the scribe would begin again.
  
• They knew they were handling God's revelation to man; therefore the rule for the copyist to follow was that of pronouncing each word aloud before writing it, and never was a single word to be written from memory.
  
• No other written work of ancient times has been transmitted with such care and therefore as accurately as the Word of God has been.

  
  
  
  
  
  
  

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