Rescuing an Ancient Gem From the Trash

Conclusion of WHAT THE RYLANDS FRAGMENT REVEALS

What were the advantages of the codex over the scroll?  Well, the early Christians were evangelizers.  (Matthew 24:14; 28:19, 20) They spread the Bible's message wherever they could find people-in homes, in marketplaces, and on the street.  (Acts 5:42; 17:17; 20:20) So having access to the Scriptures in a compact format was much more practical. 

The codex also made it easier for congregations and individuals to make their own copies of the Scriptures.  Thus,the Gospels were copied over and over again, and this no doubt contributed to the rapid growth of Christianity.  

A second reason why the Rylands fragment is important to us today is that it reveals how reliably the original Bible text was transmitted. Though the fragment contains just a few verses from John's Gospel, its contents agree almost exactly with what we read to day in our own copies of the Bible.  The Rylands fragment thus shows that the Bible  has not been altered despite being copied and recopied over time.

Of course, the Rylands fragment of John's Gospel is but one piece of evidence among the thousands of fragments and manuscripts that confirm the reliable transmission of the original Bible text. In his book, The Bible as History, Werner Keller concluded;  "These old [manuscripts] are the most convincing answer to all doubts as to the genuineness and reliability of the text that we have in our Bibles today. 

True Christians do not base their faith on archaeological finds.  They believe that "all Scripture is inspired of God." (2 Timothy 3:16) Nonetheless, how reassuring it is when priceless gems from the past confirm what the Bible has said all along:  "The saying of Jehovah endures forever"! - 1 Peter 1:25. 

Next time: A CONVERSATION WITH A NEIGHBOR- Why Commemorate the Death of Jesus?

From the Watchtower magazine, 2015