Writing through the Ages
by Rit NosotroChange Over Time essay
Trace the production and use of writing materials from ancient clay tablets, papyrus, hides, bones, quills… up to digital media. What has been the greatest use of writing?
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Summary:
Throughout the ages, writing has been used by
poets to incite love and by warriors to incite hate. It has been the tool of revolutionaries
and dictators to sway the masses. But what has been the greatest use of writing?
Even if the Bible was not the best selling book of all time, God's message for
mankind has been written in creation (Ps 19) and in our hearts (Rom. 1). The whole
development of writing has been part of God's plan, which he has used since Genesis
to record his plans for mankind.
History of writing
Writing materials have changed right along with writing since the beginning
of its development. Linguists agree that the first kind of writing was little
pictures scratched out on smooth surfaces with crude implements. Over time these
pictures either became more abstract, turning into symbols that stood for different
things, or they became symbols that represented sounds in a language. Around
4000 BC writing implements got a new spin put on them. Someone discovered that
symbols were much more easily imprinted on wet clay tablets rather than stone.
By 3000 BC the Egyptians had developed papyrus which was a lot less bulky to
store and it could be written on with ink. In 1300 BC the Romans started using
a metal stylus to write on wax tablets. Soon it was discovered that leather,
also known as parchment, made a great writing surface. Paper was developed in
China in the 1st century AD but remained a secret there until it was exported
to Japan. It spread to Spain in 711 AD. Because writing on paper was a much
finer job than on parchment or tablets, new writing utensils had to be developed,
thus the quill started being used around 600 AD. In the 1450s Johannes
Gutenberg used his movable type printing press and, taking advantage of
the readily available rag paper (clothing recycled from the Great Plague), printed
the Bible. Martin Luther's German
translation (1522) brought the Bible and the Reformation to the masses as well
as William Tyndale New Testament (1525).
The next major writing invention was the pencil which was developed in France
in the 1790´s. About a century later, mechanized writing became possible in
the home when E. Remington & Sons Company started producing the first typewriters.
Finally, the modern invention of computers, printers, scanners etc. came about.
There have been many inventions that have gone hand in hand with the development
and furthering of writing.
How God has used writing
From the moment God formed his plans for mankind, he had writing in mind. Because
man's memory is far from perfect, God used writing in many ways. It is not known
if oral transmission or writing carried Adam's Eden experiences over the three
generations to Noah. It is known that Abram was called out from a literate society.
The Old Testament contains the history of men and women of faith (Heb.11) who
believed God's word He directed. It is written in Exodus 17:14, "Then the
LORD said to Moses, "Write this for a memorial in the book and recount
it in the hearing of Joshua..." Isaiah was also told, "Now go, write
it before them on a tablet, And note it on a scroll, That it may be for time
to come, Forever and ever" (Isa 30:8). The 1947 discovery of the Dead Sea
Scrolls (which included the complete book of Isaiah) proved the inerrancy of
scripture as it had been meticulously copied over two millennium.
God's plan for mankind is woven through the Bible's history, prasies, wisdom literature, and prophecies. Ever since Adam's sin, God has continued to intervene with his justice and mercy. His holiness couldn't excuse sin without the penalty of death. "Therefore sin came into the world through one man (Adam) and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned" (Romans 5:12). However, this chapter also says that: "While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."1 "Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ . . . " (Romans 5:1), who paid his life so that man could have fellowship with God. God wants his wonderful gift to be shared with everyone because no hope remains for anyone who doesn't accept this gift. For this reason God directed man to write this Gospel (Good News) so that "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord, will be saved"1 (Acts 2:21).
Why the Bible is without fault when compared to other ´Holy´ books
Among the world's largest religions, Judaism, Christianity, and Islam place
such utmost importance on their scriptures that they are known as "people
of the book". Muhammad said of the Christian Bible, as recorded in Sura
3:3 of the Koran, It is He who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the
Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and
the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind, and He sent down the
criterion (of judgment between right and wrong). As for Biblical accuracy, "No
falsehood can approach it from before or behind it: It is sent down by One Full
of Wisdom, Worthy of all Praise" (Sura 41:42).
No other 'religious' book can really even compare with the Bible's uniqueness. "The Bible was written over a period of approximately 1500 years. The five books of Moses [Torah] can be dated c. 1400 B.C. and the last book of the New Testament, Revelation, c. A.D. 90."2 "The writers themselves were a heterogeneous number of people, not only separated from each other by hundreds of years and hundreds of miles, but belonging to the most diverse walks of life. In their ranks we have kings, herdsmen, soldiers, legislators, fishermen, statesmen, courtiers, priests and prophets... For all this, the Bible is not simply an anthology; there is a unity which binds the whole together."3 In addition to this, it is simply a miracle that the Bible has survived until today. It has been slashed, burned, and mutilated since its first word was written down. Yet whether it was hidden in caves or sent elsewhere for safe keeping, the Bible has survived every attempt to obliterate it. It still remains, fulfilling what is said about it in Mark 13:31, "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my [God's] words will never pass away."1
There are many tests one could apply to the Bible showing that it is unique among all other books. One of the most important is the test of self preservation. That is, has it stood up under the attack of heresies that pose to be a part of it. At first glance, books such as the Apocrypha appear to be made of the same material as the rest of the Bible, but under close examination they do not hold up. "They abound in historical and geographical inaccuracies and anachronisms. They teach doctrines which are false and foster practices which are at variance with inspired Scripture... They resort to literary types and display an artificiality of subject matter and styling out of keeping with inspired Scripture. They lack the distinctive elements which give genuine Scripture their divine character, such as prophetic power and poetic and religious feeling."3 This is also the main reason that the Bible can be considered as truth when compared to other holy books. The fluid narrative of the Torah contrasts the Koran's haphazard collection of utterances. The Bible speaks a clear and powerful truth. It shows the authority of God through the countless prophesies that have been fulfilled. Unlike the Book of Mormon, the Koran, the Mahabharata (The Great Epic of India), or any other religious book, the Bible never contradicts itself. Not only that, but archeology has shown through that the Bible is historically accurate and contextual criticism has shown it has not deviated from its original message. Most importantly, God’s Word is “living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword” (Heb. 4:12-13). This message of love is alive, with "power able to transform and equip" (2 Timothy 3:15-17) to any who accept it.
Writing has changed from simple scribblings to powerfully descriptive words that can sway armies; thus, "the pen is more powerful than the sword". From Belshazzar seeing the writing on the wall (Daniel 5) to symbols scratched in gold plate on the Pioneer 10 (which passed Pluto in 1983), writing has been used in every way imaginable. Yet most importantly it has been entrusted with God's own words. John 1 says, "In the beginning was the word (Logos) and the word was with God, and the word was God". God sent his only son as truth to all who accept Him. John 8:32 says, "Then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free."1 From the foundations of the world, God has kept a "Book of Life" in which is written the names of those whose sin has been covered (Ex. 32:33, Rev. 3:5, 13:8, 20:12-15). This is the greatest writing of all.
Bibliography
Bellis, Mary. "A Brief History of Writing Instruments." Primedia Company.
2004. 16 Sept. 2004 Kilmon, Jack. "The History of Writing." 16 Sept. 2004. Kollar, Jonathan. "History of the typewriter." PageWise, Inc. 2002. 16 Sept.
2004 http://www.essortment.com/history.html>.
Endnotes:
1The New International
Version Bible. Nashville, Tennessee: Broadman & Holman Publishers, 1986.
Reimer, Stephen R. "Manuscript Studies Medieval and Early Modern." 1998, 16
Sept 2004. 2Showers, Renald. "Two
Millennia of Church History." 2000-2004. hyperhistory.net. 16 Sept. 2004 "Writing Instruments Over 6000 Years." RINGPEN.COM Web Site. 1997. Sept. 2004
3McDowell, Josh. Evidence
that Demands a Verdict. United States of America: Campus Crusade for Christ,
Inc., 1972.
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