500th Anniversary of the Reformation Sample

The Reformers: John Rogers

John Rogers printed the second complete English Bible in 1537 under the pseudonym of Thomas Matthew. It became known as the “Matthew's Bible.” In the early sixteenth century, it was illegal to own an English Bible. Tyndale had earlier translated much of the Bible into English, and was ultimately put to death. Rogers took on Tyndale’s task, and he was later executed by Queen Mary of England—burned at the stake in 1555. For the Matthew's Bible, Rogers used the translation work of Tyndale and Myles Coverdale, who had published the first complete English Bible in 1535. When the Bible was published, the attribution read: “translated by Thomas Matthew.” Historians conclude that it was likely a pseudonym for William Tyndale—his name still too dangerous to use! This verse from Isaiah 1 appears on the title page of the 1537 Matthew's Bible.