Gide. I'm Gary Stevens. And welcome to the second series of the History in the Bible podcast.

More of the history in more of the books in all the Bibles.

Episode 2.60, an epilogue and a prologue, my season two finally.

In this episode, I provide an epilogue for my second season and a prologue for my third.

First, the epilogue. I do hope you have all enjoyed

the second season of the podcast. I tell you, I had a hoot making it. My show relies entirely

on the ideas and words of others. I do not speak Hebrew or Greek or Latin. I have never

attended a course in biblical studies. I am a populariser, not a scholar. I am a buff,

someone who knows just enough to be dangerous. In a very fundamental way, I have no idea what I am talking about.

I have never claimed to be objective.

I made that point in the very first episode of the show in 2015.

Well, it's right up there in my show description. I have doted on some scholars

while ignoring others. I figure it's my show, so I may do as I please. Let me recount my sources.

First, the New Testament text I have used.

All the books of the New Testament were written in Greek.

None reveal a Hebrew or Aramaic original.

I'll pursue that further in my third season.

There are two issues. What is the best Greek text that we have? And what is the best

English translation of that text? The first question is easily answered. The opinion of Catholic

and most Protestant churches is that the go-to text is a compendium called

the Novum Testamentum Greiki.

It was first compiled in the early 20th century by the German scholars Eberhard Nessler

...