A page from a red-letter edition King James Bible

Red letter edition bibles are those in which the words considered as being spoken by Jesus Christ are printed in red ink.

History

The inspiration for printing the words of Jesus in red comes from Luke 22:20: "This cup is the new testament in my blood, which I shed for you." On 19 June 1899, Louis Klopsch, then editor of The Christian Herald magazine, conceived the idea while working on an editorial. Klopsch asked his mentor Rev. Thomas De Witt Talmage what he thought of a New Testament with the words of Jesus in red and Dr. Talmage replied, "It could do no harm and it most certainly could do much good."[1]

Klopsch published the first modern red letter edition New Testament later in 1899. The first modern, fully "red letter" bible was published in 1901.[2] The red letter bible instantly became popular, and is sometimes favored by Protestant Christians in the United States. The format has been cited as particularly useful in King James Version editions, which do not use quotation marks.[1][2]

Qualifications

Because the original texts of the Bible do not have quotation marks, which words exactly are of Jesus has been interpreted, as opposed to explanatory text that follows them. For example, a footnote in the New International Version for John, 3:21 explains that "Some interpreters end the quotation after verse 15."[3]

Precursor

The Deir Alla Inscription, the oldest West Semitic epigraph written in an alphabet, uses red for emphasis. Levine says red was "used in certain parts of the inscriptions for magical effect."[4]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Eng, Steve. "The Story Behind: Red Letter Bible Editions". International Society of Bible Collectors. Retrieved 2013-01-02.
  2. 1 2 "Origin of Red-Letter Bibles | Crossway". Esv.org. 1994-06-20. Retrieved 2011-11-22.
  3. ↑ HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society.
  4. ↑ Levine, Baruch A. (2014). "The Deir Calla Plaster Inscriptions". {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)

Further reading

  • The New Testament of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ : (Authorized Version) with all the words recorded therein, as having been spoken by our Lord, printed in color., New York : Christian Herald, Louis Klopsch, Proprietor : Bible House, 1903, ©1899.
  • Life-work of Louis Klopsch : romance of a modern knight of mercy, Charles M Pepper, New York : Christian herald, 1910.
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