Amharic Bible History (3)

**List: Amharic Ministry the Bible ( the Bible ) Amharic... "III.--AMHARIC VERSION OF SCRIPTURE.    The Gospel of St. Mark was translated by Mr. Pearce, under the superintendence of the Rev. Mr. Jowett, and this MS., written in Roman characters, is now in the possession of the British and Foreign Bible Society.   An Amharic version of the entire Scriptures, which has superseded all others, was commenced about 1810 by M. Asselin de Cherville, French consul at Cairo.   After many fruitless inquiries for a person competent to aid him in the acquisition of the language, he was providentially directed to an old man named Abu Rumi, whom he eventually engaged to translate the Scriptures.   "Imagine," said M. Asselin, "my surprise in finding in this poor old man a person master of the literature of his country; a traveller who had penetrated the most remote regions of Asia; the instructor of Bruce and of Sir William Jones." Abu Rumi was well qualified for the work of translation by his acquaintance with Arabic, Greek, Persian, and several other languages besides his own.   He executed his version under the immediate direction of M. Asselin; twice a week, during a period of ten years, they secluded themselves from all other occupations, and read together the Arabic version from which the translation was to be made. M. Asselin explained such terms as were abstruse, difficult, or foreign to the Arabic, by reference to the original text, the Syriac version, the Septuagint, and various glossaries, but Abu Rumi also often found the key to them in the Ethiopic itself.   In the early portions of the work, M. Assehn declared that he had often occasion to admire the patience of his aged companion; but when they came to the Epistles of St. Paul, Abu Rumi's zeal began to cool, the difficulty of the task frightened him, he wanted to set off for Jerusalem, and it was only by dint of time, care and sacrifices, that M. Asselin convinced him of the necessity of not leaving the work imperfect.   It may not be uninteresting to mention that this poor old man, immediately on the completion of his work, executed his favourite project of visiting Jerusalem, and was cut off by the plague soon after his arrival.   The version was sold by M. Asselin to the British and Foreign Bible Society.   The Rev. Mr. Jowett was employed by the Society in carrying on the negotiation, and in 1820 he undertook a journey from Malta to Cairo to effect the purchase.   The purchase money was £1250.   The MS. was brought to England in 1821, and was read with much approbation by those acquainted with the language.   Dr. Lee, in a letter addressed to the Bible Committee, dated 1822, says, "the work appears to have been executed with uncommon ability and accuracy.   There is no attempt whatever to display the learning of the translator by any of that verbiage so common to all the languages of the East, but all is precise, easy, and natural."   In 1824 the Gospels were carried through the press by Dr. Lee, Mr. Jowett, and Mr. Platt, and in 1829 the entire Amharic Testament was completed.   In 1840 the Old Testament was published, and in 1842 an edition of the whole Scriptures.   In superintending the printing of these editions, Mr. Platt carefully compared Abu Rumi's edition with the original Greek and Hebrew, and inserted such correc- tions as seemed indispensably requisite, leaving a more complete revision for a future opportunity. A second edition of the Pentateuch was afterwards printed, in which, with the assistance of the Rev. C. Isenberg, formerly a my. in Abyssinia, such a revision was to a great extent accomplished."--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition)   Samuel Bagster   [Info only] AMHARIC.--1860   S. Bagster   [Info only: Amharic Character   n.d. John 1:1-14 unknown.]

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