It is hard for me to imagine that a simple sheet of paper
was, at once, a technological and anthropological breakthrough. Paper and the
Bible are inseparable. Its in words written and copied and passed down that we
begin to learn of the heart of God and His heart for ‘Adam’s helpless race.’ Let’s
take a journey in the biblical history of paper.
The ancient Egyptians
began experimenting with using plant-based materials for more than just
medicine, food, and food that their food ate. Bulrushes are water plants
commonly found along the Nile River. They are a tall reed that has a fan shape
at its highest point. You probably vaguely remember a social studies class that
called them papyrus. Papyrus is the name of the plant and (points for
originality here) the product made from that plant commonly used as paper. The
ancient Egyptians developed a technique of cutting thin strips of stalk, layering
them, and pressing out the water. When dry, they would use these sheets of
plants to write upon. Up until this point, writing was only done by chiseling
symbols on stone. The Egyptians found this advanced technological way to
communicate that was far cheaper, more sustainable (because it grew back) and
much easier to transport. Even though the process was cheaper, it was still
very expensive, so a lot of papyrus was used and reused and used again. Much
like we might use newspaper to wrap a present or make papier-mâché volcanoes
for a science project due the next day.
In Exodus, we find the story of Moses. It was a dark time
for the Hebrew people in Egypt. Pharaoh had decreed that all of the babies were
to be drowned to help control the population size. I cannot imagine. Neither
could Moses’s mother. She obeyed the decree up to a certain point. She put her
baby in the Nile like thousands of other mothers, but she built a boat around
him. A basket that floated. The same Hebrew word used for the word “basket or
boat” here is the same word used for ark. So Noah and Moses’s mother built an
ark.
Exodus 2:3
But when she could no longer hide him, she took an ark of
bulrushes for him, daubed it with asphalt and pitch, put the child in it, and
laid it in the reeds by the river's bank.
What must it have been like for Moses’s mother to send him
floating down the river in a paper boat never to see him again? The scene of
him disappearing behind papyrus stalks in the next river bend must have been
crushing. Miriam, Moses’s sister, was tasked, most likely self-appointed, with
following and keeping him safe. No doubt she was worried about the crocodiles
and hippos commonly found in the Nile. He floated past them and right into the
viewpoint of an even more dangerous enemy- the daughter of pharaoh, predator of
Hebrew babies. Pharaoh’s daughter was bathing with her servants in the Nile
when she heard a baby.
Miriam must have been paralyzed in fear and then to hear her
say she knew it was a Hebrew baby. Would she have someone drown him right
there?
Instead she looked on him lovingly…
“And when she opened it,
she saw the child, and behold, the baby wept. So she had compassion on him, and
said, “This is one of the Hebrews’ children.” Exodus 2:6
Miriam saw her chance. She had this moment where she could
heal her mother’s broken heart.
“Then his sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter, “Shall I
go and call a nurse for you from the Hebrew women, that she may nurse the child
for you?”
And Pharaoh’s daughter said to her, “Go.” So the
maiden went and called the child’s mother. Then Pharaoh’s daughter said
to her, “Take this child away and nurse him for me, and I will give you your
wages.” So the woman took the child and nursed him. And the child grew, and she
brought him to Pharaoh’s daughter, and he became her son. So she called his
name Moses, saying, “Because I drew him out of the water.” Exodus 2:7-10
Moses grew up as a child to Pharaoh’s daughter. He was
taught to read and write. He was probably the most educated Hebrew of his day. It
would be through Moses that God would write his commandments. So lets break
this down:
Moses was saved by paper (papyrus, bulrushes) He was taught
to write on that papyrus unlike hardly any of his Hebrew brothers. God spoke to
Moses extensively about His law as evidenced in a whopping 613 commandments! Moses
kept record of all of them by writing them on papyrus.
Papyrologists are the people that study papyrus. They study
things like the paper structure itself, where it was found, how the letters are
formed, and if there is printing on the front and back. Papyrus can refer to
two types of presentation- one is in the form of a scroll and the other is in
the form of a codex. The scroll was a very long piece of papyrus that was only
written on one side and had to be simultaneously scrolled and unscrolled to
find certain text.
It was a very long
piece of text that was virtually impossible to read and skip to a new section.
Codex was a form of smaller pieces of papyrus bound on one side, written on
both sides with an ability to flip back and forth easily. It was one of the greatest
revolutions in writing, besides the printing press, and we still use the form
of codex in printed books today.
Codex was invented in the time of Jesus. Christianity was an
early adopter of the codex, finding it ideal for simultaneously being able to
read the words and works of Jesus alongside the letters of Paul, as well as the
Old Testament. It allowed the scripture to be indexed and referenced with a
Table of Contents. It was popular because it was an innovative way of reading.
The Bible was probably spread more in the early days because of the curiosity
of “scroll-users” never before having held a codex.
According to Claire Clivas, readers are in an unusual place
in modern day by being able to simultaneously harness the power of the
unlimited scroll and the organization of a codex. We literally “scroll” through
webpages, which if printed on uninterrupted banner paper would rival the longest papyrus scroll at 65 feet. Yet, we can also click links that skip to
specific places in the mile long text.
(You have probably even scrolled down the page to get to
this point in reading this blog. Worlds colliding!!)
What I find fascinating is God’s timing. Moses came right
when paper was being used more commonly. Jesus came right when the codex was
being invented.
Scrolls (with writing on only one side) were used into the 6th
century AD. Codex (writing on both sides) became more common in the 3rd century
AD, but the church started using it as early as the 1st century AD. In fact,
the New Testament text is known for this. Earliest fragments of papyri that are
printed on both sides are predominately found to be copies of the New
Testament.
The New Testament was one of the first documents that was
commonly written on both sides of the page, but it is not the first words to be
written on both sides. God, Himself, is the one who engraved the Ten Commandments
on the stone tablets:
“And Moses turned and went down from the mountain, and the
two tablets of the Testimony were in his hand. The tablets were written on both
sides; on the one side and on the other they were written. Now the tablets were
the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God engraved on the
tablets.” Exodus 32:15-16
(Some rabbis believe that God carved the commandments all
the way through. When Moses held them up the light would have been able to pass
through. This is also why when Moses saw the Golden Calf and dropped them they
broke so easily. They had holes in them. How symbolic, the Israelites had
already broken the covenant before they saw the stone tablet. Broken covenant=
broken tablets. Moses interceded for the people and thankfully, God made a 2nd
set of tablets and a fresh covenant.)
Moses the vessel in whom God poured His law to save the
children of Israel was saved on/by paper (papyrus, bulrsuhes). Jesus, the
vessel on whom God poured His grace to save the world, was distributed on/by
paper. We have been saved by this distribution. We have been saved by paper.
So the New Testament was being copied in the most advanced
technology of the day. So keep tweeting your scriptures! God is not afraid of
the development of technology. I believe
He is willing to use anything as long as one more heart might be reached. I
never want to limit Him to what I know, what I have been taught (or really what
I am comfortable with). He blows my boundaries out of the water in simply being
who He is. His ways are higher.
The ark of Noah was built around those whom it would save
and deliver. The ark of Moses was built by his mother to save the one whom
would deliver the Israelites from the oppression of Pharoah. The ark of the covenant was built around the
tablets carved by the finger of God that established His everlasting covenant
basically saying, “I will be Your God, if you will be my people.” And Jesus,
well… He got out of the boat and walked on the water and says “Come”.
😀
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