The Hidden Hands Behind the New Testament

When we imagine the authors of the Bible, we tend to picture solitary prophets and apostles—Paul hunched over a scroll, perhaps, or an evangelist illumined by divine inspiration. What we do not envision, much less credit, are the enslaved secretaries, scribes, and couriers who took dictation, edited manuscripts, and transported letters across the Roman Empire. Yet without these individuals, the New Testament quite literally would not exist.1 The early Christian movement emerged within an imperial system structured by and dependent upon slavery. Literacy was rare, and among those who could read or write, few had the skill, training, or leisure […]