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Henry Martyn Part 2 Trinitarian Bible Society – Quarterly Record Issue Number: 563 – April to June Persian, producing ‘zaban i urdu’, or East, was happier, because he was able to ‘language of the camp’, an everyday dispute with the Portuguese friars, as in San tongue in common use across many of the Salvador seven years before. His ship linguistic and cultural differences in India. arrived in Bombay after a six-week journey, (You will see from this the interdependence on his birthday, February 18th. There he of the three New Testaments which confided to his diary, “This day I finish the occupied Henry Martyn.) Used by millions thirtieth year of my unprofitable life, the even then, Urdu was essentially a spoken year that the Saviour began his ministry, rather than a written language, and once and John the Baptist called a nation to again, as had happened before in the field himself, an age in which Brainerd had of Bible translation, it is the Bible which finished his course. He gained about a becomes the fountainhead of the literature hundred savages to the Gospel; I can in the language. To translate the New scarcely number the twentieth part.” Testament and Psalms into Persian was also highly useful, because it was not only the To put this in context we should language of Persia (Iran), but also the remember that in his years in India, he had language of Muslim Courts in India and translated the New Testament into Hindustani very widely understood. This would be the and begun to do so in Persian, revised an first Persian translation since the 5th Arabic translation of the New Testament, century. Martyn’s interest in Persian had, in translated the Psalms into Persian and the the providence of God, been stimulated by Prayer Book3 into Hindustani. Who can tell, the past experiences of his helper, Sabat. Ironically, although Sabat’s Arabic was 1781 - 1812 excellent, his Persian was not, and Henry’s frustration and dismay grew to the point “Scholar Missionary”, Bible Translator, where he concluded that, thoroughly to purge their Persian New Testament and Living Epistle of Grace and Truth adequately to revise the Arabic, he needed to go, alone, to Persia and Arabia. He needed different advice, and needed to competent in at least six languages, feel for himself the context of the by C. P. Hallihan joyously enthusiastic in Hebrew, and always languages. Leaving Cawnpore he arrived Part II looking to God’s glory in the conversion of in Calcutta in November of 1810, and souls. His vision was extensive, as he had to wait until January 1811 until he The Burden of Translation: records, “We shall now begin to preach to could take ship to Bombay on the Arabia, Syria, Persia, India, Tartary, China, opposite coast of India. Martyn must leave India half of Africa, all the south coast of the enry Martyn’s lament to David Brown, Mediterranean and Turkey”.2 By ‘preach’ in A Birthday in Bombay HHwhich closed the first part of this this connection he refers to the distribution article (see Quarterly Record 562), was and use of the printed New Testament. he journey was via Colombo and Goa, grounded in Brown’s 1807 request that TTand Martyn notes of a social gathering Martyn translate the New Testament into Hindustani, or Urdu, resulted from the in Colombo, “much is said that need not to Hindustani, Persian and Arabic. Martyn was Islamic penetration of North India, and is a be remembered”. Goa, the hub of well suited for this demanding task,1 being mingling of regional Hindi, Arabic and Portuguese colonial administration in the Typical scene, Goa, India 12 13 Trinitarian Bible Society – Quarterly Record Issue Number: 563 – April to June until That Day, what was the effect of his Shiraz was a medieval town ruled with preaching, teaching and pastoral labours in absolute authority by a Prince-Governor, India? Who can begin to weigh the fruit of and full of Muslim scholars and poets. the Urdu Scriptures, not only in their first Rumours of Martyn’s excellent Persian and published form, but also as providing the his teachings soon spread about, and giant’s shoulders on which all subsequent leading Muslim clerics, as well as literary translation workers would stand – an Urdu men, came to debate with him, and to drink equivalent of Tyndale’s Testament? Henry coffee with this young man whose door was always open to them. His wisdom and himself had recorded a slightly more serenity engaged many in a sympathy mature summary of his labours, “Even if I towards Henry’s religion, but always the should never see a native converted, God 5 great divide was the Deity of the Lord Jesus may design by my patience and Muscat with its 16th century fort Christ. Not everyone looked kindly on this continuance in the work to encourage URDU mountains. Personal contact was inevitable first Christian ‘Scholar Missionary’ to reach future missionaries”. Amen and Amen! for this winsome saint, and after the short this ancient Persian centre, and a five-day stay in Arabia he was able to give ‘definitive’ rebuttal of his Christian Whistle stop Arabia! an Arabic Gospel to an Arab soldier and teachings was prepared by the leading nother wait, for passage across the his slave, who “carried it off as a great orthodox Muslim theologian. Martyn AAArabian Sea, was used in Martyn’s prize”. Four turbulent weeks’ sailing up the responded to this with a series of masterful familiar way. He walked and talked with a Gulf of Oman brought Henry Martyn to and courteous tracts,6 news of which even Parsee poet, with a noted Jewish sage and land at last in Persia, at the port of Bushire reached the Shah in Tehran. All this time, with many Muslim scholars. We can be sure (Bushehr), May 21st 1811. Although he had work on refining and polishing the Persian that he was commending the Gospel of the plans to return, he never set foot in Arabia Lord Jesus Christ to them, even as he again. Shiraz, Persia exposed the follies of their wisdom. After some difficulties,4 Henry was accommodated Persia – Shiraz. Revising in a ship of the East India Company, the the New Testament Benares, on the understanding that he ne of Martyn’s first tasks in Bushire would act as chaplain for the journey, OOwas to order Persian clothing, with an beginning March 25th 1811. As on other sea enormous sheepskin hat, his travelling PERSIAN voyages, he made every attempt to conduct outfit for the next, and final, eighteen Divine Worship, and then to engage the months. Awaiting completion of this, he was French, Spanish and Portuguese crewmen engaged, as ever, in discussions with local in personal conversation and prayers, not scholars about their languages, their neglecting to visit and read with the sick. religion, the Gospel and his translations. The Benares arrived in Muscat (Masqat) on They approved highly of the Arabic New the Arab shore of the Gulf of Oman, April Testament, but were very unsure of the 21st. Being fluent in Arabic, Henry Martyn Persian. On May 30th he set out on a nine was used as interpreter whilst the ship was days ride to Shiraz, travelling some 200 re-provisioned, and so was able to wander miles into the Zagros Mountains by night to the bazaar, and explore the nearer escape the heat. He was welcomed by Sir Left: The Scriptures in Urdu, Gore Ousley, the British Ambassador, who ARABIC Persian and Arabic took care of him in many ways. 14 15 Trinitarian Bible Society – Quarterly Record Issue Number: 563 – April to June the Shah, so two very special copies had entered Turkey, passed been prepared, of the finest penmanship through Kars, and heard and presentation. Henry Martyn joined a rumours of plague in convoy travelling north across the Plateau Mt. Ararat Constantinople. This of Iran, hoping to arrive in Tabriz where the Tokat seemed to excite his British Ambassador lived. The plan was that servants to push on with Tabriz Sir Gore Ousley would arrange for him a the journey at any cost, and personal audience with the Shah, but the Shiraz be done with their task. plans went all awry. Henry never did meet Bushire Poor Henry was brutally the Shah. He met, instead, the Shah’s Vizier, hustled on and on, beyond Calcutta in an unpleasant and hostile gathering, his strength, but writes Muscat where he was challenged to speak the Bombay “O Lord, Thy will be done! Muslim creed – “Say ‘God is God and Living, dying, remember Mohammed is the Prophet of God’”. There Goa me”. He was probably was a silence, then our man of God replied, aware of traversing the “God is God, and Jesus is the Son of God”. very roads along which the Colombo In the ensuing uproar Henry Martyn was exiled Chrysostom had glad to come away without injury, and his been hurried in similar precious Testament safe. Not surprisingly, hurtful, fatal fashion in Perseopolis the Vizier utterly refused to present him to Map representing Henry Martyn’s travels in the East 407 AD. the Shah. There came a day of unexpected rest, and New Testament was going on, but as a one- 1,200 miles. His state of health was such In yet a further kindness, the the dying man found time to make his last time classical scholar, Henry Martyn could that twelve miles might have been Ambassador, Gore Ousley, subsequently did record in the journals, October 6th 1812. not pass up the opportunity to visit the site considered too taxing, but he records again present the Persian New Testament to the of Perseopolis, destroyed and looted by his solid trust – “I cast all my care upon Him Mount Ararat Shah of Persia, who received it with Alexander in 331 BC.
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