The bible is not a single book, but a collection of books and letters from various writers whom God’s people have recognized as inspired by God.
While writing has been around since cavemen, it has only been available to the general population since the invention of the printing press in the year 1436.
Before then it was done with difficulty, by hand, expensive, guarded, and preserved as precious. Special scribes were trained to ensure copies were correct and protected from error.
Over the centuries the Jewish community had combined these writings into three groups, each with its own characteristics. These are the Law (Torah), the prophets (Nevi’im), and the “Writings” (Ketuvim), a collection of poetic books, wisdom books, and additional narratives.
These were the Bible early believers had, including Jesus, and the Apostles, themselves. The Hebrew scriptures had also been translated into Greek, called the Septuagint (LXX).
Shortly after the resurrection of Jesus, people were writing accounts of his life, called “Gospels”, claiming those were written by the Apostles, but not all were authentic.
Around 140 AD, a man named Marcion of Sinope pulled together a list of “Gospels” and letters from Paul he said were inspired. But here was a problem, they were only the letters supporting his own particular point of view, which many in the church disputed.
God’s people needed to agree, collectively, which writings were authentic, and they held several church wide conferences for this purpose. In 397, at the Council of Carthage, the 27 writings of the New Testament were adopted. Around 400 AD the bible was translated into Latin, and in 1380 it was translated into English. In 1611 the King James version was published.
We no longer have the original manuscripts, the materials used just did not endure. All we have, now, are copies and not all the copies are exact. A few minor words and passages are missing or added in the copies we have discovered.
Why wouldn’t God see to it that the originals were maintained, and why did Jesus, himself, only write on sand (John 8:8)? It is not said, but I have my ideas.
Had Jesus written anything down, or if the original manuscripts from the apostles endured, people would worship them instead of Him.
It is not a artifact but a person who is valued. The copies we have are enough to convey the message. We receive his written words and worship the Living Word, Jesus, who opens the word to us.
Patrikin - Kinship through The Father 