Murdoch Nisbet facts for kids
Murdoch Nisbet (died 1559) was a Scottish man who lived a long time ago. He was a notary public, which means he helped people with important legal papers. Murdoch Nisbet is famous because he created one of the very first translations of the Bible into the Scots language. This was a brave and important thing to do in his time.
Murdoch Nisbet lived in a place called Loudoun in Ayrshire, Scotland. Because of his job, he met people who had different religious ideas than the official church. These people were sometimes called "religious dissidents." He joined secret meetings, known as "conventicles," where he would read aloud from his special Bible translation. In 1539, he even built a secret vault under his house to hide his New Testament manuscript and keep these meetings safe.
Murdoch Nisbet came from Hardhill Farm, near Newmilns, in Ayrshire. He was an early follower of the Lollards. These were early English Protestants who believed in the teachings of John Wycliffe. Wycliffe and his helpers had translated the Latin Bible into English around 1384. One of Wycliffe's assistants, John Purvey, later updated this Bible.
Murdoch Nisbet got a copy of Purvey's updated Bible. He then started the huge task of translating the New Testament into Scots. Scots was the local language spoken in the lowlands of Scotland, similar to an older form of English. It took Murdoch about 20 years to copy out the New Testament by hand. His amazing work was then kept secret within his family for 200 years.
Having a Bible translated into the common language was very dangerous back then. People could be put in prison or even face death for it. So, Murdoch's special Bible was passed down secretly within his family at Hardhill.
Later, a family member named John Nisbet (who became a famous Covenanter martyr) gave the manuscript to his son, James Nisbet. James was a soldier at Edinburgh Castle. Sergeant James Nisbet then gave Murdoch's manuscript to Sir Alexander Boswell. Sir Alexander kept it safe in his library at Auchinleck.
The manuscript was meant for a nephew, but he wasn't careful with it and sold it. Luckily, Alexander Boswell quickly bought it back. It stayed in his library for 150 more years until 1893. Finally, Lord Amherst of Hackney made it available for the Scottish Text Society to publish around 1900. Today, Murdoch Nisbet's original manuscript is a very important item. You can see it on display in the British Museum of Rare Books and Manuscripts.
One of Murdoch Nisbet's family members was the Covenanter martyr, John Nisbet.
See also
- Covenanter
- Diocese of Glasgow and Galloway
- Archdiocese of Glasgow
