William Tyndale (1495-1536) was a priest and scholar who was born in England. He was educated at Oxford where he learned Greek, Hebrew, and Latin. Tyndale's knowledge of these languages would prepare him to translate the Bible into English.
William Tyndale sought to translate the Bible into English to make it available to common people. This was opposed by the Roman Catholic Church. With no support in England, Tyndale went to Germany, where he completed his translation of the New Testament into English in 1526. The Tyndale New Testament was the first English version translated from the Greek.
William Tyndale managed to translate some of the Old Testament into English from the Hebrew. But in 1535 he was betrayed by an associate and was arrested for translating the Bible into English. Tyndale was executed for heresy in 1536. He was strangled and then burned at the stake. His last words were, "Lord, open the King of England's eyes."
William Tyndale's translations were highly influential on English translations that followed, including the King James Version. Trouble came to Tyndale for using "congregation" instead of "church", "elder" instead of "priest", and "repent" instead of "do penance". He also coined English words such as godly and atonement. William Tyndale was a hero of the Protestant Reformation.
