Discover the story of the world's most consistently best-selling book, which came into being through a remarkable and complicated process. In 24 stimulating lectures, Professor Johnson investigates the many forms the Bible has taken and the ways history, scholarship, and technology have helped shape this great tradition, as well as the Bible's powerful influence on human history and culture. The Bible has long served as a powerful force, both reflecting and shaping the cultures that have read and embraced it. Over the centuries, perceptions of the Bible have inspired men and women and shaped nations; they've sent nations to war and martyrs to their deaths. The struggle of translation has been a battleground for controlling the meaning of sacred text, a struggle that reached its peak during the Renaissance and the Enlightenment. From the early history of the New Testament, when Hebrew and Greek sources built a new story on the foundation of the ancient Jewish tradition, to the world-changing invention of the printing press, a revolutionary innovation that contributed to the Protestant Reformation, this enthralling story gives you a deep appreciation for the tremendous power of this astonishing book - one that has endured through centuries and touched the lives of countless millions.