QUESTION: Who was Dean Burgon?
ANSWER: He was an outstanding 19th century Bible scholar.
EXPLANATION: John William Burgon (1813-1888) was a man of tremendous
intellect and ranks among men such as Lancelot Andrews (1555-1626) and
Robert Dick Wilson (1856-1930) in scholarship. He became the Dean of
Chichester and has since been known as "Dean" Burgon.
Dr. Burgon was contemporary with Westcott and Hort. He was an
advocate of the Textus Receptus and was the nemesis of Westcott and
Hort's feeble arguments against it. He believed, unlike Westcott and
Hort, in basing all conclusions on the solid foundation of facts
rather than the sand of theory. He would leave no stone unturned in
his quest for truth and no blow undelivered in his defense of it.
His serious scholarship, quick wit and acid tongue drove Westcott and
Hort and all other Alexandrian scholars from the field of battle. His
arguments against the Alexandrian text and in favor of the last 12
verses of Mark and other questioned portions have proven to be as
unanswerable by modern scholarship as they were to his contemporaries.
Today his name is as synonymous with the defense of the King James
Bible as the names of Hills, Fuller and Ruckman. He is not only known
as a champion of the Authorized Bible, but his works are an example of
what honest, objective and thorough scholarship can produce.
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