Hand-copied Bible leaves 40-year legacy

By Eric Tiansay (7/11/04)

A funeral director for 27 years, Vernon Henson is familiar with death. But the longtime Assemblies of God member in Springfield, Mo., is also well-acquainted with the source of life for believers — the Bible.

It took him 40 years, off and on in his spare time, but he has hand copied the Bible on lined notebook paper and he challenges young people to do the same. He had his work bound in five volumes with the help of Gospel Publishing House.

“Ever since I became a Christian, I enjoyed studying, reading and memorizing the Bible,” explains Henson, 69. “Then I found copying the Bible to be rewarding and fulfilling. The Holy Spirit made God’s Word real to me while I was copying it.”

In 1952, Henson, then 18, felt prompted to copy the Bible after an evangelist came to his church.

“He challenged the whole congregation to study, learn and memorize the Bible,” Henson recalls. “I thought it would be wise for me to start copying the Bible because I would learn more. You remember more when you write it down.”

So he started with Matthew, completed the rest of the New Testament, then the Psalms and Proverbs.

“I didn’t do it every day and I didn’t let it interfere with my daily devotions,” says Henson, who used a pen and black ink. “I would sit down and copy the Bible instead of watching TV.”

It took him 12 years, but in 1964, the year his son Jonathan was born, Henson finished copying the New Testament. At the encouragement of a minister friend, he had the notebooks bound like a book.

At age 58 — 40 years after he started the project — Henson completed the Old Testament.

“When I finished the whole Bible, it was almost midnight,” recounts Henson, who someday plans to give his handwritten Bible to Jonathan. “I just raised my hands and thanked the Lord for letting me live long enough to finish it.”

Henson’s pastor at 400-member Oak Grove Assembly in Springfield calls the copied Bible “an incredible lifelong achievement.”

“For many generations to come, this Bible will provide a legacy and memory,” says Ron Morein, 40. “The Bible says heaven and earth shall pass away, but My Word endures forever. If you’re going to leave something for your family, the Word is the most valuable thing you can leave.”