A wonderful series of articles was published in the Ensign Magazine in 1982, entitled, "How the Bible Came to Be." These articles, written by Lenet H. Read, give us insights into the great gifts of sacrifice and love that preserved this sacred record and made it available to us today. Sister Read concludes her research with this caution: "[The Bible] is still suppressed in much of the world. Where there is free access to it, its voice of influence struggles to be heard over constant bombardments of false ideologies. And while free access to the Bible has indeed caused it to suffer somewhat from abuse and misunderstanding, it has unquestionably suffered most from abandonment. But its messages are abandoned at great peril. For it represents eternal truth - truth passed down from the very Creation, truth added upon and reinforced with experience, truth revealed through word and deed beforehand, truth shaped in unforgettable language, truth personified in Jesus Christ, truth in constant struggle against untruth. And ultimately, it will be truth unconquered and unconqerable. Every gift of love and sacrifice which has been offered to relay that truth to men shall not have been given in vain."

Here are links to the articles:

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 1, A Testament Is Established," January 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 2, The Word is Preserved," February 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 3, A New Word Is Added to the Old," March 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 4, The Canon Becomes an Unread Relic," April 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 5, Glimmers of Light in Darkness," June 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 6, No Price Too Great," July 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 7, The Sweet and Ripened Fruit," August 1982 Ensign

 

"How the Bible Came to Be: Part 8, The Power of the Word," September 1982 Ensign