Das Neue Testament unsers Herrn und Heilandes Jesu Christi: Nach Dr. Martin Luther’s Uebersetzung. Mit ausführlichen Capitelüberschriften, vielen Parallelen, Luther’s Randglossen, Auslegungen der schwersten Stellen und Capitel-Nutzanwendungen von Dr. Johann Reinhard Hedinger, weiland Hofprediger und Consistorialrath in Stuttgart. Auf’s Neue durchgesehen von Carl Friedrich Ledderhose, und herausgegeben von der Pilgermission auf St. Chrischona. Erster Band, die vier Evangelien und die Apostelgeschichte enthaltend.
- English translation: The New Testament of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ: Based on Dr. Martin Luther’s Translation. With detailed chapter headings, numerous parallels, Luther’s marginal notes, explanations of the most difficult passages, and practical applications for each chapter by Dr. Johann Reinhard Hedinger, former court preacher and member of the consistory in Stuttgart [i.e., Central Office of the Protestant Württemberg Church]. Revised by Carl Friedrich Ledderhose and published by the Pilgrim Mission at St. Chrischona. First volume, containing the four Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles.]
Basel: C.F. Spittler, 1863.
[In commission; printed by St. Chrischona Mission-Press]
Vol. 1: Matthew ‒ Acts
Source: Google Books
Notes
Three hundred years after the publication of Luther’s complete Bible, there was no standard edition of his translation that was used in all regional churches. The editions published by the various regional Bible societies differed significantly. In 1858, the Bible societies proposed working together to carefully modernize Luther’s spelling, explain archaic words in a glossary, and, in cases where Luther had clearly mistranslated a passage, place the correct translation below Luther’s text (Otte, p. 118). However, the new authoritative edition of Luther’s Bible [Google Books] was not published until 1892.
It is noteworthy that Spittler decided in the early 1860s to produce a new edition of Hedinger’s adaptation of Luther’s New Testament – which had already attempted to fulfil the aforementioned objectives as early as 1704 – at the new print shop in St. Chrischona and to publish it through his private publishing house – rather than through the Basel Bible Society, of which he was a co-founder.
At first glance, it appears that Ledderhose has made hardly any changes to the content of Hedinger’s annotated edition of Luther’s Bible. At least in the commentary on John 10:5 (on the hired hand versus the Good Shepherd), he left unaltered Hedinger’s heavily criticised rebuke of contemporary pastors:
“This saying condemns the many thousands of belly-serving, sham, and lip-service clerics—who have crept, married, intruded, or wheedled their way in, contrary to God’s Word and honorable laws of the land, through gifts, flattery, cunning, and the covert, antichristian spirit of the age; who have the appearance of shepherds and speak with the voice of Christ, yet deny His power. May God indeed protect the Church from both blatant and subtle murderers.”
Further research into this “Life Application Study Bible“ by Ledderhose would be very welcome.
Further reading
Fricke, Klaus Dieter and Siegfried Meurer, eds. Die Geschichte der Lutherbibelrevision: Von 1850 bis 1984. 2nd edition. Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft, 2016.
Grimm, Wilibald. Kurzgefaßte Geschichte der lutherischen Bibelübersetzung bis zur Gegenwart mit Berücksichtigung der vorlutherischen deutschen Bibel und der in der reformirten Schweiz gebrauchten deutschen Bibeln: Eine Denk- und Dankschrift zur vierhundertjährigen Jubelfeier der Geburt Luthers. Jena: Hermann Costenoble, 1884. [Digitale Sammlungen; doesn’t mention Hedinger]
Köster, Beate. Die Lutherbibel im frühen Pietismus. Bielefeld: Luther-Verlag, 1984. [On Hedinger’s edition of Luther’s New Testament, see pp. 178‒87; Archive.org]
Otte, Hans. “Halle, Stuttgart und anderswo: Zur Bedeutung der Bibelgesellschaften im 19. Jahrhundert,” Pietismus und Neuzeit 40 (2014):97‒122.
Schöllkopf, Wolfgang. Johann Reinhard Hedinger (1664‒1704): württembergischer Pietist und kirchlicher Praktiker zwischen Spener und den Separatisten. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1999. [See pp. 135‒60; Digitale Sammlungen]
Theißen, Henning. Die Eisenacher Konferenz: Strukturen – Protagonisten – Themen (1851–1903). Berlin: W. de Gruyter, 2025. [On the revision of the Luther Bible, see pp. 249‒90; Google Books]
Cross-references
» Chrischona Annotated New Testament, vol. 2: Romans ‒ Revelation (1863)
» Krapf (tr.), Why Should I Read the Bible? (1863)