I was just wondering; how effective would quoting Scripture be in an Ancient setting? Since the Bible wasn't written yet, (i.e. pre-50BC) God spoke to the people through prophets. So I was curious: would quoting actual Bible verses in a story set in this era add to the story? Or would it detract from the realism? What are your thoughts?

If you mean scriptures that have not yet been written I would say nay. But if it was something already written then it would be fine.

I think you can quote scripture after scripture is available for quoting. Not before.

Exactly!

That makes sense. I was writing a novel/la based in medieval times a year or so ago, and was planning on quoting Scripture in it, but then I thought I should probably research just what Scripture was available at the time for me to be able to quote it...

What you have to remember about the medieval ages is that scriptures were not available in English. It was written in Latin, quoted in Latin, and even services were conducted in Latin. A priest might translate it for someone who wasn't a scholar, but it would be a paraphrase, not the exact verses were are accustomed to now. Also, books were rare, reading was equally rare, and so scriptures were not readily available. Even the clergy was mostly uneducated at the time.

I've found when people quote scripture in that time period it tends to be sadly inaccurate historically. Direct quotes are as out of place as modern words or slang. Use verses all you want, but work them into conversation the way you would if you were simply remembering something you'd read last week, not memorized directly.

And double bonus points if you actually use latin quotations.

That is exactly what I want to address. (if I ever finish writing this...) There may be an instance where my character will come into contact with a rare transcript of Scripture, and this is what I want to make sure I get accurate if and when I get to it. I may have to research some latin...

Just remember, English translations were not only unavailable, they were illegal. William Tyndale was the first one to translate it, and he was outlawed and eventually executed for it. Scriptures were considered sacred, and translating them into the common tongue was disrespectful and demeaning. I think most people don't know that, and that's why they don't think about it when writing historical fiction.

*completely agrees with Katie * Just look at what Luther was dealing with.

*nods* This is good information, t'will come in handy when I'm writing it. Thankyou, Katie and Airi!

*pictures stone age warrior quoting the book of Acts*

It's a good thing to keep in mind, for sure.

*laughs* Good point there, Varon.

Thanks.

*Laughs at Varon* This is definitely something to keep in mind. Thanks for bringing it up, Bushy!