« | Proverbs 2 | » |
1 My sonne, if thou wylt receaue my wordes, and lay vp my commaundementes within thee,
2 That thou wylt encline thine eares vnto wisdome: applye thine heart then to vnderstandyng.
3 For if thou cryest after wisdome, and cryest for knowledge:
4 If thou seekest for her as for siluer, and searchest for her as for treasures:
5 Then shalt thou vnderstand the feare of the Lorde, and finde the knowledge of God.
6 For the Lorde geueth wisdome, out of his mouth commeth knowledge and vnderstandyng.
7 He stirreth vp health for the righteous: and defendeth them that walke vprightly,
8 That they may kepe the right path: and he preserueth the way of such as do serue him with godlinesse.
9 Then shalt thou vnderstande righteousnesse, and iudgement, and equitie, yea and euery good path.
10 When wisdome entreth into thine heart, and thy soule deliteth in knowledge:
11 Then shall counsayle preserue thee, and vnderstandyng shall kepe thee,
12 That thou mayest be deliuered from the euyll way, and from the man that speaketh frowarde thynges:
13 From such as leaue the wayes of righteousnesse, to walke in the wayes of darknesse:
14 Which reioyce in doyng naught, and delite in the wickednesse of the euyll:
15 Whose wayes are croked, and they frowarde in their pathes.
16 That thou mayest be deliuered also from the straunge woman, and from her that is not thine owne, which geueth sweete wordes,
17 Forsaketh the husbande of her youth, & forgetteth the couenaunt of her God.
18 For her house is enclined vnto death, and her pathes vnto hell.
19 All they that go in vnto her, come not agayne, neither take they holde of the way of lyfe.
20 Therfore walke thou in the way of such as be vertuous, & kepe the pathes of the righteous.
21 For the iust shal dwell in the lande, and they that be perfect shall remayne in it.
22 But the vngodly shall be cut of from the earth: and the wicked doers shalbe rooted out of it.
The Bishop’s Bible (BB)
The Bishop’s Bible (BB) is a significant English translation of the Bible that was first published in 1568 during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. It was commissioned by the Church of England as a revision of the Great Bible and as a response to the Geneva Bible, which was popular among the Puritans but contained marginal notes that were considered politically and theologically contentious by the Anglican establishment. The primary goal of the Bishop’ s Bible was to create a translation that would be more acceptable to the ecclesiastical authorities and suitable for use in Anglican churches.
One of the distinguishing features of the Bishop’s Bible is its effort to maintain a high level of accuracy and scholarly integrity while also ensuring that the language used was dignified and appropriate for public reading. The translation was undertaken by a team of bishops and other scholars, hence its name. The translators aimed to preserve the poetic and literary qualities of the original texts, drawing on previous translations such as the Tyndale Bible, the Coverdale Bible, and the Great Bible, while also incorporating their scholarly insights and linguistic refinements.
The Bishop’s Bible was notable for its large, folio format, which was designed to be read from the pulpit. It included extensive marginal notes, though these were more restrained and less controversial than those found in the Geneva Bible. The translation also featured elaborate illustrations and maps, as well as a comprehensive introduction and various prefaces that provided context and guidance for readers. Despite its grandeur and scholarly merit, the Bishop’s Bible did not achieve the widespread popularity of the Geneva Bible among the general populace.
Although the Bishop’s Bible played an essential role in the religious and cultural life of Elizabethan England, it was eventually overshadowed by the King James Version (KJV), which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611. The KJV drew heavily on the Bishop’ s Bible, as well as other earlier translations, but ultimately surpassed it in both scholarly rigor and literary quality. Nonetheless, the Bishop’s Bible remains an important milestone in the history of English Bible translations, reflecting the theological and political currents of its time and contributing to the development of subsequent translations.