« | 1 Kings 17 | » |
1 And Elias ye Thesbite, which was of the inhabiters of Gilead, sayde vnto Ahab: As the Lorde God of Israel lyueth, before whom I stande, there shalbe neither deawe nor rayne these yeres, but according to my worde.
2 And the worde of the Lorde came vnto him, saying:
3 Get thee hence, & turne thee eastward, and hide thy selfe in the brooke Cherith, that is, it that lyeth before Iordane.
4 Thou shalt drinke of the ryuer, and I haue commaunded the rauens to feede thee there.
5 And so he went, and did according vnto the word of the Lorde: for he went, and dwelt by the brooke Cherith that is before Iordane.
6 And the rauens brought him bread and fleshe in the morning, and likewyse bread and fleshe in the euening: and he drancke of the brooke.
7 And it chaunced after a while that the brooke dryed vp, because there fell no rayne vpon the earth.
8 And the word of the Lorde came vnto him, saying:
9 Up, and get thee to Zarphath, which is in Sidon, and dwell there: Beholde, I haue commaunded a wydow there to sustaine thee.
10 So he arose, and went to Zarphath: and when he came to the gate of the citie, beholde the widow was there gathering of stickes: And he called to her, and said: set me I pray thee a litle water in a vessel, that I may drincke.
11 And as she was going to fet it, he cryed after her, and saide: bryng me I pray thee a morsell of bread also in thyne hand.
12 She sayde: As the Lorde thy God lyueth, I haue no bread redy, but euen an handful of meale in a barrel, & a litle oyle in a cruse: And beholde, I am gathering two stickes, for to go in and dresse it for me and my sonne, that we may eate it, and dye.
13 And Elias saide vnto her, Feare not, go, and do as thou hast saide: but make me thereof a litle cake first of all, & bring it vnto me, and afterward make for thee and thy sonne.
14 For thus saith the Lord God of Israel: The meale in the barrel shall not be wasted, neither shal the oyle in the cruse be minished, vntil the Lorde haue sent rayne vpon the earth.
15 And she went, and did as Elias sayde: And she, and he, and her house, did eate a good space.
16 And the meale wasted not out of the barrell, neither was the oyle spent out of the cruse, according to the word of the Lorde which he spake by the hande of Elias.
17 And after these thinges, it happened that the sonne of the wyfe of the house fel sicke, & his sicknesse was so sore that there was no breath left in him.
18 And she said vnto Elias: What haue I to do with thee O thou man of God? Art thou come vnto me to call my sinne againe to remembraunce, and to slay my sonne?
19 He saide vnto her: geue me thy sonne. And he toke him out of her lap, & caried him vp into a loft where he abode, and layde him vpon his owne bed:
20 And called vnto the Lorde, and saide: O Lorde my God, hast thou punished also this wydow with whom I dwell as a straunger, & hast slaine her sonne?
21 And he stretched him selfe vpon the childe three tymes, and called vnto the Lorde, and saide: O Lorde my God, I pray thee let this childes soule come into him againe.
22 And the Lord heard the voyce of Elias, & the soule of the childe came into him againe, and he reuiued.
23 And Elias toke the boye, and brought him downe out of the chamber into the house, and deliuered him vnto his mother: And Elias saide, Behold, thy sonne lyueth.
24 And the woman said vnto Elias: Now I knowe that thou art a man of God, and that the worde of the Lorde in thy mouth, is true.
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.