« | 1 Samuel 7 | » |
1 And so the men of Kiriathiarim came and set vp the arke of the Lorde, & brought it into the house of Aminadab in the hyll, and sanctified Eleazar his sonne, to keepe the arke of the Lorde.
2 And while the arke abode in Kiriathiarim, the tyme was long, for it was twentie yeres: & all the house of Israel lamented after the Lorde.
3 And Samnel spake vnto al the house of Israel, saying: If ye be come agayne vnto the Lorde with all your heartes, then put away the straunge gods and Astaroth from among you, and prepare your heartes vnto the Lord, and serue him onely: For he shall ryd you out of the hand of the Philistines.
4 Then the children of Israel dyd put away Baalim and Astaroth, and serued the Lorde onely.
5 And Samuel sayde: Gather all Israel to Mispah, and I wyll praye for you vnto the Lord.
6 And they gathered together to Mispah, and drewe water, and poured it out before the Lorde, and fasted the same day, and sayd there: We haue sinned against the Lorde. And Samuel iudged the children of Israel in Mispah.
7 When the Philistines heard that the children of Israel were gathered together to Mispah, the princes of the Philistines went vp against Israel: And when the children of Israel hard that, they were afrayde of the Philistines.
8 And the children of Israel sayd to Samuel: Ceasse not to crye vnto the lord our God for vs, that he may saue vs out of the hand of the Philistines.
9 And Samuel toke a sucking lambe, and offered it altogether for a burnt offering vnto the Lord, and cryed vnto the Lorde for Israel, and the Lorde heard him.
10 And as Samuel offered the burnt offering, the Philistines came to fight against Israel: But the Lorde thundred a great thunder the same day among the Philistines, & scattered them, that they were slaine before Israel.
11 And the men of Israel went out of Mispah, and pursued the Philistines, & smote the vntill [they came] vnder Bethchar.
12 And then Samuel toke a stone, and pitched it betweene Mispah & Shen, and called the name thereof Eben ezer, saying: Hitherto hath the Lorde helped vs.
13 And so the Philistines were brought vnder, and they came no more into the coaste of Israel: and the hande of the Lorde was against the Philistines all the dayes of Samuel.
14 Therto the cities which that the Philistines had taken from Israel, were restored to Israel euen from Acaron to Gath, and the coastes of the same dyd Israel deliuer out of the handes of the Philistines: And there was peace betweene Israel and the Amorites.
15 Samuel iudged Israel all the dayes of his life:
16 And went about yere by yere to Bethel, Gilgal, and Mispah, and iudged Israel in all those places.
17 And came againe to Rama, for there was his house, and there he iudged Israel also, & there he buylt an aulter vnto the Lorde.
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.