« | 2 Chronicles 18 | » |
1 And Iehosaphat had aboudaunce of richesse and honour, and ioyned affinitie with Ahab.
2 And after certayne yeres he went downe to Ahab to Samaria: And Ahab slue many sheepe and oxen for him and for the people that he had with him, and entreated him to go vp with him vnto Ramoth [in] Gilead.
3 And Ahab king of Israel saide vnto Iehosaphat king of Iuda: wylt thou go with me to Ramoth [in] Gilead? And he aunswered him: I wyll be as thou, and my people shall be as thyne [and we wyll go] with thee to the warre.
4 And Iehosaphat saide vnto the king of Israel: Seke counsel I pray thee at the worde of the Lorde this same day.
5 Therfore the king of Israel gathered together of prophetes foure hundred men, & saide vnto them: Shall we go to Ramoth [in] Gilead to fight, or should I ceasse? And they saide: Go vp, & God shall deliuer it into the kinges hand.
6 But Iehosaphat saide: Is there yet here neuer a prophete more of the Lordes, that we myght aske of him?
7 And the king of Israel said vnto Iehosaphat: There is yet one man by who we may aske the Lorde: but I hate him, for he neuer prophecieth me good, but alway euill, and the same is Michea the sonne of Iemla. And Iehosaphat sayde, Let not the king say so.
8 And the king of Israel called one of his chamberlaynes, and sayde: Fetch hyther quickly Michea the sonne of Iemla.
9 And the king of Israel and Iehosaphat king of Iuda, sate eyther of them on his seate in their apparell, in a thresshing floore beside the gate of Samaria, & al the prophetes prophecied before the.
10 And one Zedekia the sonne of Chanaana had made him hornes of iron, and sayde, thus sayth the Lorde: With these thou shalt pushe Syria, vntill they be brought to naught.
11 And all the prophetes prophecied euen so, saying, Go vp to Ramoth [in] Gilead, & it shall prosper with thee: for the Lord shall deliuer it into the hand of the king.
12 And the messenger that went to call Michea, spake to him, saying: Behold, the wordes of the prophetes speake good to the king with one assent: let thy wordes therefore I pray thee be like one of theirs, that thou speake that whiche is pleasaunt.
13 And Michea sayde: As the Lorde liueth, euen what my God sayth, that wil I speake.
14 And when he was come to the king, the king sayd vnto him: Michea, should we go to Ramoth [in] Gilead to fight, or leaue of? And he sayd: Go vp, & al shalbe well, and they shalbe deliuered into your hande.
15 And the king sayde to him: So and so many times do I charge thee that thou say nothing but the trueth to me in the name of the Lorde.
16 Then he sayd: I did see all them of Israel scattered in the mountaynes, as sheepe that haue no sheephard: And the Lorde sayde, These haue no maister, let them returne euery man therfore to his house in peace.
17 And the king of Israel said vnto Iehosaphat: Did I not tel thee, that he would not prophecie good vnto me, but euyll?
18 But he said againe, Therfore heare ye the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sit vpon his seate, and all the companie of heauen stoode on his right hande and on his left.
19 And the Lord sayd: Who shall deceaue Ahab king of Israel, that he may go vp and be ouerthrowne at Ramoth [in] Gilead? And one sayde this, another that.
20 And there came out a spirite, & stoode before the Lorde, and sayde: I will deceaue him. And the Lorde sayde vnto him, Wherin?
21 And he sayde: I wil go out and be a lying spirite in the mouth of all his prophetes. And the Lord sayd, Thou shalt deceaue him, and shalt preuayle: go out, and do euen so.
22 And nowe therfore behold the Lorde hath put a lying spirite in the mouthes of [all] these thy prophetes, and the Lord hath spoken euyll against thee.
23 And Zedekia the sonne of Chanaana went to, and smote Michea vpon the cheeke, & sayde: By what way went the spirite of the Lorde from me, to speake with thee?
24 And Michea sayd: Beholde, thou shalt see the day whe thou shalt go fro chamber to chamber, for to hyde thy selfe.
25 And the king of Israel sayd: Take ye Michea, and bring him to Amon the gouerner of the citie, & to Ioas the kinges sonne.
26 And ye shall say, thus sayth the king: Put this felowe in the prison house, and feede him with bread of affliction and water of trouble, vntil I come againe in peace.
27 And Michea said: If thou come againe in peace, then hath not the Lord spoken by me. And he sayde: Hearken to ye people euery one of you.
28 And so the king of Israel and Iehosaphat the king of Iuda, went vp to Ramoth [in] Gilead.
29 And the king of Israel sayde vnto Iehosaphat, I must chaunge me when I go to the battell: but see that thou haue thyne owne apparel vpon thee. And the king of Israel chaunged him selfe, and they came to the battel.
30 But the king of Syria had commaunded the captaynes of the charets that were with him, saying: See that ye fight not against small or great, saue against the king of Israel only.
31 And when the captaynes of the charets saw Iehosaphat, they sayd, It is ye king of Israel: And therfore they compassed about hym to fight. But Iehosaphat cried out, and the Lord helped him, and God chased them away from him.
32 For it came to passe, that when the captaynes of the charets perceaued that it was not the king of Israel, they turned backe againe from him.
33 And a certayne man drewe a bow with all his might, and smote the king of Israel beweene the ioyntes of his habergin, and he sayde to his charetman: Turne thyne hand, that thou mayst carie me out of the hoast, for I am wounded.
34 And the battel increased that day: Howbeit the king of Israel caused his charet to stand still against the Syrians vntill euen: And about the time of the sunne goyng downe, he died.
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.