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1 And when Sauls sonne hearde that Abner was dead in Hebron, his handes were feeble, & al the Israelites were afrayde.
2 And Sauls sone had two me that were captaines of bandes, the one called Baanah, & the other Rechab, the sonnes of Rimmon a Berothite, of the children of Beniamin: (for Beroth was reckened to Beniamin,
3 And these Berothites fled to Githaim, and soiourned there vntill this day)
4 And Ionathan Sauls sonne had a sonne that was lame on his feete, and was fiue yeres olde when the tydinges came of Saul & Ionathan out of Iesrael: And his nurse toke hym vp, and fled away, and as she made haste to flee, the chylde fell, and began to halt, and his name was Miphiboseth.
5 And the sonnes of Rimmon the Berothite, Rechab and Baanah, went and came in the heate of the day to the house of Isboseth (whiche slept on a bed at noone.)
6 And behold, they came into the middes of the house, as though they woulde haue fetched wheate, and Rechab and Baanah his brother smote him vnder the fyft ribbe, and fled.
7 For when they came into the house, he slept on his bed in his bed chamber, and they smote him and slue him, & beheaded him, and toke his head, & gat them away through the plaine all the night.
8 And they brought the head of Isboseth vnto Dauid to Hebron, and sayde to the king: Behold, there is the head of Isboseth Sauls sonne thyne enemie whiche sought after thy lyfe, and the Lorde hath auenged my lorde the kyng this day of Saul and of his seede.
9 And Dauid aunswered Rechab and Baanah his brother ye sonnes of Rimmon the Berothite, and said vnto them: As the Lorde lyueth, whiche hath deliuered my soule out of all aduersites:
10 When one tolde me & sayde that Saul was dead (thynking to haue brought good tydinges) I caught him, and slue him in Ziklag: whiche thought that I woulde haue geuen him a rewarde for his tydinges bringing:
11 Howe much more when wicked men haue slayne a righteous person in his owne house and vpon his bed? Shal I not nowe therfore require his blood of your hande, & take you from the earth?
12 And Dauid commaunded his young men, and they slue them, and cut of their handes and feete, and hanged them vp ouer the poole in Hebron: But they toke the head of Isboseth, & buried it in the sepulchre of Abner in Hebron.
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.