Amos 1 | » |
1 The wordes of Amos, who was among the sheepheardes at Thecua, whiche he sawe vpon Israel in the dayes of Ozia king of Iuda, and in the dayes of Ieroboam the sonne of Ioas king of Israel, two yere before the earth quake.
2 And he sayde, The Lord shal roare out of Sion, and vtter his voyce from Hierusalem: and the dwelling places of the sheepheardes shall mourne, & the top of Charmel shall wyther.
3 Thus sayth the Lord, For three wickednesses of Damascus, and for foure I will not spare her: because they haue threshed Gilead with iron flales.
4 But I will send a fire into the house of Hazael, and it shall deuoure the palaces of Benhadad.
5 I will breake also the barres of Damascus, and roote out the inhabitoures from the playne of Auen, and him that holdeth the scepter out of the house of Eden, and the people of Syria shall go into captiuitie vnto Kir, sayth the Lord.
6 Thus sayth the Lorde, For three wickednesses of Azza, and for foure I will not spare her: because they raried away prisoners into captiuitie to shut them vp in Edom.
7 Therfore will I sende a fire vpon the walles of Azza, whiche shall deuoure her palaces.
8 And I will cut of the inhabiter from Asdod, and him that holdeth the scepter from Ascalon, & turne my hande to Ecron, & the remnaunt of the Philistines shall perishe, sayth the Lorde God.
9 Thus sayth the Lorde, For three wickednesses of Tyre, and for foure I will not spare her: because they shut the whole captiuitie in Edom, and haue not remembred the brotherly couenaunt.
10 Therfore will I send a fire vpon the wall of Tyre, and it shall consume the palaces therof.
11 Thus sayth the Lord, For three wickednesses of Edom, and for foure I wil not spare him: because he pursued his brother with the sworde, and did cast of al pitie, and in his anger spoyled him continually, and his indignation he kept alwayes.
12 Therfore will I send a fire into Theman, which shal deuoure the palaces of Bozra.
13 Thus saith the Lord, For three wickednesses of the children of Ammon, and for foure I will not spare them: because they haue ript vp the women with childe of Gilead, that they might enlarge their borders.
14 Therefore will I kindle a fire in the walles of Rabbah that shall consume her palaces with a great crye in the day of battell, and with a tempest in the day of the whirlewinde.
15 And their king shall go into captiuitie, he and his princes together, sayth 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.