Daniel 1 | » |
1 In the third yere of the raigne of Iehoachim king of Iuda, came Nabuchodonozor king of Babylon vnto Hierusalem, & besieged it.
2 And the Lord deliuered Iehoachim the king of Iuda into his hande, with part of the vessels of the house of God, which he caried away into the lande of Sennar to the house of his God, and he brought the vessels into his gods treasurie.
3 And the king spake vnto Asphenaz the chiefe chamberlaine, that he should bring him certaine of the children of Israel, of the kinges seede, and of the princes,
4 Springaldes without any blemishe, but well fauoured, studious in al wisdome, skilfull for knowledge, able to vtter knowledge, & such as haue liuelinesse in the that they may stand in the kinges palace: & whom they might teache the learning & the toung of the Chaldeans.
5 Unto these the king appoynted a dayly prouision euery day, of a portion of the kinges meate, and of the wine which he dranke, so to norishe them three yeres, that afterwarde they might stande before the king.
6 Among these nowe were certayne of the children of Iuda: [namely] Daniel, Ananias, Misael, and Azarias.
7 Unto these the chiefe chamberlayne gaue other names, and called Daniel, Baltassar: Ananias, Sidrach: Misael, Misach: and Azarias, Abednego.
8 But Daniel purposed in his heart that he woulde not defile hym selfe with the portion of the kinges meate, nor with the wyne which he dranke: therefore he required the chiefe chamberlayne that he might not defile him selfe.
9 (And God brought Daniel into fauour and tender loue with the chiefe chamberlayne.)
10 And the chiefe chamberlayne sayde vnto Daniel, I am afrayde of my lord the king whiche hath appoynted you your meate and your drinke: wherfore should he see your faces worse liking then the springalds of your age, & so ye shal make me indaunger my head vnto the king.
11 Then Daniel sayde vnto Melassar, whom the chiefe chamberlayne had set ouer Daniel, Ananias, Misael, and Azarias:
12 O proue but ten dayes with thy seruauntes, and let vs haue pulse to eate, and water to drinke.
13 Then let our countenaunces be loked vpon before thee, and the countenaunces of the children that eate of the portion of the kinges meate: and as thou seest, deale with thy seruauntes.
14 So he consented to them in this matter, and proued them ten dayes.
15 And at the end of ten dayes, their countenaunces appeared fairer and fatter in fleshe then all the childrens which did eate the portion of the kinges meate.
16 Thus Melassar toke away the portion of their meate, and the wyne that they shoulde drinke, and gaue them pulse.
17 As for these foure children, God gaue them knowledge and vnderstanding in all learning & wysdome: also he gaue Daniel vnderstanding of all visions and dreames.
18 Nowe when the time was expired, that the king had appoynted to bring them in, the chiefe chamberlayne brought them before Nabuchodonozor.
19 And the king communed with them: but among them all were founde none such as Daniel, Ananias, Misael, and Azarias: therfore stoode they before the king.
20 In all matters of wysdome and vnderstanding that the king enquired of them, he founde them ten times better then all the wyse men and soothsayers that were in all his realme.
21 And Daniel abode still vnto the first yere of king Cyrus.
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.