« | Deuteronomy 16 | » |
1 Obserue the moneth of newe corne, that thou mayest offer the Passouer vnto ye Lord thy God: For in the moneth when corne begynneth to rype, the Lorde thy God brought thee out of Egypt by nyght.
2 Thou shalt therfore offer the Passouer vnto the Lorde thy God (of sheepe and oxen) in the place which the Lorde shall choose to put his name there.
3 Thou shalt eate no leauened bread with it: but seuen dayes shalt thou eate vnleauened bread therwith, euen the bread of tribulation (for thou camest out of the lande of Egypt in haste) that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest out of the lande of Egypt, all the dayes of thy lyfe.
4 [And there shalbe no leauened bread 'seene in al thy coastes seuen dayes long, neither shall there remayne any thyng of the fleshe which thou offerest the first day at euen vntyll the mornyng.
5 Thou mayest not offer the Passouer within any of thy gates which ye Lorde thy God geueth thee:
6 But in the place which the Lorde thy God shal choose to set his name in, there thou shalt offer the Passouer at euen, about the goyng downe of the sunne, euen in the season that thou camest out of Egypt.
7 And thou shalt roste and eate it in the place which the Lorde thy God hath chosen, and thou shalt returne on the morowe, and go vnto thy tentes.
8 Sixe dayes thou shalt eate sweete bread, and the seuenth day shalbe a solempne assemblie before the Lorde thy God: thou shalt do no worke therin.
9 Seuen weekes shalt thou number vnto thee, and begynne to number the seuen weekes, when thou begynnest to put the sicle to the corne:
10 And kepe the feast of weekes vnto the Lorde thy God, with a free wyll offeryng of thine hande, which thou shalt geue vnto the Lord thy God, according as the Lord thy God hath blessed thee.
11 And thou shalt reioyce before the Lord thy God, thou, and thy sonne, thy daughter, thy seruaunt, and thy mayde, & the Leuite that is within thy gates, and the straunger, the fatherlesse, and the widdowe that are among you, in the place which the Lorde thy God hath chosen, to put his name there.
12 And remember that thou wast a seruaunt in Egypt: and thou shalt obserue and do these ordinaunces.
13 Thou shalt also obserue the feast of tabernacles, seuen dayes after that thou hast gathered in thy corne & thy wine.
14 And thou shalt reioyce in thy feast, thou and thy sonne, thy daughter, thy seruaunt, and thy mayde, the Leuite, the straunger, and the fatherlesse, & the widdowe, that are within thy gates.
15 Seuen dayes shalt thou kepe a solempne feast vnto thy Lorde thy God, in ye place which the Lorde shall choose: for the Lord thy God shal blesse thee in all thy fruites, & in all ye workes of thine handes, therfore shalt thou be glad.
16 Three tymes in the yere shall all thy males appeare before the Lorde thy God, in the place which he shall choose: In the feast of vnleauened bread, in the feast of weekes, and in the feast of tabernacles: And they shal not appeare before the Lorde emptie.
17 Euery man shall geue accordyng to the gift of his hande, & accordyng to the blessyng of the Lorde thy God which he hath geuen thee.
18 Iudges and officers shalt thou make thee in all thy cities which the Lorde thy God geueth thee throughout thy tribes, and they shall iudge the people with iust iudgement.
19 Wrest not thou the lawe, nor knowe any person, neither take any rewarde: for giftes do blinde the eyes of the wise, & peruert the wordes of the righteous.
20 That which is iust and ryght shalt thou folowe, that thou mayst lyue, and enioy the lande which the Lorde thy God geueth thee.
21 Thou shalt plant no groue of any trees neare vnto the aulter of the Lord thy God, which thou shalt make thee.
22 Thou shalt set thee vp no piller: which the Lorde thy God hateth.
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.