« | Ecclesiastes 6 | » |
1 There is yet a plague vnder the sunne, and it is a generall thyng among men:
2 (6:1) when God geueth a man riches, goodes, and honour, so that he wanteth nothyng of all that his heart can desire, and yet God geueth him not leaue to enioy the same, but another man spendeth them: This is a vayne thyng and a miserable plague.
3 (6:2) If a man beget a hundred children, and lyue many yeres, so that his dayes are many in number, and yet can not enioy his good, neither be buryed: as for him I say, that vntymely birth is better then he.
4 (6:3) For he commeth to naught, & spendeth his tyme in darknesse, and his name is forgotten.
5 (6:4) Moreouer he seeth not the sunne, and knoweth not of it: and yet hath he more rest then the other.
6 (6:5) Yea, though he lyued two thousande yeres, yet hath he no good lyfe: Come not all to one place?
7 (6:6) All the labour that a man taketh, is for him selfe, and yet his desire is neuer fylled after his mynde.
8 (6:7) For what hath the wise more then the foole? What helpeth it the poore that he knoweth to walke with fooles before the lyuyng?
9 (6:8) The cleare sight of the eye, is better then that the soule shoulde walke after desires of the lust: Howbeit, this is also a vayne thyng, and a disquietnesse of mynde.
10 (6:9) The thyng that hath ben, is named alredy, and knowen that it is euen man him selfe: neither may he go to lawe with him that is mightier then he.
11 (6:10) Many thinges there be that encrease vanitie, and what hath a man els?
12 (6:11) For who knoweth what is good for man liuing in the dayes of his vayne life, whiche is but a shadowe? Or who wyl tell a man what shall happen after hym vnder the sunne?
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.