« | Exodus 31 | » |
1 And the Lorde spake vnto Moyses, saying:
2 Beholde, I haue called by name Besaleel the sonne of Uri, the sonne of Hur, of the tribe of Iuda,
3 And I haue fylled hym with the spirite of God, in wisedome and vnderstandyng, in knowledge, and in all maner worke,
4 To fynde out wittie deuises, and to worke in golde, siluer, and in brasse,
5 And in the craft to set stones, and to carue in tymber, and to worke in all maner workmanship.
6 And beholde, I haue geuen hym to be his companion Ooliab the sonne of Achisamec, of the tribe of Dan: and in the heartes of all that are wise hearted I haue put wisedome, to make all that I haue commaunded thee:
7 The tabernacle of the congregation, the arke of the testimonie, & the mercie seate that is thervpon, and all the furniture of the tabernacle:
8 And the table and his furniture, and the pure candlesticke with all his furniture, and the aulter of incense,
9 And the aulter of burnt offeryng and all his furniture, and the lauer with his foote,
10 The vestmentes to minister in, and the holy garmentes for Aaron the priest, and the garmentes of his sonnes to minister in:
11 And the annoyntyng oyle, and sweete incense for the sanctuarie: accordyng to all that I haue commaunded thee, shal they do.
12 And the Lorde spake vnto Moyses, saying:
13 Speake vnto the children of Israel, and say, In any wyse see that ye kepe [my] Sabbothes: for it is a signe betweene me & you in your generations, for to knowe that I the Lorde am he that doth sanctifie you.
14 Kepe my Sabboth therefore, for it is holy vnto you. He that defileth it shalbe put to death: for whosoeuer worketh therin, the same soule shalbe rooted out from amongst his people.
15 Six dayes shall men worke, and in the seuenth day is the Sabboth of the holy rest of the Lorde: whosoeuer doth any worke in the Sabboth day shall dye the death.
16 Wherefore let the children of Israel kepe the Sabboth, that they obserue the Sabboth throughout their generations: it is a perpetuall couenaunt.
17 For it is a signe betweene me and the children of Israel for euer: for in six dayes the Lorde made heauen and earth, and in the seuenth day he rested and was refreshed.
18 And when the Lorde had made an end of commnuyng with Moyses vpon the mount Sinai, he gaue hym two tables of witnesse, euen tables of stone, writen with the finger of God.
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.