« | Ezekiel 35 | » |
1 Moreouer, the worde of the Lorde came vnto me, saying:
2 Thou sonne of man, set thy face toward the mount Seir, prophecie against it.
3 And say vnto it, thus saith the Lorde God: Beholde O thou mount Seir, I wyll vpon thee, I wyll reache out my hande ouer thee, yea waste and desolate wyll I make thee,
4 Thy cities wyll I laye waste, & thou shalt lye voyde, that thou mayst knowe howe that I am the Lorde,
5 Forsomuch as thou bearest an olde enmitie, and hast put the children of Israel to flight by the force of the sworde, in the time of their calamitie, [when their] iniquitie had an ende.
6 Therefore as truely as I lyue, saith the Lorde God, I wyll prepare thee vnto blood, yea blood shall folowe vpon thee, except thou hate blood, euen blood shall persecute thee.
7 Thus wyll I make the mount Seir desolate and waste, and cut out from it him that passeth out, and him that returneth:
8 His mountaines wyll I fill with his slaine men, thy hils, valleys, and al thy riuers, the slaine with the sworde shall fall in them.
9 I wyll make thee a perpetuall wildernes, so that thy cities shal not returne: that ye may knowe that I am the Lorde.
10 And because thou hast saide, both these nations, and both these landes must be myne, and we wyll haue them in possession, whereas the Lorde was there:
11 Therefore as truely as I lyue saith the Lorde God, I wyll euen do according to thy wrath, and according to thyne enuiyng which thou hast vsed in thyne hatred against them: and I wyll make my selfe knowen amongst them when I haue iudged thee.
12 Yea and thou shalt knowe that I the Lorde haue heard all thy blasphemies, whiche thou hast spoken against the mountaines of Israel, saying, They are made waste, & geuen vs to deuour.
13 Thus with your mouthes ye haue made your boastes against me, yea and multiplied your wordes against me, which I haue heard.
14 Thus saith the Lord God: To the ioy of all the worlde wyll I make thee waste.
15 And lyke as thou wast glad because the heritage of the house of Israel was destroyed, euen so wyll I do vnto thee: thou shalt be destroyed O mount Seir, and all Idumea wholly, and they shall knowe that I am 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.