« | Ezekiel 5 | » |
1 O thou sonne of man, take thee then a sharpe knife [namely] a barbers rasour, take that to thee, and cause it to passe vpon thy head and vpon thy beard: then take thee waight scales and deuide [the heere.]
2 Thou shalt burne with fire the thirde part in the middest of the citie when the dayes of the siege are fulfylled, and thou shalt take the other thirde part and smite about it with a knife, and the last thirde part thou shalt scatter in the wynde, and I wyll drawe out a sworde after them.
3 Thou shalt also take therof a fewe in number, and bynde them in thy lappe.
4 Of them yet shalt thou take, and cast them into the middest of the fire, & burne them in the fire: therof shall a fire come foorth into all the house of Israel.
5 Moreouer, thus saith the Lorde God: This same is Hierusalem, which I set in the middest of nations, and countreis rounde about her.
6 But she hath chaunged my iudgementes into wickednesse more then the nations, and my statutes more then the countreis that are rounde about her: for they haue refused my iudgementes and my statutes, and not walked in them.
7 Therfore thus saith the Lorde God: For your multiplying more then the gentiles that dwell rounde about you, and because ye haue not walked in my lawes, neither haue ye kept my ordinaunces, no ye haue not done accordyng to the iudgementes of the nations that are rounde about you:
8 Therfore thus saith the Lorde God, Beholde I will also come agaynst thee, I my selfe I say: for in the middest of thee wyll I execute iudgement in the sight of the heathen.
9 And I wyll handle thee of such a fashion as I neuer did before, & as I will neuer do from that tyme foorth, and that because of all thine abhominations.
10 For in thee the fathers shalbe fayne to eate their owne sonnes, and the sonnes their owne fathers, I wyll execute iudgement in thee, and the whole remnaunt of thee wyll I scatter into all the wyndes.
11 Wherfore, as truly as I lyue saith the Lorde God, seyng thou hast defiled my sanctuarie with all maner of abhominations, and with all shamefull offences: (5:12) For this cause will I also destroy thee, mine eye shall not spare thee, neither wyll I haue any pitie.
12 (5:13) One thirde part within thee shall dye of the pestilence and be consumed of hunger, another thirde part shalbe slayne downe rounde about thee with the sworde, the other thirde part that remayneth, wyll I scatter abrode towarde all the wyndes, and drawe out a sworde after them.
13 (5:14) Thus wyll I perfourme mine indignation, & make my wrath to settle vpon them, and I will be comforted: so that when I haue fulfylled myne anger agaynst them, they shall knowe that I am the Lorde, which with a seruent gelousie haue spoken it.
14 (5:15) Moreouer, I wyll make thee waste and reuiled among all the heathen that dwell about thee, in the sight of all them that go by thee.
15 (5:16) So thou shalt be a reproche and shame, a chastisement and a wondryng vnto the nations that are rounde about thee, when I shall execute iudgementes in thee, in anger & in wrath, and in sharpe rebukes, I the Lorde haue spoken it:
16 (5:17) When I shoote among them the perilous dartes of hunger, which shalbe for their destruction, yea therfore shall I shoote them because I wyll destroy you, I wyll encrease hunger vpon you, and wyll breake your staffe of bread.
17 (5:18) Plagues wyll I sende vpon you, yea and wicked beastes also to spoyle thee, pestilence and bloodsheddyng shal come vpon thee, and the sworde wyll I bring ouer thee: I the Lorde haue spoken it.
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.