« | Ezra 6 | » |
1 Then comaunded king Darius: & they made searche in the librarie, eue in the place where they layed vp the treasure at Babylon:
2 And there was found in a coffer in the palace that is in the prouince of the Medes, a volume: and therein was it thus written as a memoriall.
3 In the first yere of king Cyrus, gaue the same king Cyrus commaundement concerning the house of God at Hierusalem, that the same house should be builded in the place where they offer the sacrifices, & to ioyne the walles together of threescore cubites heyght, and threescore cubites breadth.
4 Three rowes of rough stones, and one rowe of newe timber: and the expences shalbe geuen of the kinges house.
5 And let the golde and siluer vessels of the house of God, which Nabuchodonosor toke out of the temple at Hierusalem and brought vnto Babylon, be restored, and brought againe vnto the temple at Hierusalem to their place in the house of God.
6 Now therefore thou Thathanai captaine beyond the water, & Stharbuzanai, and your counsailers, and Aphersechei which are beyond the water, get ye away from them.
7 Let the worke of the house of this God alone, that the captaine of the Iewes and their elders may builde the house of God in his place.
8 I haue commaunded what ye shall do to the elders of Iuda for the building of the house of God, that of the kinges goodes, euen of the tribute beyond the water, foorthwith expences be geuen vnto the men, that they be not hindred.
9 And if they haue neede of calues, rammes, and lambes for the burnt offering of the God of heauen, wheate, salte, wine, and oyle, after the custome of the priestes at Hierusalem, let the same be geuen them dayly without any delay:
10 That they may haue to offer sweete sauours vnto the God of heauen, & pray for the kinges lyfe, and for his children.
11 And such a commaundement haue I geuen, that what man soeuer he be that altereth this word, there shall a beame be taken from his house, and set vp, and he shalbe hanged thereon, & his house shalbe made a dounghill for the same thing.
12 And the God that set his name there, destroy all kinges and people that put to their hande to aulter and to breake downe the house of God which is at Hierusalem. I Darius haue made a decree, that this be done with speede.
13 Then Thathanai the captaine [of the countrey] beyond the water, & Stharbuzanai, with their counsailours, according to that which king Darius had sent, so they did speedyly their diligence.
14 And the elders of the Iewes builded, and they prospered through the prophecying of Aggeus the prophete and Zachari the sonne of Iddo, and they builded, and they finished it according to the commaundement of the God of Israel, and after the commaundement of Cyrus and Darius & Artaxerxes, kinges of Persia.
15 And this house was finished the third day of the moneth Adar, euen in the sixt yere of the raigne of king Darius.
16 And the childre of Israel, the priestes, the Leuites, and the other children of the captiuitie, helde the dedication of this house of God with ioy:
17 And offered at the dedication of this house of God an hundred oxen, two hudred rammes, foure hudred lambes: and for the reconciling of all Israel twelue hee goates, according to the number of the tribes of Israel:
18 And set the priestes in their sundry courses, and the Leuites in their diuers offices, to minister vnto God at Hierusalem, as it is written in the booke of Moyses.
19 And the children of the captiuitie held Passouer vpon the foureteenth day of the first moneth.
20 For the priestes and Leuites were purified all together, & killed Passouer for all the children of the captiuitie, and for their brethren the priestes, and for them selues.
21 And the children of Israel which were come againe out of captiuitie, and all such as had seperated them selues vnto them from the filthinesse of the heathen of the lande, to seeke the Lorde God of Israel, did eate,
22 And helde the feast of vnleauened bread seuen dayes with ioy: For the Lorde had made them glad, and turned the heart of the king of Assur vnto them, to strengthen their handes in the worke of the house of God, euen the God of Israel.
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.