« | Ezra 7 | » |
1 After these thinges, ther was in the raigne of Artaxerxes king of Persia, one Esdras the sonne of Saraia, the sonne of Asaria, the sonne of Helkia,
2 The sonne of Sallum, the sonne of Zador, the sonne of Ahitob,
3 The sonne of Amaria, the sonne of Asaria, the sonne of Meraioth,
4 The sonne of Zeraia, the sonne of Uzzi, the sonne of Bucci,
5 The sonne of Abisua, the sonne of Phinehes, the sonne of Eleasar, the sonne of Aaron the chiefe priest.
6 This Esdras also went vp from Babylon, and was a perfect scribe in the law of Moyses which the Lorde God of Israel did geue: And the king gaue him al that he required, according to the hand of the Lorde his God which was vpon him.
7 And there went vp certaine of the children of Israel, of the priestes, leuites, singers, porters, and of the Nethinims vnto Hierusalem, in the seuenth yere of king Artaxerxes.
8 And he came to Hierusalem in the fifth moneth, euen in the seuenth yere of the king.
9 For vpon the first day of the first moneth, began he to go vp from Babylon: and on the first day of the fifth moneth came he to Hierusalem, according to the good hand of his God that was vpon him.
10 For Esdras prepared his heart to seeke the law of the Lorde, and to do it, and to teache the preceptes and iudgementes in Israel.
11 And this is the copie of the letter that king Artaxerxes gaue vnto Esdras the priest, and scribe, which was a writer of the wordes and commaundementes of the Lorde, and of his statutes ouer Israel.
12 Artaxerxes a king of kinges, vnto Esdras the priest and scribe of the law of the God of heauen, peace and salutation.
13 I haue commaunded that all they of the people of Israel, and of the priestes and Leuites in my realme, which are minded of their owne good wyll to go vp to Hierusalem, go with thee:
14 And therfore art thou sent of the king and of his seuen counsailers, to visite Iuda and Hierusalem, according to the law of thy God, which is in thy hande:
15 And that thou shouldest take with thee siluer and golde which the king and his counsailers offer of their owne good wyll vnto the God of Israel, whose habitation is at Hierusalem:
16 And all the siluer and golde that thou canst finde in al the countrey of Babylon, with it that the people offer of their owne good wyll, and the priestes geue wyllingly for the house of their God which is at Hierusalem:
17 That thou mayst bye diligently with the same money, oxen, rammes, and lambes, with their meate offringes and drinke offringes, & thou shalt offer them vpon the aulter of the house of your God which is at Hierusalem.
18 And looke what lyketh thee and thy brethren to do with the remnaunt of the siluer and golde, that do after the wyll of your God.
19 And the vessels that are geuen thee for the ministration in the house of thy God, those deliuer thou before God at Hierusalem.
20 And whatsoeuer thing more shalbe nedefull for the house of thy God which is necessary for to spend, thou shalt receaue the charges out of the kinges treasure house.
21 I king Artaxerxes haue commaunded all the treasures beyond the water, that loke what soeuer Esdras the priest and scribe in the law of the God of heauen requireth of you, that ye fulfill the same speedylie,
22 Untill an hundred talentes of siluer, and till an hundred quarters of wheate, and till an hundred battes of wine, and till an hundred vattes of oyle, & salt without measure.
23 Whatsoeuer also is by the commaundement of the God of heauen, let the same be done without any delay for the house of the God of heauen, that he be not wroth against the realme, & against the king and his children.
24 And we certifie you, that ye haue no aucthoritie to require taxing and custome and yerely rentes, vpon any of the priestes, leuites, singers, porters, Nethinims, and ministers in the house of his God.
25 And thou Esdras, after the wysdome of thy God that is in thyne hande, set iudges and arbitrers [by my aucthoritie] to iudge all the people that is beyond the water, euen all such as know the law of thy God: and them that knowe it not, those see that ye teache.
26 And whosoeuer wyll not fulfill the lawe of thy God, and the kinges lawe, let him haue his iudgement without delay, whether it be vnto death, or to be rooted out, or to be condempned in goodes, or to be put in prison.
27 Blessed be the Lorde God of our fathers, which so had inspired the kinges heart, to garnishe the house of the Lord that is at Hierusalem:
28 And hath enclined mercie vnto me in the presence of the king and his counsailers, and before all the kinges high estates: And I was comforted euen as the hande of the Lord my God was vpon me, and so gathered I the heades of Israel together, that they might go vp with me.
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.