« | Genesis 14 | » |
1 And it came to passe in the dayes of Amraphel kyng of Sinar, Arioch kyng of Elasar, Chodorlaomer kyng of Elam, and Thidai kyng of the nations:
2 [These] made warre with Bera kyng of Sodome, and with Birsa kyng of Gomorrhe, and with Sinab kyng of Adma, and with Semeber kyng of Seboiim, and with the kyng of Bela, the same is Soar.
3 All these were ioyned together in the vale of Siddim, where [nowe] the salt sea is.
4 For twelue yere were they subiecte to kyng Chodorlaomer, and in the thirteenth yere rebelled.
5 And in the fourteenth yere came Chodorlaomer and the kynges that were with hym, and smote the Giauntes in Astaroth-carnaim, and the Lusimes in Ham, and the Emims in the playne of Cariathaim.
6 And the Horites in their mount Seir, vnto the playne of Paran, which bordereth vpon the wyldernesse.
7 And they returnyng, came to En-mispat, which is Cades, and smote all the countrey of the Amalecites, and also the Amorites that dwelt in Hazezon-thamar.
8 And there went out the kyng of Sodome, and the kyng of Gomorrhe, and the kyng of Adma, and the kyng of Seboiim, and the kyng of Bela, whiche is Soar.
9 And they ioyned battell with them in the vale of Siddim: that is to saye, with Chodorlaomer the kyng of Elam, and with Thidal kyng of nations, and with Amraphel kyng of Sinar, and with Arioch kyng of Elasar, foure kynges agaynst fyue.
10 And the vale of Siddim was full of slyme pyttes: and the kynges of Sodome and Gomorrhe fledde, and fell there, and they that remayned, fledde to the mountayne.
11 And they takyng all the goodes of Sodome and Gomorrhe, and all their vittayles, went their way.
12 And they caryed awaye Lot also Abrams brothers sonne, & his goodes, (for he dwelled in Sodome) and departed.
13 And there came one that had escaped, and tolde Abram the Hebrewe, whiche dwelled in the playne of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eschol, and brother of Aner, whiche were confederate with Abram.
14 When Abram hearde that his brother was taken, he armed his exercised [seruauntes] whiche were borne in his owne house, three hundreth & eyghteen, and folowed on them vntyll Dan.
15 And he and his seruauntes were parted [in companies] agaynst the by nyght, and smote them, and pursued them vnto Hoba, which lyeth on the left hand of Damascus.
16 And recouered all the goodes, and also brought agayne his brother Lot, & his goodes, the wome also, & the people.
17 After that he returned agayne from the slaughter of Chodorlaomer, and of the kynges that were with hym, came the kyng of Sodome foorth to meete hym in the valey Sauch, which is the kynges dale.
18 And Melchisedech kyng of Salem brought foorth breade and wine: & he [was] the priest of the most highest God,
19 And blessed hym, saying: Blessed be Abram vnto the hygh God possessour of heauen and earth.
20 And blessed [be] the high God, which hath deliuered thyne enemies vnto thy hande: and Abram gaue him tithes of all.
21 And the kyng of Sodome sayde vnto Abram: geue me the soules, and take the goodes to thy selfe.
22 And Abram aunswered the kyng of Sodome: I haue lyft vp my hande vnto the Lord the hye God, possessour of heauen and earth,
23 That I wyll not take of all that is thyne so muche as a threede or shoe latchet, lest thou shouldest saye, I haue made Abram ryche:
24 Saue onlye that which the young men haue eaten, and the portions of the men which went with Aner, Eschol, & Mamre, which shal take their portios.
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.