« | Genesis 21 | » |
1 The Lord visited Sara as he had promised, and did vnto her accordyng as he had spoke.
2 For Sara conceaued, and bare Abraham a sonne in his olde age, euen the same season whiche the Lorde had appoynted.
3 And Abraham called his sonnes name that was borne vnto him, whiche Sara bare hym, Isahac.
4 And Abraham circumcised his sonne Isahac, when he was eyght dayes olde, as God commaunded him.
5 And Abraham was an hundreth yere olde, when his sonne Isahac was borne vnto him.
6 But Sara sayde: God hath made me to reioyce, so that all that heare, wyll ioy with me.
7 She sayd also: who would haue sayde vnto Abraham, that Sara shoulde haue geuen chyldren sucke? for I haue borne [him] a sonne in his olde age.
8 The chylde grewe, and was weaned, and Abraham made a great feast the same day that Isahac was weaned.
9 Sara saw also the sonne of Hagar the Egyptian, whiche she had borne vnto Abraham, [to be] a mocker.
10 Wherfore she sayd vnto Abraham: cast out this bond woman, & her sonne: for the sonne of this bonde woman, shal not be heyre with my sonne Isahac.
11 And this saying was very greeuous in Abrahams sight, because of his sonne.
12 And God sayde vnto Abraham, let it not be greeuous in thy sight, because of the lad and of thy bonde woman: In al that Sara hath said vnto thee, heare her voyce, for in Isahac shall thy seede be called.
13 Moreouer, of the sonne of the bonde woman wyll I make a nation, because he is thy seede.
14 And so Abraham rose vp early in the mornyng, and tooke bread, and a bottel of water, and gaue it vnto Hagar, puttyng it on her shoulder, and the lad also, and sent her away: who departing, wandered vp and downe in the wildernesse of Beer seba.
15 And the water was spent in the bottell, and she cast the lad vnder some one of the trees:
16 And went, and sate on the other syde a great way, as it were a bowe shote of: for she sayd, I wyll not see the death of the chylde. And she sitting downe on the other side, lyft vp her voyce & wept.
17 And God hearde the voyce of the lad, and the angell of God called to Hagar out of heauen, and said vnto her, what ayleth thee Hagar? feare not: for God hath hearde the voyce of the lad where he lyeth.
18 Aryse and lyft vp the lad, and take him in thyne hande, for I wyll make of hym a great people.
19 And God opened her eyes, and she sawe a well of water, and she went and filled the bottell with water, and gaue the lad drinke.
20 And God was with the lad, and he grewe, and dwelt in the wyldernesse, and became a principall archer.
21 And he dwelt in the wyldernesse of Paran, and his mother got hym a wyfe out of the lande of Egypt.
22 And at the same season, Abimelech and Phicol his chiefe captayne spake vnto Abraham, saying, God [is] with thee in all that thou doest:
23 And nowe therefore, sweare vnto me euen here by God, that thou wylt not hurt me, nor my chyldren, nor my chyldrens children: but that thou shalt deale with me and the countrey where thou hast ben a straunger, accordyng vnto the kyndnesse that I haue shewed thee.
24 And Abraham saide, I will sweare.
25 And Abraham rebuked Abimelech for a wel of water, which Abimeleches seruauntes had violently taken away.
26 And Abimelech said, I wote not who hath done this thing: also thou toldest me not, neyther hearde I [of it] but this day.
27 And Abraham toke sheepe and Oxen, and gaue them vnto Abimelech: & they made both of them a leage together.
28 And Abraham set seuen ewe lambes by them selues.
29 And Abimelech sayd vnto Abraham: what meane these seuen ewe lambes whiche thou hast set by them selues?
30 He aunswered: for these seuen ewe lambes shalt thou take of my hande, that they may be a wytnesse vnto me, that I haue digged this well.
31 Wherefore the place is called Beer seba, because that there they sware both of them.
32 Thus made they a leage together at Beer seba: and Abimelech and Phicol his chiefe captayne rose vp, and turned agayne into the lande of the Philistines.
33 And Abraham planted a wood in Beer seba, and called there on the name of the Lorde the euerlasting God.
34 And Abraham soiourned in the Philistines lande a long season.
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.