« | Isaiah 51 | » |
1 Hearken vnto me ye that holde of ryghteousnesse, and ye that seeke the Lorde: take heede to ye stone wherout ye are hewen, and to the graue wherout ye are digged.
2 Consider Abraham your father, and Sara that bare you, how that I called hym alone, and blessed hym, and encreased hym.
3 Therfore shall the Lorde comfort Sion, and repayre all her decay, makyng her desert as a paradise, and her wildernesse as the garden of the Lorde: Mirth and ioy shalbe founde there, thankesgeuyng and the voyce of prayse.
4 Haue respect vnto me then O my people both high & lowe, and lay thine eare vnto me: for a lawe and an ordinaunce shall go foorth fro me, to lyghten the gentiles.
5 It is harde by that my health and my ryghteousnesse shall go foorth, and the people shalbe ordered with mine arme: the ilandes [that is the gentiles] shall hope in me, and put their trust in myne arme.
6 Lyft vp your eyes towarde heauen, and loke vpon the earth beneath: for the heauens shall vanishe away lyke smoke, and the earth shal waxe olde like a garment, and they that dwell therein shall perishe in lyke maner: But my saluation shall endure for euer, and my ryghteousnesse shall not ceasse.
7 Hearken vnto me ye that haue knowledge in ryghteousnesse, thou people that bearest my lawe in thyne heart: feare not the reuilynges of men, be not afrayde of their blasphemies.
8 For wormes and mothes shall eate them vp lyke cloth and wooll: but my ryghteousnesse shall endure for euer, and my sauyng health from generation to generation.
9 Wake vp, wake vp, and be strong O thou arme of the Lorde, wake vp, lyke as in tyme past, euer, and since the world began.
10 Art not thou the same arme that hast wounded the proude, and hewen the dragon in peeces? Art not thou euen the same which hast dryed vp the deepe of the sea, which hast made playne the sea grounde, that the deliuered myght go through?
11 Therfore the redeemed of the Lorde shall turne agayne, & come with ioy vnto Sion, continuall ioy shalbe on their head, and mirth and gladnesse shalbe with them, and sorowe and wo shall flee from them.
12 Yea I, [euen] I am he that in all thynges geueth you consolation: What art thou then that fearest a mortall man & the childe of man, which goeth away as doth the floure?
13 And forgettest the Lorde that made thee, that spread out the heauens, and layde the foundation of the earth: but thou art euer afrayde for the syght of thyne oppressour, which is redy to do harme: where is the wrath of the oppressour?
14 The exile maketh haste to be loosed, that he dye not in prison, and that his bread fayle hym not.
15 I am the Lord thy God that deuide the sea, & his waues shall rage, whose name is the Lorde of hoastes.
16 I haue put my wordes in thy mouth, and haue defended thee in the shadowe of my hande, that I may plant the heauens, & lay the foundation of the earth, and say vnto Sion: thou art my people.
17 Awake, awake, and stande vp O Hierusalem, thou that from the hande of the Lorde hast drunken out the cup of his wrath, thou that hast supped of and sucked out the slumbryng cuppe to the bottome.
18 For among all the sonnes whom he hath begotten, there is not one that may holde it vp, and not one to leade it by the hande of all the sonnes that he hath norished.
19 Both these thinges are happened vnto thee, but who is sory for it? yea destruction, wastyng, hunger, and sworde, but who wyll comfort thee?
20 Thy sonnes lye comfortlesse at the head of euery streete like a take venison, and are full of the terrible wrath of the Lorde, and punishment of thy God.
21 And therfore thou miserable and drunken (howbeit not with wine) heare this:
22 Thus saith the Lorde, thy Lorde and God, the defendour of his people: Beholde, I wyll take the slumbryng cup out of his hande, euen the cup with the dregges of my wrath, that from hencefoorth thou shalt neuer drinke it more:
23 But I wil put it into their hande that trouble thee, which haue spoken to thy soule, Stoupe downe, that we may go ouer thee, make thy body euen with the grounde, and as the streete to go vpon.
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.