« | Job 17 | » |
1 My breath is corrupt, my dayes are shortened, I am harde at deathes doore.
2 Froward men are with me, and myne eye must continue in the bitternesse of them.
3 O deliuer me, and loke out one to be my suretie in thy sight: what is he that knoweth who wyll promise for me?
4 For thou hast withholden their heartes from vnderstanding, therefore shalt thou not set [them] vp on hie.
5 He that speaketh flatterie to his friend, the eyes of his children shall fayle.
6 He hath made me a byworde of the people, where as afore I was their ioy.
7 Myne eye is dimme for very heauinesse, and all my strength is lyke a shadowe.
8 Vertuous men therefore shall well consider this, and the innocent shal take part against the hypocrite.
9 The righteous also wyll kepe his way, and he that hath cleane handes wyll euer be stronger and stronger.
10 As for al you, turne you and get you hence [I pray you] seeing I can not finde one wyse man among you.
11 My dayes are past, and my counsailes and thoughtes of my heart are vanished away,
12 Chaunging the night into day, and the light approching into darkenesse.
13 Though I tary neuer so much, yet the graue is my house, & I haue made my bed in the darke.
14 I saide to corruption, thou art my father, and to the wormes, you are my mother and my sister.
15 Where is then now my hope? or who hath considered the thing that I loke for?
16 (17:15) These shall go downe with me into the pit, and lye with me in the dust.
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.