Nahum 1 | » |
1 The burden of Niniue: The boke of the vision of Nahum the Elkoshite.
2 God is ielous, & the Lorde auengeth, the Lorde auengeth and hath wrath in store: the Lord auengeth vpon them that trouble hym, and he remembreth his enemies.
3 The Lorde is slowe to anger, and [also] of great power, and in no case will not acquite [the wicked,] the Lordes dealing is with blustring tempest and whirle winde, and the cloudes are the dust of his feete.
4 He rebuketh the sea and dryeth it vp, all the riuers also he maketh drye: Basan and Carmel are destroyed, the spring also of Libanon is destroyed.
5 The mountaynes quake at his power and the hilles are resolued: the earth also burneth at his countenaunce, the worlde, and all that dwelleth therin.
6 Who can stande before his wrath? or who can rise vp before the anger of his countenaunce, his fiercenesse is powred out like fire, yea the rockes cleaue in peeces at his might.
7 The Lord is gratious, a strong holde in the day of trouble, and knoweth them that trust in hym.
8 But with an ouerrunning flood he wil destroy her place, and will pursue his enemies with darkenesse.
9 What imagine ye against the Lorde? he makes an vtter destruction: ye shall not be troubled twyse.
10 For whyles the thornes cleaue together, and whyles they banquet out their feastes, they are deuoured vp as very drie stubble.
11 There came out of thee such as thought euyll against the Lorde, such as gaue wicked counsell.
12 Thus sayth the Lorde: Though ye be in concorde, and also many, yet so shall ye be cut downe, and passe: & [though] I haue afflicted thee [O Hierusalem] yet will I trouble thee no more.
13 And nowe I will breake of his yoke from [vpon] thee, and I will breake thy bondes in sunder.
14 The Lorde also hath geuen a commaundement touching thee that, there shalbe no more offpring of thy name: from the house of thy God, I will cut of carued and molten image, I will make [it] thy graue, for thou art vile.
15 Behold vpon the mountaynes the feete of him that bringeth good tidinges, that preacheth peace: kepe thy festiual dayes O Iuda, paye thy vowes: for the wicked [tiraunt] shal hereafter passe no more through thee, he is vtterly cut of.
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.