« | Proverbs 3 | » |
1 My sonne, forget not thou my lawe, but see that thine heart kepe my commaundementes:
2 For they shal prolong the dayes and yeres of thy lyfe, and bryng thee peace.
3 Let mercie and faithfulnesse neuer go from thee: binde them about thy necke, and write them in the tables of thyne heart:
4 So shalt thou finde fauour and good vnderstandyng in the sight of God and men.
5 Put thy trust in God with all thine heart: & leane not vnto thine owne wit:
6 In all thy wayes acknowledge him, and he shall order thy goynges.
7 Be not wise in thine owne conceipt: but feare the Lorde, and depart from euyll:
8 So shall thy nauell be whole, and thy bones strong.
9 Honour the Lorde with thy substaunce, and with the firstlynges of all thyne encrease:
10 So shall thy barnes be filled with plenteousnesse, and thy presses shall flowe ouer with sweete wine.
11 My sonne refuse not the chastening of the Lorde, neither faynt when thou art corrected of hym:
12 For whom the Lorde loueth, him he chasteneth, and yet deliteth in him, euen as a father in his owne sonne.
13 Well is hym that findeth wysdome, and getteth vnderstandyng:
14 For the marchaundise of it, is better then the marchaundise of siluer, and the gayne therof [is better] then golde.
15 She is more worth then pretious stones: and all the thinges that thou canst desire, are not to be compared vnto her.
16 In her right hande is long life, and in her left hande riches and honour.
17 Her wayes are pleasaunt wayes, and all her pathes are peaceable.
18 She is a tree of lyfe to them that lay holde vpon her: and blessed is he that kepeth her fast.
19 With wysdome hath the Lorde layde the foundation of the earth, and thorow vnderstanding hath he stablished the heauens.
20 Thorow his knowledge the deapthes are broken vp, and the cloudes droppe downe the deawe.
21 My sonne, let not these thinges depart from thyne eyes, but kepe wysdome and vnderstanding:
22 So they shall be lyfe vnto thy soule, and grace vnto thy mouth.
23 Then shalt thou walke safely in thy way, and thy foote shall not stumble.
24 If thou sleepest, thou shalt not be afraide: but shalt take thy rest, and sleepe sweetely.
25 Thou shalt not be afraide of any sodayne feare, neither for the violent rushing in of the vngodly when it commeth.
26 For the Lorde shall stande by thy side, & kepe thy foote that thou be not taken.
27 Withdraw no good thyng from them that haue nede, so long as thyne hande is able to do it.
28 Say not vnto thy neyghbour, go thy way and come agayne, and to morowe wyll I geue thee: where as thou hast nowe to geue hym.
29 Intende no hurt against thy neyghbour, seing he hopeth to dwell in rest by thee.
30 Striue not with any man without a cause, where as he hath done thee no harme.
31 Folowe not a wicked man, and chose none of his wayes:
32 For the Lord abhorreth the froward: but his counsayle is among the righteous.
33 The curse of the Lord is in the house of the vngodly: but he blesseth the dwellinges of the righteous.
34 As for the scornfull, doth he not laugh them to scorne? but he geueth grace vnto the lowly.
35 The wyse shall haue honour in possession: but shame is the promotion that fooles shall haue.
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.