« | Psalm 102 | » |
1 [A prayer of the afflicted when he was ouerwhelmed, and when he did powre out his petition before the face of God.] Heare my prayer O God: and let my crying come in vnto thee.
2 Hyde not thy face from me in the day of my distresse: encline thine eare vnto me, heare me spedyly in the day that I call.
3 For my dayes are consumed away like smoke: and my bones are burnt vp as though they were a firebrande.
4 My heart is smitten downe and wythered lyke grasse: because I did forget to eate my bread.
5 Through the noyse of my gronyng: my bones wyll scase cleaue to my fleshe.
6 I am become lyke a Pellicane of the wildernesse, and like an Owle that is in the desert:
7 (102:6) I watch, and am as it were a sparrowe that sitteth alone vpon the house toppe.
8 (102:7) Myne enemies reuile me all the day long: and they that are in a rage against me, make their oth by me.
9 (102:8) For I haue eaten asshes as it were bread, and mingled my drynke with weepyng,
10 (102:8) because of thine indignation and wrath: for thou hast set me vp, and cast me downe.
11 (102:9) My dayes fade away lyke a shadowe: and I am wythered lyke grasse.
12 (102:10) But thou O God endurest for euer: and thy remembraunce throughout all generations.
13 (102:11) Thou wylt aryse vp, thou wylt haue compassion vpon Sion: for it is tyme that thou haue mercie vpon her, for the tyme appoynted is come.
14 (102:12) For thy seruauntes be well affected towarde her stones: and it pitieth them to see her in the dust.
15 (102:13) And the heathen wyll feare thy name O God: and all the kynges of the earth thy glorious maiestie.
16 (102:14) For God wyll buylde vp Sion: to be seene in his glorious maiestie.
17 (102:15) He wyll regarde the prayer of the humble destitute of all helpe: and he wyll not dispise their prayer.
18 (102:16) This shalbe written for those that come after: and the people which shalbe borne, shall prayse the Lorde.
19 (102:17) For he hath loked downe from his high sanctuarie: out of heauen did God beholde the earth.
20 (102:18) That he might heare the mourninges of such as be in captiuitie: and delyuer the children of death.
21 (102:19) That they may declare the name of God in Sion: and his prayse at Hierusalem.
22 (102:20) When people were gathered together, & kyngdomes to serue God:
23 (102:20) he afflicted my strength in the way, he shortened my dayes.
24 (102:21) But I say, O my God take me not away in the middest of myne age: as for thy yeres, they endure throughout all generations.
25 (102:22) Thou hast before tyme layde the foundation of the earth: and the heauens are the worke of thy handes.
26 (102:23) They shall perishe, but thou wylt remayne styll: they all shall waxe olde as doth a garment, and as a vesture thou wylt chaunge them, and they shalbe chaunged.
27 (102:24) But thou art, and thy yeres can not fayle:
28 (102:24) the children of thy seruauntes shal dwell, and their seede shalbe maynteyned in thy syght.
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.