« | Psalm 140 | » |
1 [To the chiefe musition, a Psalme of Dauid.] Delyuer me O God from the euyll man: and preserue me from the outragious man.
2 Who in heart imagine mischiefes: and set forwarde to warre euery day.
3 They haue sharpened their tongue lyke a serpent: Adders poyson is vnder their lippes. Selah.
4 Kepe me O God from the handes of the vngodly: preserue me from the outragious man, who haue deuised to thrust my feete [from me.]
5 The proude haue layde a snare for me, and spread a net abroade with coardes in the high wayes: they haue set trappes for me. Selah.
6 I haue sayde vnto God, thou art my Lorde: heare the voyce of my prayers O God.
7 O Lorde God the strength of my saluation: thou hast couered my head in the day of battayle.
8 Graunt not vnto the vngodly [his] desires O God: bryng not to passe his mischeuous imagination [lest] they shoulde be made to proude. Selah.
9 Let the labour of his owne lippe couer him: [who is] head of them that compasse me about.
10 Let hotte coales be burnyng vpon them: he wyll cast them downe into the fire into deepe pittes, that they may neuer rise vp agayne.
11 A man full of tongue can not prosper vpon the earth: euyll shall hunt the outragious person to ouerthrowe him.
12 I am sure that God wyll dispatche the cause of the afflicted: and he wyll geue iudgement for the needy.
13 Truely the ryghteous wyll confesse it vnto thy name: they that deale vprightlye shall dwell before thy face.
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.