« | Psalm 42 | » |
1 [To the chiefe musition a wise instruction of the sonnes of Corach.] Lyke as the Hart brayeth for water brookes: so panteth my soule after thee O God.
2 My soule is a thirst for the Lorde, yea euen for the lyuyng Lorde: when shall I come to appeare before the face of the Lorde?
3 My teares haue ben my meate day and nyght: whyle they dayly say vnto me where is [nowe] thy God.
4 And I powred out of me my very heart, remembryng this howe that before tyme I haue passed with a great number, bringyng the vnto the house of the Lord: with a voyce of ioy & prayse, [& with] a company that kept holy day.
5 Why art thou so discouraged O my soule, & why art thou so vnquiet within me? attende thou vpon the Lorde, for I will yet acknowledge him only to be a present saluation.
6 My Lorde, my soule is discouraged within me: because I remember thee from the lande of Iordane, and from the litle hyll Hermonim.
7 One deepe calleth another at the noyse of thy water pypes: all thy waues and stormes are gone ouer me.
8 God wyll graunt his louing kindnesse on the day tyme: and in the nyght season I wyll syng of hym, and make my prayer vnto the Lorde of my lyfe.
9 I wyll say vnto the Lorde of my strength: why hast thou forgotten me, why go I thus heauyly through the oppression of myne enemie?
10 It was as a sworde in my bones, when myne enemies dyd cast me in the teeth: in saying dayly vnto me, where is nowe thy Lorde?
11 Why art thou so discouraged O my soule, & why art thou so vnquiet within me? attende thou vpon the Lorde, for I wil yet acknowledge him to be only my present saluation, and my Lorde.
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.