« | Psalm 91 | » |
1 Whosoeuer sitteth vnder the couer of the most highest: he shal abide vnder the shadowe of the almightie.
2 I wyll say vnto God, thou art my hope and my fortresse: my Lorde, in whom I wyll trust.
3 For he wyll delyuer thee from the snare of the hunter: and from the noysome pestilence.
4 He wyll couer thee vnder his wynges, & thou shalt be safe vnder his fethers: his faythfulnesse shalbe thy shielde and buckler.
5 Thou shalt not be afrayde of any terrour of the nyght: nor of any arrowe that sleeth by day,
6 Nor of any pestilence that walketh in the darknesse: nor of any deadly fyt that destroyeth at hygh noone.
7 A thousande shall fall beside thee, and ten thousande at thy ryght hande: but it shall not come nygh thee.
8 Thou only with thine eyes shalt beholde: & see the rewarde of the vngodly.
9 For thou O God art my hope: thou hast set thine habitation very hygh.
10 There shall no euyll lyght on thee: neither shall any plague come nye thy dwellyng.
11 For he wyll geue his angels charge ouer thee: to kepe thee in all thy wayes.
12 They wyll beare thee in [their] handes: that thou hurt not thy foote agaynst a stone.
13 Thou shalt set thy foote vppon the Lion and Adder: the young Lion and the Dragon thou shalt treade vnder thy feete.
14 Because he hath set greatly his loue vpon me, therfore wyll I deliuer hym: I wyll set hym vp out of all daunger, because he hath knowen my name.
15 He shall call vpon me, and I wyll heare hym: yea I am with hym in trouble, I wyll deliuer hym, and bryng hym to honour.
16 I wyll satisfie hym with a long lyfe: and I wyll cause hym to see my saluation.
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.