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1 After this, I loked, and beholde a doore was open in heaue: and the first voyce which I heard, was as it were of a trumpet talking with me, which saide: Come vp hyther, and I wyll shewe thee thynges which must be fulfylled hereafter.
2 And immediatly I was in the spirite, and behold, a throne was set in heauen, and one sate on the throne.
3 And he that sate, was to loke vppon like vnto a Iasper stone and a Sardine stone: and there was a raynebowe about the throne, in sight like to an Emeralde.
4 And about ye throne were 24 seates, and vpon the seates 24 elders sitting, clothed in whyte rayment, and had on their heades crownes of golde.
5 And out of the throne proceaded lightnynges, and thundrynges, and voyces, and there were seue lampes of fire burnyng before the throne, whiche are the seuen spirites of God.
6 And before the throne there was a sea of glasse, lyke vnto cristall, and in the myddest of the throne, & rounde about the throne, were foure beastes, full of eyes before and behynde.
7 And the first beast was lyke a Lion, and the seconde beast lyke a Calfe, & the thirde beast had a face as a Man, and the fourth beast was like a fleyng Egle.
8 And the foure beastes had eche one of them sixe wynges about hym, and they were full of eyes within: and they had no rest day neither night, saying: Holy, holy, holy Lorde God almightie, which was, and is, and is to come.
9 And when those beastes gaue glorie, and honour, and thankes to hym that sate on the throne, which lyueth for euer and euer:
10 The xxiiij. elders fell downe before him that sate on the throne, and worshipped hym that lyueth for euer, and cast their crownes before the throne, saying:
11 Thou art worthy, O Lord, to receaue glorie, and honour, and power: for thou hast created all thynges, and for thy pleasures sake they are &
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.