« | Song of Solomon 8 |
1 O that I might finde thee without and kisse thee, whom I loue as my brother whiche suckt my mothers brestes, and that thou shalt not be dispised,
2 I wyll leade thee and bryng thee into my mothers house, that thou myghtest teache me, and that I myght geue thee drynke of the spiced wine, and of the sweete sappe of my pomegranates.
3 His left hande shalbe vnder my head, and his ryght hande shall imbrace me.
4 I charge you O ye daughters of Hierusalem that ye wake not vp my loue, nor touche her, tyll she be content her selfe.
5 (What is she this that cometh vp from the wildernesse, and leaneth vpon her loue?) I wake thee vp among the apple trees where thy mother conceaued thee, where thy mother [I say] brought thee into the worlde.
6 O set me as a seale vpon thine heart, and as a seale vpon thine arme: for loue is myghtie as the death, and gelousie as the hell.
7 Her coales are coales of fire, and a very vehement flambe [of the Lorde]: so that many waters are not able to quenche loue, neither may the streames drowne it: Yea yf a man woulde geue all the good of his house for loue, he shoulde count it nothyng.
8 Our sister is but young and hath no brestes: what shall we do for our sister when she shalbe spoken for?
9 If she be a wall, we shall builde a siluer bulwarke thervpon: yf she be a doore, we shall fasten her with boordes of Cedar tree.
10 I am a wall, and my brestes lyke towres, then was I as one that hath founde fauour in his syght.
11 Solomon hath a vineyarde at BaalHamon: and this vineyarde deliuered he vnto the kepers, that euery one for the fruite therof shoulde geue hym a thousande peeces of siluer.
12 My vineyarde which is myne, is in my syght: thou (O Solomon) must haue a thousande, and the kepers two hundred, which kepe the fruite.
13 Thou that dwellest in the gardens, O let me heare thy voyce, that my companions may hearken to the same.
14 O get thee away my loue, and be as a roe or a young hart vpon the sweete smellyng mountaynes.
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.