Mp iiii 1111 111 " PPPPP p;§ :«;?P«pSp:P;.p 11111 ¦ YAIM JWMWmmmWTY- Presented by the Author 23&- This book was digitized by Microsoft Corporation in cooperation with Yale University Library, 2008. You may not reproduce this digitized copy ofthe book for any purpose other than for scholarship, research, educational, or, in limited quantity, personal use. You may not distribute or provide access to this digitized copy (or modified or partial versions of it) for commercial purposes. THE BOOK OF BOOKS AND ITS WONDERFUL STORY THE GARDEN OF EDEN {From a Geneva Bible in the author's library) THE BOOK OF BOOKS AND ITS WONDERFUL STORY A POPULAR HANDBOOK FOR COLLEGES, BIBLE CLASSES, SUNDAY SCHOOLS, AND PRIVATE STUDENTS BY JOHN W. LEA Philadelphia, Pa. THE JOHN C. WINSTON COMPANY 1922 COPYRIGHT, 1922 BY JOHN W. LEA TO THE GLORY OF GOD AND THE PRECIOUS MEMORY OF THE GREAT AND NOBLE ARMY OF WORKERS WHO, WITH TIRELESS ZEAL, LABORED THROUGH MANY CENTURIES AND IN MANY LANDS, AMID HARDSHIPS AND PERSECUTION, AND IN MANY INSTANCES ENDURED DEATH ITSELF AS A RESULT OF THEIR LABORS, TO WHOM, IN THE PROVIDENCE OF GOD, WE ARE INDEBTED FOR THE INESTIMABLE POSSESSION OF THE BOOK OF BOOKS PREFACE Many excellent books have been written on Bible his tory. Some have dealt with manuscripts only, others with the English versions; some have given more details ofthe external history, others the internal structure and changes; some are written mainly for the scholar, others for the general reader. A few contain illustrations of persons, places, manuscripts, and versions, but many of the most useful are not illustrated. Some of the most valuable are now out of print. It therefore seemed good to the writer of this book to given an outline of the whole story of Bible production and transmission from the original manuscripts to the latest revisions, and to add thereto a plentiful supply of illustrations, because they help materially to a proper appreciation of the wonderful story. To a work of this kind the saying of the wise man, that there is nothing new under the sun, seems specially applicable. It is possible only to present, in a somewhat new form, facts which are old and which have been pre sented many times before. The author is indebted to the excellent works listed in the Bibliography for the main facts; but, in addition, he has had the opportunity to examine copies of the first editions of every version from Tindale's to the Revised, and the dedications, prefaces, and prologues have in most instances been taken verbatim et literatim from those originals. A number of the title-pages have been specially photographed. For this privilege thanks are due to the Librarian of the New York Public Library and his courteous assistants. To the Directors of (vii) viii The Book of Books the British Museum, London, and the Bibliotheque Na tional, Paris, the author is indebted for some photographs specially taken for this volume; to the John C. Winston Company, Philadelphia, Thomas Nelson and Sons, New York, and the Religious Tract Society, London, for illustra tions from their publications; to the University of Chicago Press for the use of illustrations from The Biblical World; to the Rector of Lutterworth and the Rector of Little Sodbury for the excellent photographs in the chapters on Wiclif and Tindale; to the Bishop of Hereford for the picture of the chained library; to the American Bible Society and the British and Foreign Bible Society for several illustrations and some statements of eminent persons; to Mr. Charles H. Clarke, Miss A. M. Smith, Mr. Charles J. Cohen, and the Evening Bulletin for the use of plates; to the Bishop of Worcester, the Dean of Westminster, Miss Perowne, and Miss Troutbeck, all of England; the presi dents, secretaries, and librarians of Yale, Harvard, and New York Universities, Hartford, Andover, New Brunswick, Princeton, and Western Theological Seminaries, and Union and Haverford Colleges; and many relatives of the late American Revisers, for their uniform courtesy and cordial assistance in securing photographs. Sincere thanks are here given to all. The names ofthe early translators were spelled variously — for example, Wiclif's name has been spelled in twenty- eight different ways. The following have been adopted in this book after much careful consideration: John Wiclif, William Tindale, and Myles Coverdale. As regards the reproduction of dedications, prefaces, and prologues, they are given in full because they contain important details concerning the work and interesting dissertations on the contents of the Bible and their ¦ application to the times. The quaint spelling and phraseology have been retained in The Book of Books ix most instances, because, as Dore says, "to modernise the orthography is to destroy one of the charms of these old Bibles, and seems to me to be in a bad taste as attempting to improve their quaint diction." A little practice will enable anyone to read them with ease. The u's are often put for v's and v's for u's, and an accent is put over a letter (usually a vowel) to denote the omission of a letter after ward (usually "n" or "m"), as "tio" for "tion," the object being to save space in a full line. The spelling is so varied that three or more forms of the same word may be met with in as many lines. The language was in process of fixation, and it took a long time — and even today we are afflicted with "standard," "simplified," and other varieties of spelling. With a consciousness that the work is not without fault, and with a hope that the readers may derive as much pleasure in perusing as the author had had in compiling, this volume is now sent forth to Bible-loving Christians irrespective of creed or denominational affiliation. John W. Lea 1520 N. Robinson Street Philadelphia, Pa. August 1, 1922 CONTENTS CHAPTER PAGE I. Introduction i II. The Popularity of the Bible 17 III. The Testimony of Eminent Persons to the Value of the Bible in the Life of the Individual and the Nation 26 IV. Chronological Table and Maps 53 V. Ancient Writing and the Bible Manu scripts 58 VI. Ancient Versions and Quotations 91 VII. Early English Paraphrases and Versions 100 VIII. John Wiclif and the First English Bible 105 IX. Three Great Developments: The Re naissance, the Reformation, the In vention of Printing 116 X. William Tindale and the First Printed English New Testament 134 XI. Myles Coverdale and the First Printed English Bible 174 XII. Matthew's Bible and Taverner's Bible. 196 XIII. The Great Bible and Cranmer's Bible.. 211 XIV. The Geneva Bible. 219 XV. The Bishops' Bible 235 XVI. The Rheims New Testament and the Douay Old Testament 240 XVII. The Authorized Version 244 XVIII. The Revised Versions 278 XIX. Conclusion 340 XX. Bibliography 343 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS TAGE The Garden of Eden Frontispiece Bible House, New York 16 Huxley, T. H 25 Penniman, J. H 25 Farrar, F. W 27 Presidents of the United States (George Washington, John Adams, Thomas Jefferson, John Quincy Adams, Andrew Jackson, Zachary Taylor, Abraham Lincoln) 34 Presidents of the United States (Ulysses Simpson Grant, Benjamin Harrison, William McKinley) 36 President Roosevelt's Bible 38 Presidents of the United States (Theodore Roosevelt, Wood- row Wilson) 38 President Warren G. Harding 42 Map of Bible Lands 52 Map of England and Wales 57 Egyptian Hieroglyphics 59 The Rosetta Stone 60 The Stele of Hammurabi 61 Cylinder of Cyrus II 62 A Cuneiform Inscription 63 A Tel el-Amarna Tablet 64 The Papyrus Reed 65 A Papyrus Fragment 66 Papyrus Documents 67 The Moabite Stone 68 Portion of a Hebrew Manuscript 70 A Modern Pentateuch Roll 71 A Megillah or Book of Esther, and a Small Torah, or Book of the Law 73 The Old Illuminator 74 Convent of St. Catherine, on Mount Sinai 80 A Page of the Sinaitic Manuscript 82 Main Hall of the Vatican Library 84 A Page of the Vatican Manuscript 85 A Volume of the Alexandrian Manuscript 86 A Page from the Alexandrian Manuscript 87 A Page of the Ephraem Palimpsest 89 The Samaritan Pentateuch 90 Part of the Samaritan Pentateuch 92 Ancient Rolls and Container 93 (xiii) xiv The Book of Books PAGE Fragment of Septuagint Psalter 94 Portion of Jerome's Vulgate 96 Portion of a Syriac Manuscript 98 Portion of a Coptic Manuscript 99 John Wiclif 104 Lutterworth Church 108 A Page of Wiclif's Bible 1 1 1 The River Swift 113 Wiclif Tablet in Lutterworth Church 1 14 A Page of the Biblia Pauperum 117 Gutenberg Statue at Strasburg 118 Gutenberg Taking an Impression 120 An Old Wooden Printing Press 121 A Modern Newspaper Press 122 Martin Luther 124 A Page of the Gutenberg Bible 126 A Page of the Complutensian Polyglot 128 Dr. Tregelles and Dr. Tischendorf 131 Dr. Westcott, Bishop of Durham 132 William Tindale 135 The Tindale Memorial at North Nibley 136 Little Sodbury Manor House 137 Ruins of Tindale's Church 138 St. Adeline's Church, Little Sodbury 139 Interior of St. Adeline's Church 140 How the People Received the English Bible 144 How the Clergy Received the English Bible 145 Facsimiles from the Grenville Fragment 147, 148, 150, 152 Facsimile Page of Tindale's Octavo Testament, 1525 162 Title-page of Tindale's 1534 Testament 170 Vilvorde Castle 173 Myles Coverdale 175 Title-page of Coverdale's Bible 177 A Page of Coverdale's Bible 193 John Rogers 197 Thomas Cromwell 198 Title-page of Matthew's Bible 200 Title-page of Taverner's Bible 208 Title-page of the Great Bible 213 A Chained Library 215 Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury 216 Title-page of New Testament in Geneva Bible, i860 224 The Bishops' Bible Title-page 234 Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury 236 A Page of the Bishops' Bible 238 A Chained Bible 243 Title-page of the Authorized Version, 161 1 248 A Page of the Authorized Version, 161 1 250 The Book of Books xv PAGE Title-page of a Modern Edition of the Authorized Version. . . 252 The Jerusalem Chamber, Westminster Abbey 277 Four English Revisers of the Old Testament (Bishops Ollivant, Thirlwall, Hervey, and Browne) 280 Three English Revisers of the Old Testament (Bishop Chris topher Wordsworth, W. L. Alexander, and R. L. Bensly) 282 Four English Revisers of the Old Testament (John Birrell, Thomas Chenery, A. B. Davidson, and Benjamin Davies) 284 Four English Revisers of the Old Testament (G. C. M. Douglas, S. R. Driver, C. J. Elliott, and Frederick Field) 286 Four English Revisers of the Old Testament (J. D. Geden, Benjamin Harrison, C. D. Ginsburg, and F. W. Gotch). . 288 Four English Revisers of the Old Testament (William Kay, Stanley Leathes, J. R. Lumby, and J. J. S. Perowne) . . . 290 Four English Revisers of the Old Testament (E. H. Plumptre, William Selwyn, R. P. Smith, and A. H. Sayce) 292 Three English Revisers of the Old Testament (W. A. Wright, W. R. Smith, and D. H. Weir) '.. 294 Three English Revisers of the New Testament (Henry Alford, Bishop Wilberforce, and John Troutbeck) 296 Twenty English Revisers of the New Testament (Bishops Ellicott, Moberly, and Lightfoot, A. P. Stanley, Robert Scott, J. W. Blakesley, E. Bickersteth, Archbishop Trench, Bishop Charles Wordsworth, Joseph Angus, David Brown, John Eadie, F. J. A. Hort, W. C. Hum phry, B. H. Kennedy, William Lee, William Milligan, W. F. Moulton, Samuel Newth, and Edwin Palmer) .... 298 Four English Revisers of the New Testament (Alexander Roberts, G. V. Smith, F. H. A. Scrivener, and C. J. Vaughan) 300 Four American Revisers of the Old Testament (C. A. Aiken, T. W. Chambers, G. E. Day, and T. J. Conant) 314 Four American Revisers of the Old Testament (John De Witt, W. H. Green, G. E. Hare, and C. P. Krauth) 316 Four American Revisers of the Old Testament (C. E. Stowe, Tayler Lewis, Joseph Packard, and C. M. Mead) 318 Van Dyck, C. V. A 319 Four American Revisers of the New Testament (Ezra Abbot, Thomas Chase, Howard Crosby, and Timothy Dwight) . 320 Four American Revisers ofthe New Testament (H. B. Hackett, A. C. Kendrick, Charles Hodge, and James Hadley) ... 322 Four American Revisers of the New Testament (Bishop Lee, H. B. Smith, T. D. Woolsey, W. F. Warren) 324 Three American Revisers of the New Testament (M. B. Riddle, Philip Schaff, and J. H. Thayer) 326 Title-page of the English Revised Version 328 Title-page of the American Standard Revised Version 329 The Jewish Revisers 332 THE BOOK OF BOOKS Holy Bible, Book Divine, Precious treasure, thou art mine : Mine to tell me what I am, Mine to tell me whence I came, Mine to tell of joys to come, Light and life beyond the tomb. THE BOOK OF BOOKS AND ITS WONDERFUL STORY CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION THE foundation upon which Christendom is based is that the Bible is true, that it is God's revelation to man concerning matters which are of supreme importance in relation to human destiny, and that it is the only reliable source of information in this respect. It is not our present purpose to demonstrate the existence of God, important as that is stated to be by the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews, who declares that "without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing unto Him; for he that cometh to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of them that seek after Him." It is assumed that those who read these pages admit the existence of God and are satisfied that Nature renders abundant testimony to His majesty and power.Nor are we particularly concerned at present with demonstrating the genuineness or authenticity of the com positions that make up the Bible. We assume a recognition that they are the writings of those who claim to be their authors, or for whom such claim has been made by individual Christians or ecclesiastical organizations for generations past. The discussions as to text and substance belong to a branch of study separate and distinct from that which is about to engage our attention. Our object is, recognizing the exist ence of God and the genuineness of the Scriptures as a reve lation from Him through His accredited messengers, to trace the wonderful history of those Scriptures from their origin in the far-distant past to the form in which we possess them today. (D 2 The Book of Books Again, it is not our intention here to discuss the teach ing of the Bible, except in a general way. We do not intend to discuss the theological dogmas which have been such fruitful sources of controversy within the churches ever since the days of the apostles, but our considerations in this regard will be limited to a general view of the nature and structure of the Bible and its value in the lives of individuals and nations, along with a simple account of the wonderful story of its transmission. We wish to arouse a right appreciation of the Holy Writings, with an intelligent understanding of their general message to humanity. The Epistle to the Hebrews commences with the decla ration: "God having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers manners, hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in a Son." God hath spoken ! The voice of Nature has not been left alone to tell of God's existence, but He has directly revealed Himself to individuals of our race, and it is the record of His varied revelation which is known to us today as the Bible. At times God spake with an audible voice, as when He gave to Moses, at Mount Sinai, the code of laws by which Israel, as a nation, was to be governed, and the instructions concerning the erection of a tabernacle in which He might hold communion with men. A portion of the people, the priesthood, was separated to participate in this close com munion with God, the priests alone being permitted to enter the holy place where God promised to meet His people, and the high-priest alone entering the holiest of all once a year. Thus did God reveal Himself during the existence of Israel as a nation, and by the oracle of Urim and Thummim on the breastplate of the high-priest He answered the inquiries of His people. On some occasions God made known His purposes through dreams, as when He caused King Nebu chadnezzar to dream of that wonderful metallic image which symbolized the destiny of the principal nations of the world for a period of more than two thousand years. Many prophets were commissioned to bear messages from God to the children of Israel, and in some instances angels have appeared to men and brought tidings from the God of heaven. Lastly, God revealed Himself in a Son, the Lord Introduction 3 Jesus Christ, the transcending revelation of Himself, in whom He has given to mankind an expression of His own attributes, and whom He has constituted a glorious pattern of what He purposes that all who will may become. Jesus is the perfect revelation of God to man — as He said on one occasion, "He that hath seen Me hath seen the Father." The record of these divine revelations has been made by men who wrote by inspiration of God. "Men spake from God," said Peter, "being moved by the Holy Spirit," and their utterances and their writings have been preserved by divine providence, so that we, in these late days, when no open vision is beheld, when no audible voice is heard from heaven, when no accredited divine messenger is in our midst, may rest our confidence in God upon a belief of those things which He did in the days of old. The Bible consists of sixty-six distinct sections written by almost as many writers, who lived in countries and at periods often far apart — the earliest being probably the first five books usually understood to have been written by Moses more than three thousand years ago, and the latest the Revelation given to John in Patmos over eighteen hun dred years ago — a period of about fifteen hundred years intervening. The writers include persons from all ranks of society, from the king to the captive and the peasant. Many of the psalms in Israel's marvelous collection of national songs of praise were the work of the sweet singer of Israel, David the king, and the Book of Proverbs contains the wise sayings of his son and successor, Solomon. Some of the prophecies were written by Ezekiel in exile on the banks of the river Chebar, in Assyria, and by Daniel, a captive prince at the court of the king of Babylon. Jeremiah and Ezekiel were of the priestly order. Amos was a herdsman when called to be the Lord's prophet. Saul of Tarsus, afterward called Paul, was a lawyer of high distinction, a Pharisee of the Pharisees. Peter and John were humble fishermen. Matthew belonged to the despised taxgatherers. Luke is spoken of as the beloved physician. Men of all ranks and stations in life were commissioned to be bearers of the divine message to mankind. And yet, with such diversity of authorship, and so wide a range of time, the result is a collec- 4 The Book of Books tion of writings which unite in presenting varied details of one divine message. There is but one conclusion to be drawn from so wonderful a fact — that behind these various writers, and through all the fifteen centuries, there was a guiding and controlling power exercised by God, which secured the uniformity and the accuracy of the testimony. The inspira tion of God can alone account for the presentation of so harmonious a revelation by such diversified means. As one of our poets has asked: Whence but from heaven could men, unskilled in arts, In different ages bom, in different parts, Weave such agreeing truths, or how, or why Should all conspire to cheat us with a lie? Unasked their pains, ungrateful their advice, Starving their gains, and martyrdom their price. In a little pamphlet on the inspiration of the Bible H. L. Hastings supposes a picture drawn by a number of different artists, unknown to each other, who each entered the room and, without conference with the others, painted in turn a portion on the canvas, with the result that the complete picture was a wonderful expression of a single and perfect idea. What conclusion could be come to in regard to the painting? None but that all had received their inspiration from the same original source though unac quainted one with another. The Bible reveals God to man. It corroborates the testimony of Nature as to His majesty and power, and, in addition, makes known His wisdom and His love. It reveals Him as the Creator and Sustainer of all things animate, for in Him "all live and move and have their being." It reveals Him as the Eternal and the Source of all light and life; as omnipresent, filling all space and working His will by His Spirit; as omniscient, knowing all things and foreseeing the end of all His works from the beginning; as omnipotent, working all things according to His own wise counsels. It reveals man, on the other hand, as weak, frail, and mortal, the head of all animate creation, but of the same perishing nature with the rest. Beyond this, it opens up to mankind a glorious possibility of attaining to the divine nature, setting forth the conditions which the Introduction 5 Almighty has laid down, upon the observance of which He will ultimately raise the faithful among the sons of men to His own unending being. It offers to men salvation from sin and death, through Jesus Christ — the Way, the Truth, the Life. "In none other is there salvation, for neither is there any other name under heaven that is given among men, wherein we must be saved." There are many persons who consider themselves good Christians, but who disregard entirely, or almost entirely, the Old Testament Scriptures, declaring them to have been fulfilled and that the New Testament has now superseded them as a saving power. Let such bear in mind that it was to the Old Testament Scriptures the apostle Paul referred when he wrote to Timothy: "Evil men and impostors shall wax worse and worse, deceiving and being deceived. But abide thou in the things which thou hast learned and hast been assured of; knowing of whom thou hast learned them; and that from a babe thou hast known the Sacred Writings which are able to make thee wise unto salvation through faith which is in Jesus Christ. Every Scripture is inspired of God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correc tion, for instruction which is in righteousness; that the man of God may be complete, furnished completely unto every good work." It was to the same Old Testament Scriptures that Jesus referred in the closing words of the parable of the Rich Man and Lazarus: "If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded if one rose from the dead"; and when He rebuked the unbelieving Jews: "Ye search the Scriptures, because ye think that in them ye have eternal life; and these are they which bear witness of Me; and ye will not come to Me, that ye may have life. . . . Think not that I will accuse you to the Father; there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, on whom ye have set your hope. For if ye believed Moses ye would believe My words." It was of the Old Testament that Paul wrote to the Roman believers: "For whatsoever things were written aforetime were written for our learning, that through patience and through comfort of the Scriptures we might have hope." And again he referred to the Old Testament when he declared before King Agrippa: "Having therefore obtained the help 6 The Book of Books that is from God, I stand unto this day testifying both to small and great, saying nothing but what the prophets and Moses did say should come." Therefore whatever the New Testament may contain, it cannot be in contradiction to the Old, but can only serve to amplify its teaching or indicate more particularly the method by which its promises are to become facts. Emphasis must be laid upon the fact that the Bible is the only reliable source of information upon matters per taining to human destiny. The apostle Peter's exhortation is applicable in this respect, that if any man speak he should do it "as it were oracles of God." It is asserted by some that the voice of "the church" is of more value than the Word itself, and that it is impossible to understand the Bible apart from the guidance of popes, cardinals, bishops, and councils. It was by its blasphemous claims that this "church" kept the Word of God from the people of England for many centuries, and it endeavored to protect its assump tions by conducting its services in a foreign tongue until, in the mercy and providence of God, a few earnest souls, as John Wiclif and William Tindale, feeling that the real reason why the priests kept the Bible from the people was because it denounced them and their claims, determined that the people should, by God's help, have His message in such a form that they could read and understand it. By the grace of God they succeeded, though the opposition of priestcraft was exercised in its bitterest and most violent forms. From then till now successive generations have witnessed the spread of the divine light, until today no book has so wide a circulation or is produced in so inexpensive a form as the Bible. How little most people appreciate the glorious privilege which their ancestors suffered so much to obtain for them! The very fact that today the Bible is so easily to be acquired seems to be a cause of little real interest being taken in its contents. Time was when large sums of money were will ingly paid for the possession of a single copy, and great risks were run in order to hear portions read. Any kind of biblical study was then prosecuted under great difficulties and with constant fear of persecution. Foxe has said : Introduction 7 Certes, the fervent zeal of those Christian days seemed much superior to these our days and times, as manifestly may appear by their sitting up all night in reading and hearing; also by their expenses and charges in buying books in English, of whom some gave five marks [about two hundred dollars], some more, some less, for a book; some gave a load of hay for a few chapters of St. James or of St. Paul in English. ... To see their travails, their earnest seekings, their burning zeal, their readings, their watchings, their sweet assemblies, . . . may make us now, in these days of free profession, to blush for shame. The above was written nearly two hundred years after Wiclif's Bible was published, and now, more than three hundred years later, it is equally true. Even when the Bible is read, it is done in a variety of ways and for a variety of ends. Some read to learn and some to scoff; some that they may find precious messages from God to man, and some in the expectation that they may find contradictions which they may utilize for undermining its influence; some read it merely with an antiquarian interest, viewing it as a literary curiosity of no more practical value than the writings of any ancient scribe; some study it that they may ascertain what are the truths it contains; and others read it with their minds already made up, and endeavor to make all its statements fit in with the theories they hold. The wisest course, acknowledging it to be a revelation from God to man, is devoutly to study the truths it reveals and render willing obedience to its commands. The composition of the Bible is as varied as its author ship. Every kind of writing finds a place therein. Its histories are mainly concerned with the dealings of the Creator with the creatures He has formed, and, while the history of the Jews is more particularly treated of, events transpiring in Gentile lands are frequently dealt with. It is not long since a favorite argument of the enemies of the Bible was that its history was unsubstantiated and therefore unreliable. But the past century has witnessed the verification of much that was disputed. The sites of ancient Babylon and Nineveh were unknown a hundred years ago: their existence even was questioned; but today, thanks to the efforts of Sir Henry Rawlinson and Sir Austen Layard, and a host who have followed in their steps, those grand and giant cities of the distant past have been found; 8 The Book of Books the accumulated alluvium and the dust of centuries have been removed by the excavator's spade, and temples and palaces and libraries have been opened to view. Devoted students have followed up the labors of the excavators, and the unearthed records may now be read. Patient effort has been rewarded with an understanding of the strange cunei form br wedge-shaped letters, and the grammatical rules that governed the use of the words formed from them. The archaeological records have confirmed the Bible stories con cerning the military exploits and imperial splendor of the two great nations of Babylonia and Assyria. At the middle of last century the Hittites were unknown outside the Bible histories; but today they stand revealed as a powerful people, whose capital city has been unearthed and the records of whose exploits have been found and deciphered, just as have the Assyrian and the Babylonian. The story of oriental exploration is as wonderful and fasci nating as the story of Bible transmission, but we have not space to follow it farther than to note the testimony it bears to the accuracy and consequent value of the Holy Scriptures. The following quotation from the beginning of Dr. A. H. Sayce's book, The Hittites, the Story of a Forgotten Empire, will admirably point the lesson : We are told in the Second Book of Kings (7 : 6) that when the Syrians were encamped about Samaria and the Lord had sent a panic upon them, "they said one to another, 'Lo, the king of Israel hath hired against us the kings of the Egyptians, to come upon us."! About the year 1843 a distinguished scholar selected this passage for his criticism. Its "unhistorical tone," he declared, "is too manifest to allow of our easy belief in it. . . . No Hittite kings can have compared with the king of Judah, the real and near ally, who is not named at all . . . nor is there a single mark of acquaintance with the contemporaneous history." Recent discoveries have retorted the critic's objection upon himself. It is not the biblical writer but the modern author who is now proved to have been unacquainted with the contemporan eous history of the time. The Hittites were a very real power. The monuments erected by the kings in celebration of their victories, and the inscriptions on the rocks, with pic tures of the campaigns, speak in loud and indisputable tones in support of the biblical narratives and records. Introduction 9 Another kind of writing in the Bible is prophecy, which someone has aptly defined as "history written before hand." Such indeed it is, and it is here that the divine inspiration of the Bible is more plainly seen, perhaps, than anywhere else. The Bible foretells the histories of nations hundreds, yea, thousands, of years beforehand. This is something beyond the power of man. No human being can foretell, with any degree of accuracy, the destinies of indi viduals, nations, or empires for a few years, or even months or days, as evidenced by the fallacious guesses of politicians, statesmen, and newspaper writers for the past few years in relation to the nations of Europe. Who would have said ten years ago, or even less, that the mighty nation that aspired to world empire and sought to attain it in full con fidence of its military supremacy, would today be at the mercy of those whom it esteemed "contemptible," or that its vain-glorious monarch would be wasting his years as an inglorious fugitive? Nations have gone and others have taken their places; empires and monarchies have given way to republics; kings have been deposed and presidents elected ih their stead; and international relations are in a state of perpetual change. An Irishman is credited with the remark that "it isn't wise to prophesy till after the event," and, like many other Irish sayings, there is much wisdom in it — that is so far as human prophesying is concerned. But with divine prophecies, with Bible prophecies, it is a different matter. In them the destinies of nations are predicted for thousands of years, and without a single error in the pre dictions; this would have been as impossible for human foresight then as now. Mighty empires should vanish entirely; some then unknown should arise; and others, weak by comparison, should continue to be. Babylon and Assyria, glorious when the prediction was made, should become waste, howling wildernesses. Tyre, the mart of nations, should become a place for the fisherman to spread his net. Egypt should continue, but be the basest of king doms. Moab and Ammon should pass completely off the scene. The empires of Persia, Greece, and Rome should rise and flourish and decay. The small, feeble, despised Jewish nation should endure terrible persecution and oppres- io The Book of Books sion, and in dispersion the Jews should maintain their individuality and identity, and they should at last be restored to favor among the nations and return to their land. In every instance the prophecy was literally fulfilled, testifying unequivocally to the divine inspiration that was back of them all. Biography, or the history of individuals, is dealt with, not as men are wont to write the life-stories of their fellows — prejudiced to give prominence to either the good deeds or the bad; but faithfully recording the facts of the lives it makes mention of, neither sparing the sins of the king nor obscuring the good deeds of the poorest and most humble. Its poetry is of the purest and loftiest character. Its songs are in celebration of some great event that actually has happened or prophetic of things that will surely come to pass. Its metaphors are the most beautiful and expressive. What writings can compare with the Psalms for lofty imagery and spiritual thought ? Its code of laws is the most equitable that ever was framed, and a community founded upon and controlled by the ethics ofthe New Testament would approx imate very closely to the perfect ideal. The sixty-six books of the Bible as we have it today are divided into the Old Testament, containing thirty-nine books, and the New Testament, containing twenty-seven. These are the books that are universally recognized as of divine origin and so have been assigned a place in what is called the "canon" and are therefore "canonical." Some Bibles today contain a number of other books known collec tively as the Apocrypha and placed between the Old and the New Testaments. The Apocrypha is contained in the Roman Catholic, or Douay Bibles, but since about a hun dred years ago has been omitted from the Authorized Version. The evidence for the genuineness and divine origin of these apocryphal books has been so much questioned that they have now been eliminated. Besides these canon ical and apocryphal books a place has been claimed for some others, but it was very early recognized that they were spurious, and they were not admitted into the Bible. Such are some apocryphal gospels, whose absurd stories concern ing Jesus readily convinced devout Christians of their Introduction i i unreliability. The sixty-six books that remain in the canon, or recognized list of genuine and divine books, are there because the evidence for their divine origin is entirely satis factory to scholars and theologians. The Bible books were originally written by hand, prin cipally on parchment or vellum, made from the skins of sheep, calves, and antelopes. These originals and early copies of them are known as "manuscripts" or hand writings. It was a tedious job to make copies by hand, which was the only way known until a little more than four and a half centuries ago, and the copyists were known as scribes or writers, from the Latin word scribo, "I write." The products of the scribes' labors were known as "scrip tures" or "writings." Today we speak ofthe Bible as the Holy Scriptures, or Holy Scripture, that is, the holy writings, or writings about holy or sacred things. The scribes, on account of being familiar with the contents of the writings, became teachers and were held in considerable esteem. Another form of writing was by impressing soft clay with the edge of a hard substance, making a deeper impres sion at one end than at the other, and giving wedge-shaped characters. The clay tablets, having been baked, could be stored indefinitely. Many such tablets, containing school lessons, legal documents, religious records, and other matters, have been found in the oriental excavations and may be seen in the museums of this and other lands. In Egypt, especially, the stems of the papyrus plant were dried and used for writing on with ink, much in the same way that in Canada birch bark is split into thin sheets and used for writing. No original manuscripts of the books of the Bible are known to exist today. Time, fire, war, and other causes have destroyed them all. Nor are there any very early copies of the originals. The earliest Greek manuscripts belong to the fourth century and the earliest Hebrew to the tenth century of the Christian Era. When the contents of the ancient manuscripts were translated from the languages in which they were first written into other languages, such translations were known as "ver sions" or "turnings." The originals of the Old Testament, 12 The Book of Books having been written principally in Hebrew, with a small portion in Aramaic, were later translated into Greek, Samar itan, Syriac, Latin, and other languages. The New Testa ment, most of which, if not all, was written in Greek, was translated into Latin, Syriac, and other languages. Versions have now been made of both Testaments in nearly all languages of the world. In the early Christian centuries it was a custom, as it is now, for theological writers and teachers to make reference to, or quotations from, the Holy Scriptures in their addresses, letters, or commentaries, just as Jesus and the apostles fre quently referred to, or quoted from, the Old Testament Scriptures. It has been said that the whole of the New Testament may be found in the patristic writings — the writings of the early Christians, or the Fathers of the early church. The originals having been lost, it is from the manuscript copies in the original languages, the versions in other lan guages, and the patristic quotations that we get our knowl edge of what the originals contained. Infidels have made much of the mistakes that exist in the modern English Bible and have declared it to be unreliable on that account. That there are mistakes in the present copies of the Bible no reasonable person will deny; but that for the principal object of the book, the salvation of mankind, it is untrust worthy does not necessarily follow. Is it to be wondered at that there are a few mistakes in a book that was written by half a hundred persons, who lived during a period of fifteen hundred years, who wrote in different languages and different lands; a book written by all sorts and conditions of men and women; a book that has been revised, edited, and copied time after time, translated and retranslated into language after language ? Is it to be wondered at that some small item should be left out by some copyist or translator, or that some details, especially numbers, should have been copied erroneously ? It is not. The wonder would be if there were no mistakes at all. Let any who have had experi ence in copying — and, at times, in copying things almost, if not quite, illegible — calmly think over the fact that a book which has had such a long and wonderful history should be Introduction 13 as free from errors as it is. It must be admitted that there are errors in the Bible as we have it; he would be ignorant or foolish who would deny the fact. But whatever errors there are, they do not in any wise affect the authenticity, the genuineness, or the intrinsic value of the Bible as a whole or of any of its constituent books in particular. Some errors are purely errors of transcription, when a scribe mistook one letter for another. That was easily possible, for some letters have such slight differences that a careless scribe would not make them distinct, and the next copyist would probably mistake One letter for another; such mistakes would result in a word of different meaning getting into the text, and the error would in all probability be repeated in subsequent copies. It will easily be seen from this that the earlier the manuscript, the more probability there is of its being correct — although a late copy made from a correct manuscript would in all likelihood be more accurate than an earlier copy made from an incorrect manuscript; therefore it is not an invariable rule that the earlier the manuscript, the more correct it is. The importance of the early manuscripts will appear later in our considerations. Again, a scribe may have omitted something, and on going over it again may have noticed the omission and put the missing portion in the margin. Later on, another copy ist may have left the marginal portion out entirely, not knowing whether it really belonged in the text or was merely a side-note made by a previous scribe. Again, an early scribe may have done something of the same kind as has been done in our modern printed Bibles. He may have put some note of his own in the margin, by way of comment or explanation, which another copyist may have put into the text, thinking it originally belonged there and that the former scribe had at first omitted it and then put it in the margin. That error would be repeated in subsequent copies. Yet again, after theological disputations had arisen in the church, things may have been either deliberately inserted to uphold an argument, or put on the side and later incor porated by a copyist. 14 The Book of Books Instances of errors of these kinds occur at the present day, as anyone can testify who has had anything to do with copying manuscript, especially if the work is long and tedious: they were just as likely to happen at any period of the past. Men's eyes grew tired then, as now, and errors doubtless arose from that cause, as well as from carelessness or deliberate intention. A peculiarity of the early manuscripts may have been the cause of some errors. They were written with capital letters only, and without spaces between the words. When divisions were made, a scribe may have made a division in the wrong place and so have made an incorrect copy, or a translator may have mistaken the words and given a wrong translation — just as the little boy is said to have done with the motto his father put up in his room. The father was an infidel and put up the following letters: godisnowhere. He intended it to be read: "God is nowhere," but his son read it, "God is now here." In copying it is easy for the eye to rest on the wrong line, and a portion is either skipped or duplicated, according to whether the eye has gone forward or backward in its glance. Even in printed matter errors of this kind are made. In the first edition of the King James Version of 1611, a duplication of three lines is made in the tenth verse of the fourteenth chapter of Exodus. Enormous labor has been bestowed by scholars in examining the manuscripts and versions with a view to getting as near as possible to the original text, and although there have crept in many thousands of various readings in the centuries that have elapsed since the originals were penned, many of them are of minor importance and many are duplications, and the really important ones that are still matters of discussion are now few indeed. One of the members of the American Revision Committee, Dr. Ezra Abbot, has said in his Critical Essays: The number of "various readings" frightens some innocent people, and figures largely in the writings of the more ignorant disbelievers in Christianity. "One hundred and fifty thousand various readings!" Must not these render the text of the New Testament wholly uncertain, and thus destroy the foundation of our faith? Introduction 15 The true state of the case is something like this. Of the one hundred and fifty thousand various readings, more or less, of the text of the Greek New Testament, we may, as Mr. Norton has remarked, dismiss nineteen-twentieths from consideration at once, as being obviously of such a character, or supported by so little authority, that no critic would regard them as having any claim to reception. This leaves, we will say, seven thousand five hun dred. But of these, again, it will appear, on examination, that nineteen out of twenty are of no sort of consequence as affecting the sense; they relate to questions of orthography, or grammatical construction, or the order of words, or such other matters as have been mentioned above, in speaking of unimportant variations. They concern only the form of expression, not the essential mean ing. This reduces the number to perhaps four hundred which involve a difference of meaning, often very slight, or the omission or addition of a few words, sufficient to render them objects of some curiosity or interest, while a few exceptional cases among them may relatively be called important. But our critical helps are now so abundant that in a very large majority of these more important questions of reading we are able to determine the true text with a good degree of confidence. In the text of all ancient writings, there are passages in which the text cannot be settled with certainty; and the same is true of the interpretation. It was good advice which the great scholar Bengel gave to his pupil Reuss, to whom he wrote: Eat simply the bread of the Scriptures, such as you find it; and be not disturbed if perchance you find here and there a little fragment of the millstone which has fallen into it. You may now dismiss all the doubts which once horribly tormented me. If the Holy Scriptures, which have been copied so often, and which have so often passed through the imperfect hands of fallible men, were absolutely without variations, the miracle would be so great that faith in it would be no more faith. I am astonished, on the con trary, that there has resulted from all the transcribing a no greater number of different readings. In an article in the North American Review, a writer made some interesting comparisons between the writings of Shakespeare and the Scriptures, which show that much greater care must have been bestowed upon the biblical manuscripts than upon other writings, even when there was so much more opportunity of preserving the correct text by means of printed copies than when all the copies had to be made by hand. He said: i6 The Book of Books It seems strange that the text of Shakespeare, which has been in existence less than two hundred and eight years, should be far more uncertain and corrupt than that of the New Testament, now over eighteen centuries old, during nearly fifteen of which it existed only in manuscript. . . . With perhaps a dozen or twenty exceptions, the text of every verse in the New Testament may be said to be so far settled by general consent of scholars, that any dispute as to its readings must relate rather to the interpretation of the words than to any doubts respecting the words themselves. But in every one of Shakespeare's thirty-seven plays there are probably a hundred readings still in dispute, a large portion of which materially affects the meaning of the passages in which they occur. '******, I glilr 3 53^ Mm ITnm BIBLE HOUSE, NEW YORK CHAPTER II THE POPULARITY OF THE BIBLE * I ''HE Bible has often been spoken of as the Book of Books- -¦- For this there is a twofold justification. In the first place it is the Book of Books because it is one book contain ing many. It is, in fact, a library in itself. Its name, the Bible, is derived from biblia, "the books." There are sixty- six books of varied authorship and composition, each com plete in itself, yet each connected with all the others by a unity of thought and purpose. In the second place, it is pre-eminently the Book of Books because of all books it is the best known and the most revered. It has had a more interesting history than any other book, and it excels all in its importance to, and influ ence upon, mankind. It is wonderful that the Bible should hold the position that it does in the minds and hearts of all civilized people, in view of the persistent efforts of its enemies to displace it. No more bitter words or deeds have ever been directed toward any book than those wherewith the Bible has been assailed by its enemies: yet today it stands supreme — the Book of Books. Men have endeavored to list the best books in the world, and they always include the Bible and usually assign to it the first place. No " best seller " has ever approx imated the sale of the Bible. Millions upon millions of complete copies or parts have been sold in nearly every country of the world. It may be had in several hundred languages and dialects, comprising translations into almost every spoken tongue. Missionary enterprise and colpor teurs' energy have carried it to the remotest portions of the globe. People the world over have desired the Bible and its message. As Bishop Heber so beautifully expressed it: (17) 1 8 The Book of Books From Greenland's icy mountains, from India's coral strand, Where Africa's sunny fountains roll down their golden sand, From many an ancient river, from many a palmy plain, They call us to deliver their land from error's chain. What though the spicy breezes blow soft o'er Ceylon's isle, Though every prospect pleases, and only man is vile; In vain, with lavish kindness, the gifts of God are strown; The heathen, in his blindness, bows down to wood and stone. Can we, whose souls are lighted with wisdom from on high — Can we to men benighted the lamp of life deny? Salvation! O Salvation! the joyful sound proclaim, Till each remotest nation has learned Messiah's name. Although the Bible is so well known and may be had for small cost in any land; although in every civilized country there are few homes which do not contain one or more copies of the whole or some part; yet there is much ignorance as to its origin and structure, its content and meaning, and its wonderful history. With a vague idea that the Bible is divine, there are persons so simple-minded as to imagine that it fell down from heaven direct and complete, in much the same form as Moses received the tables of the law, graven by the hand of God; or as the Ephesians in Paul's day fancied that the image of Diana fell down from Jupiter. Such, however, is not the case. It is a long story and a wonderful one, the story of how God inspired men to write His messages and to record His dealings with, and His promises to, mankind- how, first by word of mouth, and then by writing in various tongues, that record has come down to us in its present form and in our mother-tongue. This wonderful story will be unfolded as we proceed in our considerations. It cannot be too much emphasized that the Bible is of divine origin. Its preservation against the attacks of its enemies has been watched over by the providence of its Author. H. L. Hastings has forcibly illustrated the way in which the Bible has survived the attacks of infidelity and skepticism, in the following words: Infidels for eighteen hundred years have been refuting and overthrowing this book, and yet it stands today as solid as a rock. Its circulation increases, and it is more loved and cherished and Popularity of the Bible 19 read today than ever before. Infidels, with all their assaults, make about as much impression on this book as a man with a tack- hammer would on the Pyramids of Egypt. When the French monarch proposed the persecution of the Christians in his domin ion, an old statesman and warrior said to him, "Sire, the Church of God is an anvil that has worn out many hammers." So the hammers of infidels have been pecking away at this book for ages, but the hammers are worn out, and the anvil still endures, if this book had not been the book of God, men would have destroyed it long ago. Emperors and popes, kings and priests, princes and rulers have all tried their hand at it; they die and the book still lives. To use another simile, the waves of infidelity have dashed themselves against the rock and been broken and rolled back, but the rock remains uninjured and still stands firm. As the hymn says : Vain floods that aim their rage so high ! At His rebuke the billows die. The remarkable popularity of. the Bible is mainly the result of the efforts of the British and Foreign Bible Society, the American Bible Society, and other similar agencies. For more than a century these excellent organizations have been engaged in issuing copies of the Scriptures and in sending forth messengers to distribute or to sell the versions in various lands. The circulation of no other book has in any way approximated the circulation represented in the activi ties of the various Bible Societies. The British and Foreign Bible Society was organized in London, England, in 1804, and its present headquarters are at the Bible House, 146 Queen Victoria Street, in that city. The president for the year 1921-22 is H. R. H. the Duke of Connaught, and the numerous vice-presidents, some of whom have held office since 1877, include high dignitaries of the Episcopal and Nonconformist churches, noblemen, statesmen, and prominent business men. The society had, at the end of its one hundred and seventeenth year, 5128 auxiliaries, branches, and associations in England and Wales, and outside Great Britain about 4750 auxiliaries and branches, mostly in the British Dominions and Colonies. The expenditure of the society for the year which ended March 31, 1921, was £447,183, or $2,177,781, and the total 20 The Book of Books BIBLE HOUSE, LONDON Popularity of the Bible 21 expenditure since March, 1804, has been £18,919,374 17s od, or $92,137,351. In its one hundred and seventeenth year the society issued 801,796 complete Bibles, 727,307 New Testaments, and 7,126,678 portions of the Bible, making a total of 8,655,781. The largest number of issues in any one year was 11,059,617 for the year ending March 31, 1916. The total of the issues in one hundred and seventeen years is 319,470,209, made up of 63,750,833 Bibles, 98,630,630 New Testaments, and 157,088,746 portions. Complete Bibles have been issued in 135 languages, New Testaments in 126 more, and portions of the Bible in 277 more, making a total of 538 languages to March 31, 1921. A number of editions in other languages have been issued since that date, and others are being added right along. The Bible House of the British and Foreign Bible Society is a handsome structure, as will be seen from the illustration. It is in the very heart of London near the Bank of England and the office of The Times. The dome of St. Paul's Cathedral shows behind the house, and the red-brick church of St. Andrew-by-the-Wardrobe is next to it. The Bible House is built near the site of the old Blackfriars Monastery where Wiclif was tried before the papal legate on a charge of heresy. Over the entrance door are the words, "The Word of the Lord endureth for ever." The foundation stone of the present building was laid June 11, 1866, by the late King Edward VII when he was Prince of Wales. The library contains over twelve thousand volumes in more than five hundred languages, having been enriched in 1890 by the addition of more than twelve hundred English Bibles and Testaments collected by the late Francis Fry, to whom reference will be made later; and in 1909 by the remarkable collection of one of the Revisers of 1870-188 5, Dr. Christian D. Ginsburg, which includes many early printed Hebrew and German Bibles. There are many of the "curious" Bibles and an interesting relic, a chained Bible; and a showcase illustrates the history of the English printed Bible from Tindale's New Testament to the late Revised Version. Anyone visiting London should not fail to visit the Bible House. 22 The Book of Books The American Bible Society was formed in 1816. Societies had existed for several years previous to that year in various parts of the Eastern States. The first was founded in Philadelphia in December, i§o8; the next in Connecticut in May, 1809; the next in Massachusetts in July, 1809; the next in New York in November, 1809; and the next in New Jersey in December, 1809. Numerous other societies sprang up in various parts of the United States, and the British and Foreign Bible Society helped them all with congratulations and the State societies with funds; by 1816 more than fifteen thousand dollars had been thus contributed. In May, 18 16, Elias Boudinot, president of the New Jersey Bible Society, called a meeting of representatives of the various societies, and the American Bible Society was organized with Mr. Boudinot as its first president. Since that time the American Society has been working along similar lines to those of the British and Foreign Society, and in the year 1920 there were issued by it 313,757 Bibles, 717,319 New Testaments, and 2,776,325 portions of the Bible, making a total of 3,825,401. The total issues for one hundred and five years, 1816-1920, were 25,280,930 Bibles, 116,448,410 New Testaments and portions of the Bible, or a total of 141,729,340. The largest annual issue was 7,761,377 in 1916. The American Bible Society has its headquarters at the Bible House, Astor Place, New York City, where since 1853 its presses have been printing the Scriptures in 68 languages and six embossed forms for the blind. Other presses are owned and operated by the Society in some of its foreign agencies. The expenditures of the society for the year 1919 totaled $858,348.52. Two testimonies to the value of the Bible Societies may be given here. John Jay, first chief Justice of U. S. A., said; By conveying the Bible to the people we certainly do them a most interesting act of kindness. Guizot, the French historian, said: Bible societies are but instruments and servants of the divine activity which it is not within the power of man to baffle or disturb. Popularity of the Bible 23 From the great presses of the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge, and from numerous private presses as well, many more copies are issued annually, and it has been estimated that twenty-five millions would not be an extrava gant figure for the total annual output of Bibles and portions of the Scriptures at the present time. When the Revised Version was published in England in May, 1881, it was simultaneously published in the United States. Before the date of publication the English publishers had received orders for more than a million copies. In New York the streets were blocked with wagons waiting for copies of the book as they came over from England. The contents were telegraphed to Chicago on Saturday, and nearly a hundred compositors and proofreaders worked on Sunday editions of two Chicago newspapers that printed the whole of the Gospels, Acts, and Romans, the day after pub lication in New York. Before the end of that year nearly half a million copies of the English edition were sold by one publishing house in New York, and a number of American editions were printed and many thousands of copies sold. No other book ever created such a sensation as that. The Book of Books is indeed a wonderful book. Concerning the popularity of the Bible, an eminent American preacher, Theodore Parker, has said : This collection of books has taken such a hold on the world as no other. ... It goes equally to the cottage of the plain man and the palace of the king. It is woven into the literature of the scholar, and colors the talk of the street. The bark of the mer chant cannot sail the sea without it; no ship of war goes to the conflict, but the Bible is there. It enters men's closets, mingles in all the grief and cheerfulness of life. The affianced maiden prays God in Scripture for strength in her new duties. Men are married by Scripture; the Bible attends them in their sickness, when the fever of the world is on them; the aching head finds a softer pillow when the Bible lies underneath; the mariner, escap ing from shipwreck, clutches this first of his treasures, and keeps it sacred to God. In "Present Day Tracts," No. 23, The Vitality of the Bible, Professor Blackie comments on the influence the Bible has had upon individual, family, and social life, and draws the conclusion that it is indeed "the Word of God that 24 The Book of Books liveth and abideth for ever." He further says that we should be perplexed, "were we to set about counting all the literature that has sprung from the Bible, to glance at the history of Art, to try to reckon all the paintings of the first quality that have been founded on Bible scenes, or the music that has been inspired by Bible truths, or the poetry that has owed its soul to Bible influences, or the civilizations it has moulded, or the legislations it has controlled, or the institutions it has created." Again he says, "The Bible is a unique phenomenon. It holds and has held in this world a place never equaled, never even approached by any other book. ... It never becomes antiquated, never survives its usefulness, never acquires a decrepit look; Time writes no wrinkles on its brow; it flourishes in the vigor of immortal youth." Two recent examples of the popularity of the Bible have been found in the public press. The Bluefield Daily Telegraph, at Bluefield, West Virginia, on May 4, 1922, commenced the publication, in serial form, of the New Testament, printing at the head of a double column, " Read the Bible with us," and printing an editorial calling atten tion to the fact. In the Evening Bulletin, Philadelphia, there appeared on February 9, 1922, the following editorial note: Bible the Best Seller Best sellers come and best sellers go from season to season as authors and publishers manage to strike the vagrant fancy of American readers. Their circulation may be reckoned by the hundred thousand, and in a few instances like "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and "Ben Hur," may boast of millions, with "David Harum" leading the van for best sellers written in the past quar ter century. But year in and year out the Book of Books laughs all others to scorn as puny competitors when annual sales are computed. Taking the United States alone, and leaving out of account the energetic operations of British and other European agencies for the circulation of the Scriptures, the American Bible Society reports that last year it distributed 4,286,380 Bibles, New Testa ments and portions of each. The field covered included both home and foreign missions. This, however, is apart from the enormous sales of Holy Writ by the private publishing firms, who chiefly supply the well-to-do church-going population. Popularity of the Bible 25 The cultural value of this profuse dissemination of sacred literature is incalculable. In spite of the disconcerting ignorance of the Bible which is frequently encountered among college stu dents, there is reason to feel that the reading of the Old and New Testaments enters into the religious exercises of as large a propor tion of the people as ever before. College men are being brought to perceive that ignorance of the Bible is less excusable than almost any other form of ignorance, and under the leadership of Dr. Josiah H. Penniman, Acting Provost of the University of Pennsylvania, the undergraduates are getting acquainted with the Scriptures. Similar reports come from other colleges and universities. The work of the Gideons in placing a Bible in every hotel room in the United States and Canada is another influence which brings the traveling public in touch with the treasures of the Bible. So its primacy as a best seller, unapproachable by any other book, is permanently assured. T. H. HUXLEY A Famous English Professor JOSIAH H. PENNIMAN Acting Provost University of Pennsylvania (.Photo, oy Gutekunst) CHAPTER III THE TESTIMONY OF EMINENT PERSONS TO THE VALUE OF THE BIBLE IN THE LIFE OF THE INDIVIDUAL AND THE NATION I WAS present some years ago at the annual meeting of the Birmingham auxiliary of the British and Foreign Bible Society, when a great biblical scholar and editor, Dr. J. J. S. Perowne, Bishop of Worcester, presided, and another great scholar and writer, Dr. F. W. Farrar, Dean of Canterbury, delivered the principal address. It was entitled "The Bible," and the lecturer gave expression to his own high estimate of the sacred book, and, from his great store of knowledge concerning men and their writings, referred to the statements of great men in varied walks of life who all gave it the highest place in their esteem. So far as I know, that address was not published, though it richly deserved to be; but as I took complete shorthand notes I shall here reproduce it. Some of the testimonies it contains may be found in some of the volumes of Dr. Farrar's sermons and essays. The Bible One great reason — there are multitudes of reasons, of course, why the Bible is better adapted for the instruction of all mankind — but one reason is because the Bible is not one book, but many books — thirty-nine of the Old Testament and twenty-seven of the New. The very word "Bible" means "the books"; and there has been considerable discussion of late years as to what are the best hundred books. Well, I can tell you in one breath sixty-six of the best of them, and those are the sixty-six books of the Bible. More than that, the Bible is not a book, it is a literature; and as the great Edmund Burke said, "It is an infinite collection of the most venerable and the most varied literature." The Bible (26) Testimony of Eminent Persons 27 consists, then, not only of one complete revelation, but also of many separate elements of truth, beauty, and grandeur. It is as the wide sea; it is as the great sea-shore; it is as a paradise filled with the forest trees of God. On the wide sea every separate wave may flash in the sunlight with innumerable laughter; and on the wide sea-shore every single sand grain, as it catches the DR. F. W. FARRAR gleam, may flash forth into an emerald or into a pearl; and in this paradise of the trees of God every single leaf is for the healing of the nations. But still, the sea and the shore and the forest are greater than the waves, than the sand grains, than the sep arate leaves. And the Bible in its immensity as one revelation transcends even the special beauty and instructiveness of its many separate and glorious truths. 28 The Book of Books Now, one great element in the adaptation of the Bible as the best fitted for the elevation of the lives of all mankind is, as I have said, its immense variety. The Bible is everything for some and it is something for all. It would be a great loss to us if the Bible were like the Zend Avesta of the Persians or like the writings of Confucius among the Chinese — if it were the work of one limited and monotonous mind. Again, it would be a great loss to us if the Bible were entirely or mainly like the Vedas of the Hindu — poetry. It would be a great loss to us if, like the books of the Buddhists, it had been written centuries after the events which it records and by those who are entirely forgotten. We are saved from these elements of imperfection in the Bible. By the very power of its structure it appeals to all sorts and condi tions of men. The Bible was written not only by the poor but by the rich, by the lowly as well as by the exalted, by kings and peasants, by warriors and husbandmen, by poets and chroniclers, by ardent enthusiasts and calm, dispassionate reasoners, and, touched by so many fingers, our hearts can but respond to one note or other of that manifold music. At the mere turning of a page we may discourse with Solomon the magnificent or with Amos the humble gatherer of sycamore fruit; we may be listening to David the psalmist warrior or to Matthew the Galilean publican. Now consider the New Testament by itself. You have Peter, a bold, impetuous, and practical Galilean. In Paul you have a fusile apostle, transformed as it were by one flash of lightning; from a narrow-minded persecutor becoming, indeed, the foremost champion of truth and liberty and light. In James, again, you have an esthetic, a nazarite; he rises, as it were, to speak to us with the long locks of the nazarite streaming over his shoulders and over the white linen robes which he habitually wore. John again, totally different from the others, is the listener whose whole soul is bathed in the light of eternal ideas, as though a white cloud palpitated splendor because it had been cradled near the setting sun. And each of these great apostles has a different aspect of truth and a different lesson for us. The Bible may be compared to a great mountain on which are many stones. You walk over the mountain and pick up what looks like a common brown flint. You are about to throw it away. Something perhaps makes you strike it with your hammer, and you find that inside it there is what is called a crucic cavity, that is to say, a hole filled with amethysts of the most lovely purple. In the same way there is many a text that is filled with something which the careless reader lacks — an ordinary and not very significant text, you think. You break it open by the ham mer cjf prayerful meditation, and find it full of crystals of purple of a "light that never shone on land or sea." ^ | The Bible, as Augustine so finely said, has shallows which men may ford and depths which the elephant cannot swim. It Testimony of Eminent Persons 29 has mountains and valleys, sunrise and sunset; it has barren deserts and green pastures; it has lilies of the field and the shadow of a great rock in a weary land. I could not dwell too much upon the infinitude and variety of riches which you may find in the sacred page; but that you may not take my evidence for it, I want to bring before you five entirely separate testimonies of men as different from each other as it is possible to be, every one of whom agrees in overwhelming and eloquent testimony to the grandeur and riches of the Scriptures. One shall be a Romish cardinal, another shall be a Jewish lit terateur, the third shall be an American Unitarian, the fourth shall be a German critic, and the fifth shall be a French agnostic; and if all these five agree in speaking in the same language, in exactly the same terms in which I have spoken, I think you will agree that I am only speaking the innermost conviction of mankind. Let us begin with the Roman cardinal. He was your neigh bor. He lived in Edgbaston and died in Edgbaston — the great Cardinal Newman. He said : " Its light is like the vault of heaven in its clearness; its vastness is like the bosom of the sea; its vari ety is like the scenes of Nature." I will go on to the Jewish skeptic, Heinrich Heine. He was by birth a Jew and by religion an unbeliever. He spent a day in the unusual task of studying the Scripture. When he closed it in the evening he exclaimed: "What a book! The whole world is in it — sunrise and sunset, promise and fulfilment, birth and death; the whole drama of humanity is in this book. It is rooted in the deepest abysses of creation, and it towers up behind the blue gate of heaven." I will pass on from the Jewish skeptic to the American Uni tarian, Theodore Parker, an eloquent and eminent preacher. He said: "The literature of Greece, which rises as incense from that land of temples, has never had half the influence on the world which has this book of a despised people. The sun never sets upon its gleaming page." I will pass on from the American Unitarian to the great German critic, Heinrich Ewald. One d^y Dean Stanley paid him a visit in his home in Germany. While they were talking together a New Testament which stood on the table opposite them fell to the ground. Ewald stepped forward, picked up the book, and with indescribable enthusiasm exclaimed: "In this little book is all the best wisdom of the world." Now take the French unbeliever whose writings have added much to the unbelief of the world, Ernest Renan. Renan said: "The Bible is, after all, the great consoling book of humanity." Having quoted five such remarkable testimonies, we can fairly say of the Scripture, as someone has said, that its eclipse would be the return of chaos, and that its extinction would be the epitaph of history. 30 The Book of Books And yet, in the midst of all this immense variety, there is still a great, sublime unity. The Old Testament, we are told in our article, does not contradict the New. No; the Old does not contradict the New, but it is different from the New, just in the same way as a splendid vestibule is different from the golden shrine of the temple, and just in the same way as the rosy dawn differs from the noonday of the Sun of Righteousness rising with healing in His wings. In the Old and the New Testaments alike, the whole of their hidden meaning pointed forward by the medium of prophecy, or backward by the glance cast by those who succeeded Him, to Christ. Sin and salvation, the law and the gospel, the foe and the deliverance, are the meaning of the old and new dispensations. And in the whole of the teaching also of Christ Himself, as through the rest of Scripture, there runs one rich, golden thread which is the majestic supremacy of God and the moral law, of which a great German philosopher said that it was the only thing which could compare in its awe-inspiring power to the starry heaven above. Only consider how that magnificent lesson of the eternal sanctity of the moral law runs through the whole of the Bible! You read of Noah that he was to the antediluvians a preacher of righteousness. You see Moses descend from the mount, his face shining with the epiphany of God: he then says to the people: "Observe the law that I have commanded, for it is not a vain thing for you: for it is your life." You see Samuel speaking to the disobedient king who thought so much of the duty of sacrifice, and saying to him: "Obedience is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." You go on to Micah, and he says: "What doth the Lord require of thee but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk humbly with thy God ?" You ask Isaiah, and he says: "Bring no more vain oblations. Wash you; make you clean." You go to Hosea, and in the favorite quotation of our Lord he says: "I will have mercy rather than sacrifice." It is the one lesson of all the mighty Hebrew prophets, and Israel was to the nations, pre-eminently, the uplifter of the banner of righteousness. You come to the New Testament, and Peter says to you: "Add to your faith, virtue; and to virtue, knowledge; and to knowledge, temperance; and to temperance, patience; and to patience, godliness; and to godliness, brotherly kindness; and to brotherly kindness, charity." And James says to you: "Faith without works is dead." And Paul says to you that the end of the law is charity out of a pure heart. And John says to you that love is the fulfilling of the law. And if you go to the law of Christ, again you have the answer to the most solemn question that can possibly be framed by the lips of man. The young ruler came to Him, running, kneeling, prostrating himself before Him and saying to Him: "Master, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?" Testimony of Eminent Persons 31 He said unto him: "But if thou wouldst enter into life, keep the commandments." Throughout the whole of the Bible, then, Old and New Testaments alike, runs that majestic unity of the one lesson that the end of all the scheme of salvation is to procure that forgiveness of sins which shall restore man, not by his own efforts, but by the grace of Christ, to righteousness, and so recon cile him to God. It is because of the sublime unity of that lesson that we are not in the least afraid of attempting to put the Bible, without note or comment, without gloss or inference, into the hands of all mankind. The page of the Bible stands like the cerulean arch, which is majestic in its simplicity. But the notes and comments, glosses and inferences of man, and especially of age after age of erring priests with their perpetual bickering and strife, only tend to obscure its beauty. It is for this reason that the Bible is and ever must be the special Book for the education of the human race. I am in favor of a biblical education, so that it be an education honestly biblical. I believe that in the foundation of education, the Bible, lie all the great eternal truths of Christianity, and I will quote to you the very eloquent and remarkable testimony of a man whom at any rate you will not suspect of being a bibliolator. I will quote to you the testimony of a leading man of science, Professor Huxley. He made a memorable speech before the London School Board, in which he used these words: "I have been seriously perplexed to know how the religious feeling, which is the essential base of conduct, can be kept up without the use ofthe Bible. . . . By the study of what other book could children be made to feel that each figure in the vast historical procession fills, like themselves, but a momentary space in the interval between the eternities, and earns the blessings or the curses of all time, according to its efforts to do good and to hate evil, even as we also are earning the payment for our work ?" I cannot add any testimony at any rate more emphatic, more eloquent, and more unsuspected than that as to the value of the Bible as the main instrument in the education of the people. Although much, of course, might be added to it, it is a testimony both valuable and eloquent. Then let me pass on to another point. I want to show you that all we have now said of the Bible is confirmed by all history, by all belief, and by all experience. Take the case of the individual. I will only take those who have epoch-making names. I will show you how in one or two instances their whole history was influenced by the power with which a single text took hold upon them. No man, probably, has ever had a greater influence on the Christian church than Augustine. What wrought his conversion? Mainly, a single text. You all know that he was sitting in his garden and heard a voice singing, " Tolle, lege; tolle, lege" — "Take 32 The Book of Books and read; take and read." He had never heard of any childish game in which these words were used; he made up his mind, there fore, that it was to him a voice from heaven. He went back to a copy of the Epistle of the Romans that had been lying on his table. He opened it and put his finger upon the first text at which he opened. That text was: "Not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying; but put ye on the Lord Jesus Christ and make not provision for the flesh"; and that text acted like a volcanic outburst upon allthat was best within him. Take another instance, the one man who more than any other effected the "bright and blissful Reformation," in which we see, as one writer says, "the truth ofthe returning gospel bathing men's souls in the fragrancy of heaven" — the case of Martin Luther, also as the case of Augustine, how he was influenced by the mes sage of a single text. You know that he was endeavoring at Rome to perform the tedious works that were required, and the whole course of his life was changed by the text: "The just shall life by faith." Take one instance more, the case of David Livingstone. When Stanley found him in Central Africa, he said he was moved by the influence of the single text: "Leave all and follow Me." So you see in instances like that whole epochs of the word have been influenced by the power with which even one single text has taken hold upon the minds of men. Take the case of a statesman. One of the most eloquent American statesmen was Daniel Webster. He was not a religious man, but when he lay upon his deathbed his physician read to him the verse: "Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, yet will I fear no evil, for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me." And the dying giant was just able to murmur, "Thy rod, Thy rod, Thy staff, Thy staff! Yes; that is what I want." So in instances far too numerable even to touch upon, you have countless instances that this book has been precious to the greatest intellects as well as to the humblest. Let me add but one. If you were to ask me to name the greatest man of science I should reply "Michael Faraday." Sir Henry Latham told me that he once visited Michael Faraday in his room and found him in tears. He said to him, "Mr. Faraday, I am afraid you are much worse. I am sorry to see you in tears." Faraday said; "No; it is not that." And, pointing to the open Bible before him, he said with emotion: "If this precious book could guide them, how could thy people go so wrong as they do?" So on, then, in instance after instance, in the greatest men of science and the greatest statesmen, and the greatest poets; their one basis for hope has been the Bible. And it has been the same not only with men, but with nations. Take the case of the American President, Andrew Jackson. When Testimony of Eminent Persons 33 he was lying upon his deathbed he pointed his physician to the Bible and said; "Sir, that Book is the rock on which our Republic rests!" We have no time to go farther than merely to mention the case of England. In Mr. Green's history, England is described as having been so great and so prosperous, so progressive and so fortunate, because in the reign of Elizabeth it became emphatically the people of one book, and that book was the Bible. In spite of these testimonies from men of the highest intellect in the world, and even from the greatest nations of the world, which I might indefinitely multiply, there are men so foolish, so shallow, so ignorant, that they think they can demolish the Bible, and they venture to scoff at the Bible. Demolish the Bible? — they might as well try to demolish the Himalayas. Scoff at the Bible? — they might certainly as wisely scoff at the starry heavens themselves. Why, all that is best and greatest in the literature and in the intellects of men is to be found in the Bible. All the best books, all the best pieces of music, all the best pictures are in it. It occupied for years the exhaustive labors of men of high genius like Origen and Jerome; it fired the burning eloquence of Augustine and of Savonarola; it kindled the intrepid daring of Livingstone; it fired the burning zeal of Whitfield; it inspired the fancy of John Bunyan. Therefore, to conclude, I say we ought with all our hearts to thank God for the possession of this holy book, and also thank God for this society, which has translated it into so many of the tongues of earth, and so far as possible is handing it to the poorest, the youngest, and the humblest of our population — a book for the possession of which in former years even princes yearned in vain. We thank God for that possession, because in that book, from beginning to end, is written the name of Christ, and even the divine law is perpetually spelling out for us that one word- — God. •* We thank God for that book and we thank God for that society which disseminates it. I think you will be struck with the words of Sir Walter Scott, which even Lord Byron wrote on the first page of his Bible : "Within this awful volume lies The mystery of mysteries. Happiest they of human race To whom God has given grace To fear, to read, to hope, to pray, To lift the latch and find the way. Better had they ne'er been born Who read to doubt or read to scorn." 34 The Book of Books PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES George Washington John Adams Andrew Jackson Thomas Jefferson John Quincy Adams Zachary Taylor Abraham Lincoln Testimony of Eminent Persons 35 Testimonies of United States Presidents George Washington, the first President of the United States : It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible. Above all, the pure and benign light of revelation has had a meliorating influence on mankind, and increased the blessings of society. I now make my earnest prayer that God would be most graciously pleased to dispose us all to do justice, to love mercy, and to demean ourselves with that charity, humility, and pacific temper of mind which were the characteristics of the divine Author of our blessed religion. John Adams, the second President ofthe United States: It contains more of my little philosophy than all the libraries that I have seen; and such parts as I cannot reconcile to my little philosophy I postpone for future investigation. Thomas Jefferson, the third President of the United States: I always have said, and always will say, that the studious perusal of the sacred volume will make better citizens, better fathers, and better husbands. John Quincy Adams, the sixth President of the United States: The first and almost the only Book deserving of universal attention is the Bible. The Bible is the Book of all others to be read at all ages and in all conditions of human life; not to be read once or twice through and then laid aside, but to be read in small portions of one or two chapters every day, and never to be inter mitted except by some overruling necessity. ... I have for many years made it a practice to read through the Bible once a year. . . . It is an inexhaustible mine of knowledge and virtue. . . . The earlier my children begin to read it, the more confident will be my hopes that they will prove useful citizens of their country and respectable members of society. The testimony of Andrew Jackson, the seventh Presi dent ofthe United States, that the Bible is the rock on which the Republic rests, has already been referred to in Dean Farrar's address. 36 The Book of Books Zachary Taylor, the twelfth President of the United States : It was for the love of the truths of this great and good Book that our fathers abandoned their native shore for the wilderness. Animated by its lofty principles, they toiled and suffered till the desert blossomed as the rose. PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES Ulysses Simpson Grant Benjamin Harrison William McKinley Testimony of Eminent Persons 37 Abraham Lincoln, the sixteenth President ofthe United States: I am profitably engaged in reading the Bible. Take all of this Book upon reason that you can and the balance by faith, and you will live and die a better man. ... In regard to the Great Book, I have only to say that it is the best Book which God has given to men. President Grant, the eighteenth President of the United States, delivered the following message to the Sunday Schools : Hold fast to the Bible as the sheet anchor of your liberties. Write its precepts on your hearts and practice them in your lives. To the influence of this Book we are indebted for all the progress made in true civilization, and to this we must look as our guide in the future. Benjamin Harrison, the twenty-third President of the United States: If you take out of your statutes, your constitutions, your family life all that is taken from the Sacred Book, what would there be left to bind society together? William McKinley, the twenty-fifth President of the United States: The more profoundly we study this wonderful Book, and the more closely we observe its divine precepts, the better citizens we will become and the higher will be our destiny as a nation. The teachings of the Bible are so interwoven and entwined with our whole civic and social life that it would be literally — I do not mean figuratively, I mean literally — impossible for us to figure to ourselves what that life would be if these teachings were removed. The following extracts are from speeches by the late Theodore Roosevelt, the twenty-sixth President of the United States, in reference to the Bible: Almost every man who has by his life-work added to the sum of human achievement of which the race is proud, of which our people are proud, almost every such man has based his life- work largely upon the teachings of the Bible. This Book, which in almost every civilized tongue can be described as "The Book," with the certainty of all understanding you when you so describe it. 38 The Book of Books PRESIDENT ROOSEVELT'S BIBLE Presented by the Harvard Republican Club on his inauguration as Vice-President. Always kept on the reading-stand at Sagamore Hill {Courtesy of American Bible Society) PRESIDENTS OF THE UNITED STATES Theodore Roosevelt Woodrow Wilson (Copyright Underwood & Underwood) Testimony of Eminent Persons 39 The great debt of the English-speaking peoples everywhere is to the translation of the Bible that we all know — I trust I can say, all here know — in our homes; the Bible as it was put forth in English three centuries ago. No other book of any kind ever written in English — perhaps no other book ever written in any other tongue — has ever so affected the whole life of a people as this Authorized Version of the Scriptures has affected the life of the English-speaking peoples. I ask that the Bible be studied for the sake of the breadth it must give to every man who studies it. By courtesy of Mr. Herman Hagedorn, secretary of the Roosevelt Memorial Association, I am able to give an account of "Bible Point," a spot made famous because of its connection with President Roosevelt, and now bearing testimony to his habit of Bible-reading. The following is summarized from a brief article issued by the Association, entitled "A Roosevelt Shrine in the Maine Woods," by C. T. Hastings. More than forty years ago, while a student at Harvard, Roosevelt made a vacation trip to Lake Matta- wamkeag, some ten miles distant from Island Falls, and was so taken up with the spot that he returned many times. On one occasion he discovered a grove of hemlock, birch, and poplar in a quiet spot at the river's edge a mile or so below the dam. Here he went for hours at a time to read his Bible, and his companions named it Bible Point. A bench has been set between two tall poplars by "Bill" Sewall, the owner ofthe vacation camps, and on a tree nearby is a zinc box similar to a country mail-box, containing a Bible which has on its fly-leaf the following inscription in "Bill" Sewall's handwriting: Theodore Roosevelt as a young man came to this place to read his Bible. Friend, this book has been placed here for your use. May you receive from it the inspiration to noble living and high endeavor which he received. Look up especially the sixth chapter of Micah, eighth verse. Mr. Roosevelt quoted this passage frequently as expressing his ideal of high-spirited living. It is as applicable to national as to personal experience. The verse referred to is: "He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy and to walk humbly with thy God." 40 The Book of Books A sign, fastened to the tree to call the attention of the passer-by to the meaning of the spot, reads as follows: This place, to which a great man in his youth liked to come to commune with God and with the wonder and beauty of the visible world, is dedicated to the happy memory of Theodore Roosevelt. Stranger, rest here, and consider what one man, having faith in the right and love for his fellows, was able to do for his country. Woodrow Wilson, the twenty-eighth President of the United States, at the official celebration of the Centennial of the American Bible Society, in Washington, May 7, 1916, closed his address on the Bible with these words: To my mind the colporteurs, the agents of the Bible Society, tramping through country-sides or traveling by every sort of conveyance, in every sort of land, carrying with them little car goes of books containing the Word of God, and spreading them, seem like the shuttles in a great loom that is weaving the spirits of men together. A hundred years cannot accomplish that miracle, a hundred years cannot realize that vision. But if the weaving goes on, if the light continues to be spread, if men do not lose heart in this great ideal enterprise, it will some day be accom plished, and a light will shine upon the earth in which men cannot go astray. At a meeting in Denver, May 7, 191 1, in celebration of the Tercentenary of the Authorized Version of the Bible, President Wilson, at that time Governor of New Jersey, referred to the Bible as "the Magna Charta of the human soul," and concluded his address with the following declara tion and request: America was bom a Christian nation. America was born to exemplify that devotion to the elements of righteousness which are derived from the revelations of Holy Scripture. I have a very simple thing to ask of you. I ask of every man and woman in this audience that from this night on they will realize that part of the destiny of America lies in their daily perusal of this great book of revelations — that if they would see America free and pure, they will make their own spirits free and pure by this baptism of the Holy Scripture. Again, speaking of a knowledge of the Bible, President Wilson said: Testimony of Eminent Persons 41 A man has deprived himself of the best there is in the world who has deprived himself of this. . . . There are a good many problems before the American people today, and before me as President, but I expect to find the solution of those problems just in the proportion that I am faithful in the study of the Word of God. It is very difficult indeed for a man or for a boy, who knows the Scripture, ever to get away from it. It haunts him like an old song. It follows him like the memory of his mother. It forms a part of the warp and woof of his life. Warren G. Harding, the twenty-ninth President of the United States and the present incumbent of that high office (1922), is well known to have a great regard for the Bible and a sincere desire to exemplify its precepts. The following answer to a request for a special message for this volume will be evidence of this : The White House Washington December 16, 1921 My dear Mr. Lea: Replying to yours of December thirteenth, I am enclosing, in compliance with your request, a little statement of the Presi dent's, concerning the Bible, which I think will precisely serve your purpose. Very sincerely, Geo. B. Christian, Jr. Secretary to the President. Mr. John W. Lea, 1520 N. Robinson St., Philadelphia, Pa. The properly conducted Sunday School seems to me to be a very important feature of religious work, because it serves the young people at a time when they are most impressionable and, particularly, because it affords them opportunity for an intimate acquaintance with that monument of splendid literature, the Bible. Both as literature and as inspiration, the Bible has a value with which no other work can be compared, and every activity that expands and popularizes the knowledge of it is extremely worth while. (Signed) Warren G. Harding. 42 The Book of Books WARREN G. HARDING Inaugurated President of the United States, March, 1921 (Copyright Underwood & Underwood) Testimony of Eminent Persons 43 In a letter to Mr. Jim Hicks, of Chicago, who is engaged in distributing Bibles to prisons and reformatory and indus trial schools, dated March 28, 1921, President Harding said: I have always believed in the inspiration of the Holy Scrip tures, whereby they have become the expression to men of the word and will of God. I believe that from every point of view the study of the Bible is one of the most worthy to which men may devote themselves, and that, in proportion as they know and understand it, their lives and actions will be better. Testimonies of Statesmen and Generals The Right Honorable William Ewart Gladstone, who was for many years Prime Minister of England during the reign of Queen Victoria, published a book in advocacy of the Bible, under the title, The Impregnable Rock of Holy Scripture. Speaking ofthe divine origin of the Bible he says : The memories of men, and the art of writing and the care of the copyist, and the tablet and the parchment, are but the second ary or mechanical means by which the Word has been carried down to us along the river of the ages; and the natural and inherent weakness of these means is in reality a special tribute to the gran deur and vastness of the end, and of Him that wrought it out. The conviction which this great statesman and scholar would impress upon the minds of his readers is thus stated : That the Scriptures are well called Holy Scriptures; and that, though assailed by camp, by battery, and by mine, they are never theless a house builded upon a rock, and that rock impregnable; that the weapon of offense, which shall impair their efficiency for aiding in the redemption of mankind, has not yet been forged; that the Sacred Canon, which it took (perhaps) two thousand years from the accumulations of Moses down to the acceptance of the Apocalypse to construct, is like to wear out the storms and the sunshine of the world, and all the wayward aberrations of humanity, not merely for a term as long, but until time shall be no more. At the end of the first chapter, in which he has dealt with some of the aspects of modern criticism, he places this statement : For the prerent, I have endeavored to point out that the operations of criticism properly so called, affecting as they do the literary form ofthe books, leave the questions of substance, namely, 44 The Book of Books those of history, miracle, and revelation, substantially where they found them. I shall, in some of the succeeding chapters, strive to show, at least by specimens, that science and research have done much to sustain the historical credit of the books of the Old Testament; that in doing this they have added strength to the argument which contends that in them we find a divine revelation; and that the evidence, rationally viewed, both of contents and of results, binds us to stand where our forefathers have stood, upon the impregnable rock of Holy Scripture. Not long before his death Mr. Gladstone wrote: If I am asked what is the remedy for the sorrows of the heart — what a man should chiefly look to in his progress through life as the power that is to sustain him under trials, and enable him man fully to confront his afflictions — I must point to something which in a well-known hymn is called "the old, old story," told in an old, old Book, and taught with an old, old teaching, which is the greatest and best gift ever given to mankind. . . . I have known ninety-five great men of the world in my time, and of these eighty-seven were all followers of the Bible. . . . My only hope for the world is in bringing the human mind into contact with Divine Revelation. Daniel Webster, some of whose words have been quoted in Dean Farrar's address, also said: If we abide by the principles taught in the Bible our country will go on prospering and to prosper, but if we and our posterity neglect its instructions and authority, no man can tell how sudden a catastrophe may overwhelm us and bury our glory in profound obscurity. Charles W. Fairbanks, a former Vice-President of the United States, said: The more the Bible is put into the minds and hearts and daily lives of the people, the less concern we may have with respect to- our political laws. Take out of our lives the Scriptures and you would strike an irreparable blow to our national progress and to those high ideals which we associate with America and Americans. Honorable Wm. J. Bryan, Secretary of State in Presi dent Wilson's Cabinet, in an address entitled "The Book of Supreme Influence," at the Tercentenary Celebration of the King James Version of the Bible, in Chicago, May 4, 191 1, said: Testimony of Eminent Persons 45 Wherever the moral standard is being lifted up — wherever life is becoming larger in the vision that directs it and richer in its fruitage, the improvement is traceable to the Bible and to the influence of the God and Christ of whom the Bible tells. Thomas R. Marshall, another Vice-President of the United States, on May 7, 1916, in an address at the cele bration of the Centennial of the American Bible Society, on the eastern front of the Capitol in Washington, D. C, referred to the inaugural ceremony every fourth year, when the new President, at the conclusion of his oath of office, kisses a Book held in the hands of the Chief Justice, and added, "That Book is the Holy Bible— the Book of Books!" He called attention to the fact that three Presidents of the United States and several Justices of the Supreme Court had been vice-presidents of the American Bible Society, and toward the end of his address he said concerning man and the Bible: Whenever he finds his hands upon the Bible he finds some thing not only secure but something that lights up his own life and the lives of those about him. It becomes, indeed, a lamp unto his feet and a light unto his pathway. He may stumble and err and wander in by and forbidden paths, but it will bring him back most assuredly to the King's highways. . . . That this Bible ought to be printed in every tongue, treas ured by every human being, and exalted in every home, goes without saying — and no sting of any creed is in the statement. It contains wise counsel for the. statesman and comfort for the criminal. There is no age, no clime, no race, and no condition about which it does not speak words of wisdom, of encouragement and consolation. But more particularly ought this Book, in this land, to be exalted high. If I were to have my way, I would take the torch out of the hand of the Statue of Liberty, in New York Harbor, and in its stead place an open Bible. At the same meeting in Washington, Champ Clark, at that time Speaker of the House, spoke on "The Bible and Public Life." In that address he said: The Bible, considered entirely apart from its religious value — which I leave to the preachers and Vice-President Marshall to expound — is of inestimable value. Considered solely as litera ture, it is the greatest depository of splendid literature in the wide, wide world. It is the best book ever put between covers — to quote from before judges, before juries, in Congress, on the stump, 46 The Book of Books on the lecture platform, or anywhere else. A fitting quotation from the Bible goes like a bullet to its mark. . . . When I get brain fag, which frequently occurs there in that large, tumultuous assembly, I read King Solomon's Proverbs and St. Paul's Epistles, as an intellectual tonic. There's nothing like it in the literature ofthe world. . . . If you want to learn the best English that there is extant, read the Bible; and this American Bible Society has done a great work and a great good by circulating the Bible so as to be within the reach of all. Napoleon, French General and Emperor, said of the Bible: I never omit to read it, and every day with the same pleasure. Nowhere is to be found such a series of beautiful ideas, admirable moral maxims, which produce in one's soul the same emotion which one experiences in contemplating the infinite expanse of the skies resplendent upon a summer's night with all the brilliance of the stars. Not only is one's mind absorbed, it is controlled, and the soul can never go astray with this Book for its guide. Lord Roberts, British Field Marshal: You will find in this little book guidance when you are in health, comfort when you are in sickness, and strength when you are in adversity. Marshall Foch, hero of the World War and General issimo of the Allied armies : The Bible is certainly the best preparation that you can give to an American soldier about to go into battle, to sustain his magnificent ideal and his faith. General Garibaldi, the great Italian soldier and patriot: The best of allies you can procure for us is the Bible. That will bring us the reality of freedom. General Robert E. Lee, Commander of the Southern forces in the American Civil War: The Bible is a book in comparison with which all others in my eyes are of minor importance, and which in all my perplexities and distresses has never failed to give me light and strength. General John J. Pershing, Commander-in-Chief of the American Expeditionary Forces in the World War, in a cable to the American Bible Society, said: Testimony of Eminent Persons 47 I am glad to see that every man in the Army is to have a Testament. Its teachings will fortify us for our great work. Admiral A. T. Mahan, of the American Navy, in an address to the cadets at West Point, said : Speaking after much experience of bad and good, of religion and irreligion, I assure you, with the full force of the convicton of a lifetime, that to one who has mastered the Word of God, even imperfectly, it brings a light, a motive, a strength, and a support which nothing else does. Testimonies of Philosophers, Famous Writers, and Educators Professor Huxley, in the address before the London School Board from which Dean Farrar's address contained one extract, also said: Consider the great historical fact that for three centuries this Book [the Bible] has been woven into the life of all that is noblest and best in our history, and that it has become the national epic of our race; that it is written in the noblest and purest English, and abounds in exquisite beauties of mere literary form; and, finally, that it forbids the veriest hind, who never left his village, to be ignorant of the existence of other countries and other civilizations and of a great past, stretching back to the farthest limits of the oldest nations in the world. . . . The Bible has been the Magna Charta of the poor and of the oppressed. Down to modern times, no State has had a con stitution in which the interests of the people are so largely taken into account; in which the duties, so much more than the privi leges, of rulers are insisted upon, as that drawn up for Israel in Deuteronomy and Leviticus. Nowhere is the fundamental truth that the welfare of the State, in the long run, depends upon the righteousness of the citizen, so strongly laid down. The Bible is the most democratic book in the world. John Ruskin wrote much concerning the Bible in his various books, but perhaps the most comprehensive is the following brief testimony : All that I have taught of Art, everything that I have written, whatever greatness there has been in any thought of mine, what ever I have done in my life, has simply been due to the fact that, when I was a child, my mother daily read with me a part of the Bible, and daily made me learn a part of it by heart. 48 The Book of Books Again : Read your Bible — make it your daily business to obey it in all you understand. To my early knowledge of the Bible I owe the best part of my taste in literature. Thomas Carlyle, the famous essayist and historian, has said: There is no book like the Bible: there never was and there never will be such another. Jean Jacques Rousseau, a French savant, said: I must confess to you that the majesty of the Scriptures astonishes me. ... If it had been the invention of men, the inventor would be greater than the greatest heroes. Immanuel Kant, a well-known German philosopher, said: The existence of the Bible as a book for the people is the greatest benefit which the human race has ever experienced. Heinrich Heine, a German Jewish poet and critic, who spoke of the Bible as "Jehovah's Diary," at the close of his life wrote : I attribute my enlightenment entirely and simply to the reading of a book, . . . and this book is the Book, the Bible. With right is it named the Holy Scriptures. He who has lost his God can find Him again in this Book, and he who has never known Him is here struck by the breath of the Divine Word. Rajah Sir Harnam Singh, of India, said: I think it may be said that modern educated India is to a great extent the product of Christian thought and teaching which have been imbibed from Christian literature through missionary institutions. One of the Brahmo Samaj religious books consists to a great extent of quotations from the Bible; and non-Christians acknowledge Christ as one of the greatest of teachers, and look upon his life as most exemplary. The Bible rises above all national and racial distinction and makes its appeal to the general heart of humanity. A Brahmin of South India said: Where do the English people get their knowledge, intelligence, cleverness, and power? It is their Bible that gives it to them. And now they bring it to us, translate it into our language and Testimony of Eminent Persons 49 S*7' jTaue i<: and -See -if i<: Vs not Sood-" 0f one thing I am con vinced, that, do with it what we will, oppose it as we may, it is the Christian's Bible that will sooner or later work out the regen eration of our land. James A. Froude, an English historian : The Bible, thoroughly known, is a literature of itself— the rarest and richest in all departments of thought and imagination which exists. Lord Macaulay said that the English Bible was a book which, if everything else in our language should perish, would alone suffice to show the extent of its beauty and power. Charles Dickens, in a letter to his son, said : I put a New Testament among your books for the very same reasons and with the very same hopes that made me write an easy account of it for you when you were a little child — because it is the best book that ever was or will be known in the world, and because it teaches you the best lessons by which any human crea ture who tries to be truthful and faithful to duty can possibly be guided. Hall Caine, a famous English novelist, wrote in McClures's Magazine concerning the Bible. There is no book in the world like it, and the finest novels ever written fall far short in interest of any one of the stories it tells. Whatever strong situations I have in my books are not of my creation, but are taken from the Bible. The Deemster is the story of the Prodigal Son; The Bondman is the story of Esau and Jacob; The Scapegoat is the story of Eli and his sons, but with Samuel as a little girl; and The Manxman is the story of David and Uriah. Arthur Henry Hallam, an English essayist: I see that the Bible fits into every fold of the human heart. I am a man, and I believe it to be God's book because it is man's book. Count Tolstoy, the Russian author: I do not know a book which gives in such compact and poetic form every phase of human ideas as the Bible. Without the Bible the education of the child in the present state of society is impossible. 50 The Book of Books Dostoevsky, another Russian author: I recommend you to read the whole Bible through in the Russian translation. The book makes a remarkable impression when one thus reads it. One gains, for one thing, the conviction that humanity possesses, and can possess, no other book of equal significance. Coleridge the poet says in his Confessions of an Enquir ing Spirit: For more than a thousand years the Bible collectively taken has gone hand in hand with civilization, science, law — in short, with the moral and intellectual cultivation of the species, always supporting and often leading the way. When Sir Walter Scott was dying, he said to his friend Lockhart, "Bring me the book," and when Lockhart said "What book?" Sir Walter said, "The Book— the Bible; there is only one." Charles A. Dana, former editor of the New York Sun: Of all books, the most indispensable and the most useful, the one whose knowledge is most effective, is the Bible. There is no book from which -more valuable lessons can be learned. George Herbert in "The Synagogue": The Bible? That's the Book, the Book indeed, The Book of Books On which who looks, As he should do, aright, shall never need Wish for a better light To guide him in the night. Sir Isaac Newton, a famous philosopher: We account the Scriptures of God to be the most sublime philosophy. Jacob Gould Schurman, President of Cornell University : The Bible is the most important document in the world's history. No man can be wholly uneducated who really knows the Bible, nor can anyone be considered a truly educated man who is ignorant of it. Sir Wm. Jones, a great orientalist and linguist who was acquainted with twenty-eight languages: Testimony of Eminent Persons 51 The Scriptures contain, independent of a divine origin, more true sublimity, more exquisite beauty, purer morality, more important history, and finer strains, both of poetry and eloquence, than would be collected within the same compass from all other books that were ever composed in any age or in any idiom. The two parts of which the Scriptures consist are connected by a chain of compositions which bears no resemblance in form or style to any that can be produced from the States of Grecian, Indian, Persian, or even Arabian learning. The antiquity of these com positions no man doubts, and the unstrained application of them to events long subsequent to their publication, is a solid ground of belief that they were genuine productions, and consequently inspired. Dr. J. H. Penniman, Acting-Provost and Professor of English literature in the University of Pennsylvania, in A Book About the English Bible, speaks of it in his epilogue as "that treasure-house of wisdom and beauty commonly known as the Holy Scriptures, contained in the Old and the New Testaments," and on the first two pages of the book pays the following eloquent tribute : The greatest book is the Bible, and the reason for the place assigned to it is that it contains interpretations "of human life, actual and ideal, which reveal man to himself, in his joys and sorrows, his triumphs and his defeats, his aspirations and his possibilities, his relations to other men, and, comprehending and enveloping all, his relations to God. Men may differ about what the Bible is, but the fact remains that for centuries millions of men, of all grades of intelligence and learning, have believed that the Bible speaks to them as no other book has ever spoken, and that what it says comes with an authority derived from God him self. The primary spiritual problem of man is his relations to God. Men, everywhere, recognize the existence of an intelligent power outside and higher than themselves that controls and regu lates the universe. The individual who doubts or denies the existence of God is exceptional, and his opinions are at variance with human belief and experience. The Bible, concerned as it is in its component parts with the revelation of God to man, and the relation of man to God, has held the attention of men because it is true to the truths of life and satisfying to the yearnings of the human spirit. Men have found it so, and there is an abiding faith that men will continue to find it so. . . . Reverence for the Bible is increased by a knowledge of the history of its transmission down the centuries, through many languages, and many versions, preserving always its distinctive qualities unimpaired by the frailties of human copyists, and unchanged through the lapse of time. 52 The Book of Books COQf34^ <$$. * P*aa» 3fr Efesg E^S^H=I K4> ti$&t&i0M'*/* '' ' -^A^^'f^A ^^I^M^m^T^'C .>::• jtu*^^' ,;• -j * .-- .•• •¦.-;i-'j'-; | :- A PAPYRUS FRAGMENT (From the "Biblical World") Ancient Writing 67 done with a sharp pointed stylus. Thus, it will be remem bered, at the birth of John the Baptist, his father, Zacharias, being unable to speak when appealed to concerning the child's name, asked For a writing tablet and wrote that it was John. This was a wooden tablet, coated with wax, or it may have been with sand. Modern paper has been in use as a writing material for at least a thousand years. The origin of the art of mak ing paper is obscure. It was originally made from the fibers of such plants as cotton and flax, and rags were used later; more recently numerous varieties of grass, straw, and wood PAPYRUS DOCUMENTS (From Winston's "International Bible Dictionary") fiber have been used. The material is first made into a pulp, and ingredients are added for giving the desired tex- 'ture and color; and, after all have been well beaten together, the pulp is spread in thin layers or sheets on screens of wire and dried. Very little paper is now made by hand — only the best quality from the best materials. The process has been greatly cheapened and expedited by machinery for the production of the large sheets and long rolls that are fed to the mammoth presses in the making of modern news papers and books. As papyrus began to get scarce recourse was had to a material which had been used to some extent from very 68 The Book of Books THE MOABITE STONE (From Winston's "Handy Bible Encyclopedia") Ancient Writing 69 early times, namely, the skins of animals. Such material was called "parchment," a name said to be derived from Pergamum, where its manufacture was stimulated by Eumenes, as Pliny states, on account of the refusal of Ptolemy to allow the papyrus to be exported. Skins dressed on one side only could be used for rolls; those for books in leaf form must be dressed on both sides. The Encyclopedia Britannica says of the modern process of preparing skins, that it "is by washing, liming, unhairing, scraping, washing a second time, stretching evenly on a frame, scraping a second time and paring down inequalities, dusting with sifted chalk, and rubbing with pumice." Parchment is the name given to the prepared skins of sheep and goats; but those of calves, kids, and lambs are called vellum. Some times the vellum was dyed purple, and a number of manu scripts on such purple vellum are extant; the writing was then done in silver or gold. The earliest Hebrew writing known is on the Moabite Stone. This stone was found at Dibon in 1868. After impressions of it had been taken and several attempts to purchase it had failed, the Arabs destroyed it by fire. The fragments, however, were recovered and pieced together, and it is now in the Louvre at Paris. It contains records of Mesha, king of Moab, in which are detailed the oppres sion of Moab by Omri, king of Israel, and the subsequent revolt and conquest of Israel by Mesha, the date being about 850 b.c. The Manuscripts The originals of the Old Testament were written in Hebrew, with the exception of a few small portions in Chal dean or Aramaic. They were written in rolls, and later some were written in book form. The oldest extant Hebrew manuscript is about a thousand years old, dating from the early part of the tenth century, or perhaps the end of the ninth. Either the manuscript ofthe Prophets at Petrograd or one of the Pentateuch in the British Museum is the oldest known. The original Hebrew manuscripts were written with consonants only, the vowel points having been added at a much later date by the Massoretes. Somewhere about 70 The Book of Books the seventh or eighth century these points were added in the form of dots and dashes, much like the diacritical marks placed in pronouncing Bibles today by some publishers to indicate the pronunciation of proper names. The Masso retes were students who had studied the text to make it as accurate as possible. Without the vowel points the conso- -p ¦ ¦ r 1 JV<, r : • y: m v J r r- - - «r . ~JT A ! •#- PORTION OF A HEBREW MANUSCRIPT (Exodus 26 : 7) from the earliest dated Hebrew manuscript, now in the British Museum; ofthe tenth century (From Nelsons' "Encyclopaedia) nants might be taken for any one of several words, with different meanings in many cases, and this accounts for a number of errors in some editions of the Bible. I am indebted to Mr. Charles J. Cohen for the excellent illustrations of modern synagogue rolls and for some inter esting details concerning them. The Sepher Torah, a scroll The Manuscripts 7i A MODERN PENTATEUCH ROLL {Courtesy of Charles J. Cohen) 72 The Book of Books of the Law, is in use in Philadelphia, at the Mikve Israel Synagogue, and the ornaments at the top of the rods are silver bells. "In ancient Judean days the king was required to have a copy to be kept near his throne and carried into battle," but from the histories of the Chronicles it seems that at times things got so bad that the book of the law was lost, and special mention is made of its being found again. Heads of families had to possess copies also, and were only permitted to dispose of them in case of extreme distress or to pay a teachers' fee or one's own marriage expenses. The scrolls used in the synagogues do not contain vowels or accents, and are not divided into verses or chapters. Each book of the Law is divided into fifty-four sections, called parashyot, so that a section may be read each week, and the whole in a year — the fifty-four being accounted for by the extra month occurring in some Jewish years (the Ve- Adar), and, when there are only twelve months, two portions are read some weeks to get the fifty-four in the year. The small Torah, or book of the Law, shown in the illustration, originally belonged to the Simon-Gratz family, Mr. Cohen's great-grandfather being household Rabbi. It illustrates the practice that when a place of worship was unknown in a small town, the devout carried with him his Torah in its small ark. Extreme care was taken by the Hebrew scribes who copied the rolls for the synagogues, and precise rules are given in the Talmud for their guidance in the work. Manu scripts must be transcribed from ancient and approved copies only, and the skins of clean animals, prepared spe cially by a Jew, must be used. The fastenings ofthe sheets must be made from the sinews of a clean animal. Each skin must have an exact number of columns, of equal length and width, with an even number of lines and words. Black ink must be used, prepared from soot, charcoal, and honey, mixed into a paste, allowed to harden, and then dissolved in water and an infusion of galls. The scribe must look at the copy for each word, consider it carefully, and pronounce it orally before writing. Three lines must be left between books. The fifth book of Moses must end exactly with a line. The scribe must be attired in full Jewish costume when at work. When any of the divine names had to be The Manuscripts 73 written the pen must be washed, and before writing the name JHVH (Jehovah or Yahweh) the scribe must wash his whole body; and he must be so attentive to his work that even if a king should speak to him he could not answer A MEGILLAH OR BOOK OF ESTHER, AND A SMALL TORAH, OR BOOK OF THE LAW (Courtesy of Charles J. Cohen) till he had finished the name. The copy had to be examined as soon as finished and if there were additions or omissions, or if poetry was written as prose or prose as poetry, or if two letters touched each other the sheet was spoiled. 74 The Book of Books The monks who toiled in copying the Greek manuscripts did not observe such detailed rules as did the Hebrew scribes, but they spent their lives in carefully transcribing and decorating the Scriptures. Those who did such work were THE OLD ILLUMINATOR (From an old painting) excused from the manual labor in garden and house. Long fellow has put into the mouth of Friar Pacificus the following lines, which describe the reverence and care that were exer cised in the scriptorium by the old illuminator: The Manuscripts 75 'Tis growing dark! Yet one line more, And then my work for today is o'er. I come again to the name of the Lord ! Ere I that awful Name record That is spoken so lightly among men, Let me pause awhile and wash my pen; Pure from blemish and blot must it be When it writes that word of mystery! Thus have I labored on and on, Nearly through the Gospel of John. Can it be that from the lips Of this same gentle Evangelist, That Christ Himself perhaps has kissed, Came the dread Apocalypse? It has a very awful look As it stands there at the end of the Book Like the sun in an eclipse. Ah me! When I think of that vision divine, Think of writing it line by line, I stand in awe of the terrible curse, Like the trump of doom, in the closing verse. God forgive me, if ever I Take aught from the Book of that prophecy, Lest my part too should be taken away From the Book of Life on the Judgment Day. This is well written, though I say it; I should not be afraid to display it In open day, on the self-same shelf With the writings of St. Thecla herself, Or of Theodosius, who of old Wrote the Gospels in letters of gold. That goodly folio standing yonder, Without a single blot or blunder, Would not bear away the palm from mine If we should compare them line for line. There, now, is an initial letter! St. Ulric himself never made a better, Finished down to the leaf and the snail, Down to the eyes on the peacock's tail. And now, as I turn the volume over, And see what lies between cover and cover, What treasures of art these pages hold, All ablaze with crimson and gold; God forgive me! I seem to feel A certain satisfaction steal Into my heart and into my brain, As if my talent had not lain Wrapped in a napkin, and all in vain. 76 The Book of Books Yes, I might almost say to the Lord, Here is a copy of Thy Word, Written out with much toil and pain; Take it, O Lord, and let it be As something I have done for Thee. Greek manuscripts are of two kinds, uncials and cur sives. The oldest are the uncials, so called because they are written entirely in capital letters. They were written without spaces between the words, and without punctua tion. Gradually, means were adopted for dividing the matter up into sections for convenience of reference. Letters, or letters and numbers, were placed in the margins. Some manuscripts were written stychometrically, that is, with just sufficient on one line to be read without stopping. There are not many more than a hundred Greek uncial manuscripts of the New Testament known, and of these only two contain the whole. They are known to scholars by English, Greek, and Hebrew letters preceded by the word "Codex" which means "book" — Codex A, Codex B, Codex H, etc. The known cursives, which are so called from being written in a running hand, or with capital and small letters, number between two and three thousand. They date from the tenth to the sixteenth centuries and are not nearly so valuable from a critical point of view as the uncials. There are also more than a thousand Lectionaries, or reading lists, that is, lessons from the New Testament to be read during the year. The cursive manuscripts are listed by numbers. The work of scholars is to determine as nearly as pos sible the original text. The older the manuscript, the more valuable from a textual point of view, ordinarily; though a more recent copy from an older original would be likely to be more correct than an older copy from a later original. There are other considerations which weigh in considering the textual value of a manuscript, and in a later chapter will be found a summary of the rules which guide the textual critics, as given by Dr. Philip Schaff in his Companion to the Greek Testament and English Version. The three most ancient and valuable uncial manuscripts are the Vatican (Codex Vaticanus, or Codex B) in the The Manuscripts 77 Vatican, at Rome; the Alexandrian (Codex Alexandrinus, or Codex A), in the British Museum, London; and the Sinaitic (Codex Sinaiticus, or Codex N ), in the Imperial Library at Petrograd (St. Petersburg). Another valuabe manuscript is the Codex Ephraem, Codex Ephraemi Syri, or Codex C. This is known as a palimpsest, that is, a manu script in which the original writing has been erased to make room for something else. Another valuable manuscript, with Greek and Latin on opposite pages, is the Codex Bezae, or Codex D. The remaining uncials are in most cases very fragmentary, but on account of their age are more valuable than most of the cursives. The Sinaitic Manuscript (Codex N ) is probably the oldest Greek manuscript extant, being supposed to date from the fourth century. It is in the Imperial Library at Petrograd (St. Petersburg), Russia. It was found by Tischendorf in the Convent of St. Catherine, on Mount Sinai, and, though the story of the finding has often been told, it will be interesting to read the full account as given by Tischendorf himself in a little book entitled, When Were Our Gospels Written? The literary treasures which I had sought to explore have been drawn in most cases from the convents of the East, where, for ages, the pens of industrious monks have copied the sacred writings, and collected manuscripts of all kinds. It therefore occurred to me whether it was not probable that in some recess of Greek or Coptic, Syrian or Armenian monasteries, there might be some precious manuscripts slumbering for ages in dust and darkness? And would not every sheet of parchment so found, covered with writings of the fifth, sixth, and seventh centuries, be a kind of literary treasure, and a valuable addition to our Christian literature? . . . I here pass over in silence the interesting details of my travels — my audience with the Pope, Gregory XVI, in May, 1843 — my intercourse with Cardinal Mezzofanti, that surprising and cele brated linguist — and I come to the result of my journey to the East. It was in April, 1844, that I embarked at Leghorn for Egypt. The desire which I felt to discover some precious remains of any manuscripts, more especially Biblical, of a date which would carry us back to the early times of Christianity, was realized beyond my expectations. It was at the foot of Mount Sinai, in the Convent of St. Catherine, that I discovered the pearl of all my researches. In visiting the library of the monastery, in the month of May, 1844, I perceived in the middle of the great hall 78 The Book of Books a large and wide basket full of old parchments; and the librarian, who was a man of information, told me that two heaps of papers like these, mouldered by time, had been already committed to the flames. What was my surprise to find amid this heap of papers a considerable number of sheets of a copy of the Old Testament in Greek, which seemed to me to be one of the most ancient that I had ever seen. The authorities of the convent allowed me to possess myself of a third of these parchments, or about forty-three sheets, all the more readily as they were destined for the fire. But I could not get them to yield up possession of the remainder. The too lively satisfaction which I had displayed had aroused their suspicions as to the value of this manuscript. I transcribed a page of the text of Isaiah and Jeremiah, and enjoined on the monks to take religious care of all such remains which might fall in their way. On my return to Saxony there were men of .learning who at once appreciated the value of the treasure which I brought back with me. I did not divulge the name of the place where I had found it, in the hopes of returning and recovering the rest of the manuscript. I handed over to the Saxon Government my rich collection of Oriental manuscripts in return for the payment of all my traveling expenses. I deposited in the library of the Uni versity of Leipzig, in shape of a collection, which bears my name, fifty manuscripts, some of which are very rare and interesting. I did the same with the Sinaitic fragments, to which I gave the name of Codex Frederick Augustus, in acknowledgment of the patronage given to me by the King of Saxony; and I published them in Saxony in a sumptuous edition, in which each letter and stroke was exactly reproduced by the aid of lithography. But these home labors upon the manuscripts which I had already safely garnered did not allow me to forget the distant treasure which I had discovered. I made use of an influential friend, who then resided at the Court of the Viceroy of Egypt, to carry on negotiations for procuring the rest of the manuscripts; but his attempts were, unfortunately, not successful. "The monks of the convent," he wrote to me to say, "have, since your departure, learned the value of these sheets of parchment, and will not part with them at any price." I resolved, therefore, to return to the East to copy this price less manuscript. Having set out from Leipzig in January, 1853, I embarked at Trieste for Egypt, and in the month of February I stood for the second time in the Convent of Sinai. This second journey was more successful even than the first, from the dis coveries that I made of rare Biblical manuscripts; but I was not able to discover any further traces of the treasure of 1844. I for get: I found in a roll of papers a little fragment, which, written over on both sides, contained eleven short lines of Genesis, which convince me that the manuscripts originally contained the entire The Manuscripts 79 Old Testament, but that the greater part had been long since destroyed. On my return, I reproduced in the first volume of a collection of ancient Christian documents the page of the Sinaitic manu script which I had transcribed in 1844, without divulging the secret of where I had found it. I confined myself to the statement that I claimed the distinction of having discovered other docu ments — no matter whether published in Berlin or Oxford — as I assumed that some learned travelers, who had visited the convent after me, had managed to carry them off. The question now arose how to turn to use these discoveries. Not to mention a second journey which I made to Paris in 1849, I went through Germany, Switzerland, and England, devoting several years of unceasing labor to a seventh edition of my New Testament. But I felt myself more and more urged to recom mence my researches in the East. Several motives, and more especially the deep reverence of all Eastern monasteries for the Emperor of Russia, led me, in the autumn of 1856, to submit to the Russian Government a plan of a journey for making systematic researches in the East. This proposal only aroused a jealous and fanatical opposition in St. Petersburg. People were astonished that a foreigner and a Protestant should presume to ask the sup port of the Emperor of the Greek and Orthodox Church for a mission to the East. But the good cause triumphed. The interest which my proposal excited, even within the imperial circle, inclined the Emperor in my favor. It obtained his approval in the month of September, 1858, and the funds which I asked for were placed at my disposal. Three months subsequently my seventh edition of the New Testament, which had cost me three years of incessant labor, appeared; and in the commencement of January, 1859, I again set sail for the East. . . . By the end of the month of January I had reached the Con vent of Mount Sinai. The mission with which I was entrusted entitled me to expect every consideration and attention. The prior, on saluting me, expressed a wish that I might succeed in discovering fresh supports for the truth. His kind expression of goodwill was verified even beyond his expectations. After having devoted a few days in turning over the manu scripts of the convent, not without alighting here and there on some precious parchment or other, I told my Bedouins, on the 4th February, to hold themselves in readiness to set out with their dromedaries for Cairo on the 7th, when an entirely fortuitous circumstance carried me to the goal of all my desires. On the afternoon of this day I was taking a. walk with the steward of the convent in the neighborhood, and as we returned toward sunset, he begged me to take some refreshment with him in his cell. Scarcely had he entered the room, when, resuming our former subject of conversation, he said: "And I, too, have read a Sep- 8o The Book of Books tuagint" — i. e., copy of the Greek translation made by the Seventy. And so saying, he took down from the corner of the room a bulky kind of volume, wrapped up in a red cloth, and laid it before me. I unrolled the cover, and discovered, to my great surprise, not only those very fragments which, fifteen years before, I had taken out of the basket, but also other parts of the Old Testament, the New Testament complete, and, in addition, the Epistle of Barna bas and a part of the Pastor of Hermas. Full of joy, which this time I had the self-command to conceal from the steward and the rest of the community, I asked, as if in a careless way, for per mission to take the manuscript into my sleeping chamber to look over it more at leisure. There by myself I could give way to the transport of joy which I felt. I knew that I held in my hand the CONVENT OF ST. CATHERINE, ON MOUNT SINAI most precious Biblical treasure in existence — a document whose age and importance exceeded that of all the manuscripts which I had ever examined during twenty years' study of the subject. I cannot now, I confess, recall all the emotions which I felt in that exciting moment with such a diamond in my possession. Though my lamp was dim, and the night cold, I sat down at once to transcribe the Epistle of Barnabas. For two centuries search has been made in vain for the original Greek of the first part of this Epistle, which has only been known through a very faulty Latin translation. And yet this letter, from the end of the second down to the beginning of the fourth century, had an extensive authority, since many Christians assigned to it and to the Pastor of Hermas a place side by side with the inspired writings of the The Manuscripts 8i New Testament. This was the very reason why these two writ ings were both thus bound up with the Sinaitic Bible, the trans cription of which is to be referred to the first half of the fourth century, and about the time of the first Christian Emperor. Early on the 5th of February I called upon the steward. I asked permission to take the manuscript with me to Cairo, to have it there transcribed completely from beginning to end; but the prior had set out only two days before also for Cairo, on his way for Constantinople, to attend at the election of a new arch bishop, and one of the monks would not give his consent to my request. What was then to be done? My plans were quickly decided. On the 7th, at sunrise, I took a hasty farewell of the monks, in hopes of reaching Cairo in time to get the prior's con sent. Every mark of attention was shown me on setting out. The Russian flag was hoisted from the convent walls, while the hillsides rang with the echoes of a parting salute, and the most distinguished members of the order escorted me on my way as far as the plain. The following Sunday I reached Cairo, where I was received with the same marks of goodwill. The prior, who had not yet set out, at once gave his consent to my request, and also gave instruc tions to a Bedouin to go and fetch the manuscript with all speed. Mounted on his camel, in nine days he went from Cairo to Sinai and back, and on the 24th February the priceless treasure was again in my hands. The time was now come at once boldly and without delay to set to work to a task of transcribing no less than a hundred and ten thousand lines — of which a great number were difficult to read, either on account of later corrections, or through the ink having faded — and that in a climate where the thermometer during March, April, and May is never below JJ° of Fahrenheit in the shade. No one can say what this cost me in fatigue and exhaustion. The relation in which I stood to the monastery gave me the opportunity of suggesting to the monks the thought of presenting the original to the Emperor of Russia as the natural protector of the Greek Orthodox faith. The proposal was favorably enter tained, but an unexpected obstacle arose to prevent its being acted upon. The new archbishop, unanimously elected during Easter week, and whose right it was to give a final decision in such matters, was not yet consecrated, or his nomination even accepted by the Sublime Porte. And while they were waiting for this double solemnity, the Patriarch of Jerusalem protested so vigorously against the election, that a three months' delay must intervene before the election could be ratified and the new archbishop installed. Seeing this, I resolved to set out for Jaffa and Jerusalem. Just at this time the Grand Duke Constantine of Russia, who had taken the deepest interest in my labors, arrived at Jaffa. I accompanied him to Jerusalem. I visited the ancient libraries 82 The Book of Books of the holy city, that of the monastery of Saint Saba on the shores of the Dead Sea, and then those of Beyrout, Ladikia, Smyrna, and Patmos. These fresh researches were attended with the most happy results. At the time desired I returned to Cairo; but here, instead of success, only met with a fresh disappointment. The Patriarch of Jerusalem still kept up his opposition, and as he carried it to the most extreme lengths, the five representatives of the convent had to remain at Constantinople, where they sought in vain for an interview with the Sultan to press their rights. Under these circumstances the monks of Mount Sinai, although willing to do so, were unable to carry out my suggestion. m oao n >¦>•>-?«< *ot rixn n& .mY*JYf>. NOlfKM IHqiU.'O rA,Al|0(:od>(j,N)NKA|AI|- IIIOICNXjOHXlMr tiyAoKiA^Mi i fu"»~" feMmiiY'icrrtir UMfMCMuyKMn/ Al<) iNij^.KtTjitv *VFKh, n< r.-dNO f f Anfft )M/ K»'/T* KAHilCANKoyAU TXIKXAj' TAlKAICirA^GU; n f ocixjycmVoi i i xcKxn A i xn«--i ( j.- M AKAptO)OtO<]>OA> MO|OI gAfrTTONV- KRM-;f teTCAerui rxfVMiNOTM io* AO| Ilft-HhHTKJK^ RAcixeT cne< "AI(-£" m<*tXh- ncANtrrni-K-ri/ |->Of(iJIMAYTi>MA*l-CUNAIAACKAA' |) riOM.ICXl.'INX^"*MNAHPNIONKAH roNoMi lerno&ji fi ? i< n / j p0c*7 ]-u <-MTU>NloMci>TI fKfTAJOAiruiicx.rgAriAiu>cKJt: OAGAJlOKi-ltK j-'in-^ Xjrx* iMceicK^n*-. &t4 i"oyc ZQAMC7K* KAfM^' l <>YKAJ- MOAirill + YXth„, KAIfHOA/l fificw ICOY(yiCCt-AYTOMt--Jf !¦¦ *A/u-'M KM(irio-("/- ) lOl^lKAfyitni c»A^O«~At KNMKW ii>cAi5kyioN«'*i it ¦¦.'* I If OtMONINKW TJCt"CTpt4MC>Yi)AH ri o n Y" l> A >J( i^Nii uk:cihknxn(i«: VICKATfc'KAlN t'N AHOlVf OYCAXjMI «fOFK~f I XtlmAlAH ctaj cr rer i t~r i <=•-•• OiKAlGKAYCANr" KYTTOMKAlflAlir*.- enit*eM'rfc-cArHiA ""MX^^TCCH M HW.NI IK A' I XT' KYCIANAri(-pi- MCKXreBAlMt M '::wiMOA(ij(-«n wnKAiiAcnuxy 'iVNiH KAirip(»CtAlH.l>NK XJ CAJ I Ce N TA IT AYM Al AAYTOy <:f N Xt-UJN &v£t5~ KAjOf NONfllfKj K A( AC At-: Ayio N- TT I ¦ IU | Al ON IC|1 | N-' AY HjyKAK'r iinr AYtJAMMAfixp". KKK"l'|t(UriXD ¦IIIM«-M<0»| TlAf ' r/KW0! IXNIlj*.. M IAN ' ":i tCt N>- fXtCC^M- M ? f/tp lOAUH.iiiCol [I- i»N ITK«>N 1 IMICIUN AOKC| roiri'i<»mwxrH t"M I U'conT'-m-'CJ- T( )Y*~A» ICIACttiSt t7JI U;NOI iO»H<>< To<5XTT-i (.-I I ieN At-AYi*JJCwr MOft-YUYKAlCOl i ujh:u)Noiiuc«m At -|vi>i lopeyeeow AVI oy^ay- i oc^"> OPMCiCKO>MHH, j'lWX /"YMiiXArrjicoNOM* r? m ac <> ay/ tefce iAinAYTONKIC II INOIKIAN'KWJ; 1'HMl l/J AJvCAvl»»» KUoyNtMMMA.v f I AM KAI T lA^AKA'V?^: (.K-;;ll- f UIOAAI IhfAIAK- N IAN *i yc rxcxxee m »« Kt o Y t-t e\i t:oi o n i » A AtAt|> iiMoy MUNHNMfKXP Al f H--NAI AKONIH t-nit-oYAiXYiniNAMOICyNANT* AWHTfr* AFIOKf loeicheei n t ki AYTM o hfe MAfOAMAfUAM" f IM N ACKAIOOfY *. AZM lu-nii OA AA oai ru> Nxeetrrix^A MtMocMAflArW Tl I iUI>OHNMff' A A<^ <:AeXA*fl»+7»' oyKA*hc"feoHC« TA IA yi m OKXHT«f Ne 'lyowixjjtr (MX Ayrori€NTOHOJ TIN 1 1 t f(.)W,fxuM' N OM COC^I tXYr> TOtrt |I«K11C1UIH M AOM"l*i>r-»AY1*YY 1 1 C< ilXY'I UJ-4K* " Al AXjEOWMMX*.'! if— eyXSCOXIKAOtl*** eAjAXtJENTOY*-' M AO HTACAYl"! t-- 1 r 1 1- n AexY i 'oi c- • ixm r i f oceY* * *"" X^reTe- r i xierxn At:o» |-p- flOON tw^xc«Y <" An>'|t|>H k>x (XJ xtioycunoMi- ItHJ^AIIMACO'/t"' f NOyfA N p YI w , K-xierirV-tic^niM ' An«»"MtuKrf( lAotn M I MKAOI *N* L:f*-» KXlX^pCt'I IMlNjA' Xf^l X f TjX( 1 1 M ( i »H CUCKAlXYTOIAvkl^ M€MNAN T|Od>l XONTIMMINKXI MH^ICCMH-KH' H M ACCiCf I If ATM-* KXItl I ICHflf orXr Tt>Y0T'*:F:LYw*A'w (rJ<-Kf>lXOMf\A(PI'f«?yi:GTXif ir«rXT TONMt'CON YK'f oYKAienuiAY')'" ffiCxfToyeernw I AO CM <>Y ' J Xf« r- i eioexoA/jY'T- MeKA/oyK.^'"' » I A^* AO 1 1 (-<.I^AY *"¦ V'' CPUI A PAGE OF THE SINAITIC MANUSCRIPT In this embarrassing state of affairs the archbishop and his friends entreated me to use my influence on behalf of the convent. I therefore set out at once for Constantinople, with a view of there supporting the case of the five representatives. The Prince The Manuscripts 83 Lobanow, Russian ambassador to Turkey, received me with the greatest goodwill, and as he offered me hospitality in his country house on the shores of the Bosphorus, I was able the better to attend to the negotiations which had brought me there. But our irreconcilable enemy, the influential and obstinate Patriarch of Jerusalem, still had the upper hand. The archbishop was then advised to appeal himself in person to the patriarchs, archbishops, and bishops; and this plan succeeded — for- before the end of the year the right of the convent was recognized, and we gained our cause. I myself brought back the news of our success to Cairo, and with it I also brought my own special request, backed with the support of Prince Lobanow. On the 24th of September I returned to Cairo. The monks and archbishop then warmly expressed their thanks for my zealous efforts in their cause, and the following day I received from them, under the form of a loan, the Sinaitic Bible, to carry it to St. Petersburg, and there to have it copied as accurately as possible. I set out for Russia early in October, and on the 19th of November, I presented to their Imperial Majesties, in the Winter Palace at Tsarkoe-Selo, my rich collection of old Greek, Syriac, Coptic, Arabic, and other manuscripts, in the middle of which the Sinaitic Bible shone like a crown. I then took the oppor tunity of submitting to the Emperor, Alexander II, a proposal of making an edition of this Bible worthy of the work and of the Emperor himself, and which should be regarded as one of the greatest undertakings in critical and biblical study. I did not feel free to accept the brilliant offers that were made to me to settle finally, or even for a few years, in the Russian capi tal. It was at Leipzig, therefore, at the end of three years, and after three journeys to St. Petersburg, that I was able to carry to completion the laborious task of producing a facsimile copy of this codex in four folio volumes. In the month of October, 1862, I repaired to St. Petersburg to present this edition to their majesties. The Emperor, who had liberally provided for the cost, and who approved the proposal of this superb manuscript appearing on the celebration of the Mille nary Jubilee of the Russian empire, has distributed impressions of it throughout the Christian world, which, without distinction of creed have expressed their recognition of its value. Even the Pope, in an autograph letter, has sent to the editor his congratu lations and admiration. The two most celebrated universities of England, Cambridge and Oxford, desired to show me honor by conferring on me their highest academic degree. "I would rather," said an old man — himself of the highest distinction for learning — "I would rather have discovered this Sinaitic manu script than the Koh-i-noor of the Queen of England." But that which I think more highly of than all these flattering distinctions is the fact that Providence has given to our age, in 84 The Book of Books which attacks on Christianity are so common, the Sinaitic Bible, to be to us a full and clear light as to what is the real text of God's Word written, and to assist us in defending the truth by establish ing its authentic form. The manuscript consists of 346^ leaves, and is of fine vellum, made from antelope skins; the writing is in four columns to each page (except some of the poetical portions, which are two columns to the page), and the page is 13^ inches wide and 14^ inches high. Originally it contained the Old Testament complete, the New Testament complete, together with the Epistles of Barnabas and the "Shepherd" MAIN HALL OF THE VATICAN LIBRARY (From "The Biblical World") (or Pastor) of Hermas, these last being two apocryphal books which were highly regarded in the early Christian centuries. Part of the Old Testament is now missing, and part of the Shepherd of Hermas. The Convent of St. Catherine is at the foot of Mount Sinai, and was built by the Emperor Justinian in 527 a.d. There is in the convent a chapel called the "Chapel of the Burning Bush," and one of its wells is supposed to be the one where Moses met Reuel's daughters and helped them water their flocks. Other valuable manuscripts have been found there besides Codex W . The Manuscripts 85 Copies of the beautiful four-volume facsimile edition of Codex X published by Tischendorf may be seen in some of the American public and theological libraries. The Vatican Manuscript (Codex B) is considered to be of about the same age as the Sinaitic, dating from the fourth century. It is in the Vatican Library at Rome, where it has been, with a brief exception, since the end ofthe fifteenth tfl& fj/t< Mt'rii. ) IH!"..", . I' r!Tic*n.>*l'K.>wvNiY_ nrftifc^Juu'K'S-iJ'r hhjik i-MWi:di.£f>fcA*r>*^l °*''?» l ' ' MTfinCf^vi'MnflflOJ Ctc Lrtii>iA.r-ru>N!XiiwT« Tt.rv'-i».TMf>YKM* "ff'-' rtVieACftTVT*'1'1 ¦'¦-'v; a k n * oy mtoc Vf f it ru>c . /* rt^fto f* if > IV M fi X Ol , r ; ¦ i -S.-f tf* M «t TM J&cfrv ^A,*A«AtfrtA^Ki>w^ ¦-¦•¦[¦M' fl ¦'¦>.>-. •. yM'ft Wt»*».1«*.'T*t.-X*>" tMM'iM r *i i '¦•¦ ^*w«^r A PAGE OF THE VATICAN MANUSCRIPT (From "The Biblical World") century at least. It originally contained the whole of the Bible, but now the following parts are missing: Genesis to the 28th verse of chapter 46; Psalms 105 to 137; Hebrews, from verse 14 of the 9th chapter to the end of the book; 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon, and Revelation. It consists of 759 leaves of vellum, measuring 10^ x 10 inches. The writing is in three columns. It is bound in one volume 86 The Book of Books in red morocco. Facsimile copies may be seen in some of our libraries. Napoleon carried the manuscript to Paris among his spoils of victory, but it was returned to Rome in 1815. It was while it was in Paris that its great value became known to scholars. The Alexandrian Manuscript (Codex A) is in the British Museum, London. It is so named because originally it was in Alexandria; but it was taken to Constantinople by Cyril Lucar when he became Patriarch there, and in 1627 was A VOLUME OF THE ALEXANDRIAN MANUSCRIPT The New Testament, as it lies in its case in the British Museum presented by him to Charles I. It remained the possession of the English sovereigns till it was presented to the nation by George II. It consists of four volumes, one of which is represented in the illustration. This is the New Testament as it lies in its case in the Museum. The writing is in two columns, on thin vellum, the size of page being 13 x 10 inches. It orig inally contained the complete Bible, but now about ten leaves are missing from the Old Testament, and the New Testament lacks the Gospel of Matthew to chapter 24, The Manuscripts 87 verse 6; John 6 : 50 to 8 : 52; and 2 Corinthians 4 : 13 to 12 : 6. The manuscript includes parts of two Epistles of Clement, which were highly regarded in the early Christian centuries, a letter of Athanasius, and a treatise by Eusebius on the Psalms. f ¦'.: iMIUI\'f I Vf \l" .HI IT .¦"..- ¦¦ * V *>'t'. t.XYi"oicl'i ¦>.<;» r*-r» **•*.* i-v»w*<' ,f* • MKinc-rriVKKi^^'Oi^iui.' ng&'jpeajvrv ik.'tici'w1' may* w-|*fiqj« /£\ WTTCfr tiPf«.;COYC1N £ JO* G-veiCA.<5rM til »s* wajjkN o tVM^t IM'h*»ricTiC)£ti*foictu^Mii|»«»'" Vtf^AJYtTM'rrOOYOlAV-iT. p.,.. i\»JO*,-ProiC*.Y',OYKXt(; ' *4*oi*>c->J»er» 1 ¦Jiejio p »-«-i iM.vr Kxioyrxi x » 4v:iu*o-MY>cc?.CI|!r-a.>i- *ci.S.I lOMtUM.)! iytu rVp'loOU'W^vvofcM.'nji'c-M*'' oriox«»fcic-i'u"MOPixi>MN«/tjAoorwn •-* irr«T5*x<>fcvivho " ¦^t-H^-l-V**!^^*** '!fX>%,5«l>1|-.<|r»,-)-Ki ;Oy>n*H;ioynnrre\<.iuCA -rr*ru » *JTIH>VC V *^M*^ OVLieiu * »> " OTfW^'Xl^KV VOMG+*TI P«lCTUricl I.I)H11I i.\H('MH>tl«W xiCtoYn>tv\.vioYOiit*V^Nnur - J V " **c>YOyoy* ion hh;»«vWm' V.A. /C^VIM »Ol*"-'V»»t|"Vt.llCt*>*>vf l«p> .VM:Vr,ii'Ci KM mluiw.' CMAHfn iov-ikcivv" 1 1 4.>YOVOW>Mlt .lyeAifOM'l'F*-' <»kl\|>A*>---- iv. v..M*M* iO]*4A*(»-t**»«'* TtXl »¦ ' »< * « V»*-» *^» ^y.'JTI.Tf I I'OWMkNk -^**tJ>t>|,OV'' Onxy iXtivxoroY V| *^*-' rOHKNMXTMpK.M«M»Y»n M.v< ^vpaHKA^O.X'l vJyVX* JOVMlMv KAOiIm t- ' 1 1* > t : 1 1 4«.»v ***sr*j.K*n**fi-' woyc JY\yroi^:iow)*n,f1 *' V*a>' '*-* Kai wjwt vv> WYK blAAeMhoiMOVTA^IXOY i ¦fA»>iL!l'lNCC(Ho » kaC) v<.2v*f« ne *.ai Atrrrt r-*.Y* « 1 1 < . M MD^'iifKA'l l\ At »tl>V I «P » ton; ->:'i i : ... ' •¦ :!!t<;l Ai I'l-CA^A r^V'/rifl Ui-. j .1=! > .;<;< Ai'<" MAR'inOU ' ."•*¦¦ •viitsxKtv-.AiiizrrfK'tTiKitm -. y -0;, 'T^l u1 » t^TS;*? PEW (>• >» —rmp-vxifJU. et/p-^afr-y^ji^^fJ ..- ' »»^A'^^^!fe- ,l'»N<9'g^^»^a^^©i8>0?W^^<-' JAIj , a t ;.\<.rf'.^^MU>l:i> ^^li-4l.ltlMiS>-/^!|l!^\ST.>. iiiliO ¦-'<¦¦'-¦' t-Ty^- «; .., "v'tWtfewvSs-f.u (^¦'V^rawfiWMWff'ri1'^ ¦ ' , x ;cy*iiK- 1 itii>io\-i1i>>'Vivi ik{<. ><> H)fu^K»i»/i' ..-. PR'?- ;- i '^nKut^.W^^ff^^^iWA'K^^' "T prii«|t IAlX^*jOa-t«!»|t&4i*^»«9«»^»*'<'' . r .: I aoi < im !-r*>Y<>yi«An\ii>'i; • _,. '.' 6 .1 y^vei->tM«mt>^i!^r*.&Xsar^mtiMx^y^tx, ¦• "l '1 S«"BO iHiA-Dl'utJj/H./l'iui V; ' 1. 1 ! fo«y-$-o:io.-J?&AwVA,Jii-°'.'.v y^'&'zJsr '''•'¦' i A ' l $ iSi fc !^KMxJh*l ' ' |3fe4-V A PAGE OF THE EPHRAEM PALIMPSEST century and was probably taken from Tarsus to England in the end of the seventh century and used by the Venerable Bede early in the eighth century. 90 The Book of Books Codex Rossanensis is another manuscript of purple vellum with silver letters, and the three first lines of each gospel, in each of its two columns, in gold. It was found by Drs. Gebhardt and Harnack in 1879, at Rossano in Italy. It is remarkable for a number of pictorial illustra tions of gospel history in water-colors. It contains only the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, and is of the sixth century. THE SAMARITAN PENTATEUCH (From "The Biblical World") CHAPTER VI ANCIENT VERSIONS AND QUOTATIONS T^TEXT in importance to the manuscripts in the same *¦ ^ languages as those in which the originals were written are the versions, or translations into languages other than those in which the Scriptures were originally written. The Samaritan Pentateuch is one of the most famous manuscripts extant. It belongs to the small Samaritan colony at Shechem, which is descended from the mixed people who were sent to Samaria in the seventh century B.C. by the king of Assyria, as recorded in 2 Kings 17 : 24. These Samaritans are referred to in Ezra 4 : 9, 10, as "the nations whom the great and noble Asnapper brought over and set in the cities of Samaria." There was always ill feeling between the Samaritans and the Jews, and this was increased when a grandson of Eliashib, the high-priest, was found to be among those who had married heathen wives, and Nehemiah says "Therefore I chased him from me." Josephus says this was Manasseh, and that he went to Samaria with his wife and his father-in-law Sanballat, and a rival temple was set up on Mount Gerizim. The Samaritans did not recognize any part ofthe Scrip tures but the Pentateuch, and an inscription on the chief Samaritan copy of it says it was written by "Abishua the son of Phinehas, the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest in the thirteenth year of the settlement of Israel in the land of Canaan," but this is not supposed by scholars to be accurate, and the manuscript is considered to be about a thousand years old. After the return ofthe Jews from the Babylonian cap tivity, Hebrew gradually ceased to be the common language of the people, and another Semitic language, Aramaic, (91) 92 The Book of Books took its place, and Hebrew became the sacred language. It therefore became necessary for an interpreter to stand beside the preacher and translate the Hebrew that the people * P* P - '"' J- -? ^At-*£'0\ jar m£- - y^xi'^^^Yyf--^: •~,-&#r"**r" '¦'' ^A * ': ^A-: ^tvha^^skKOpf s>Ki '^t>f#K>$0 <¦***>&*•-¦'*' ¦ 2^ •>#s atC' ' " '''SvA- ¦ ¦Giflf.ei : .v^/^^-^O , -' j ^*^^^n&^f^^yfA ' ' ' "* : " ' '*7^! "^"^^^i?-^ ,~^v ^¦^9 '"v '/-A , '¦ - ¦• ¦ - >¦ - .v':'^ A^-^-A PART OF THE SAMARITAN PENTATEUCH (From Winston's "Handy Bible Encyclopedia") might understand it; and later on the interpreters took to explaining as well, and there arose the Targums, or Aramaic paraphrases ofthe Old Testament, when the interpretations were committed to writing. They are known by the nan es Ancient Versions 93 of the authors or the places where they were written and used. There are three Targums on the Pentateuch: the Targum of Onkelos or the Babylonian Targum; the Jeru salem Targum of Jonathan; and a second Jerusalem Tar gum of part of the Pentateuch; one on the Prophets, the Targum of Jonathan Ben Uzziel; and several less valuable Targums on the Hagiographa (that is, the writings other than the Law and the Prophets). These Targums took definite form in the early Christian centuries. The most famous of the Old Testament versions is the Septuagint (LXX), or the version ofthe Seventy. This was made at Alexandria for the benefit ofthe Jewish colony there, but there is much uncertainty as to the date and ANCIENT ROLLS AND CONTAINER (From Winston's "Handy Bible Encyclopedia") method of the translation. There is a tradition that the work was done by seventy-two Jews, specially brought from Palestine, in seventy-two days. Another tradition says that the translators worked independently, and, when they had finished, their translations were absolutely identical. These are traditions only; scholars now are agreed that the work was begun about 280 B.C. Greek had by then become the common language ofthe countries around the eastern end ofthe Mediterranean, and the Septuagint became very pop ular among the Jewish residents there. It was the version in use in the days of Jesus and the apostles, and their quota tions are made from it. The Septuagint is valuable as being made from Hebrew manuscripts much older than any 94 The Book of Books Hebrew manuscripts now extant. The Old Testament portions ofthe Sinaitic, Vatican, Alexandrian, and Ephraem manuscripts are the Septuagint version. A Greek version was made by Aquila, who was a Jewish proselyte of Pontus, in the early part ofthe second century. It was a strictly literal translation for the Jews to use in contending with the Christians, but it was used by Christians as well as Jews. f ~~ . a \ . FRAGMENT OF SEPTUAGINT PSALTER (Psa. n : 7 ff.) Found in Egypt, 1892; now in the British Museum Probably of the third century (From Nelsons' " Encyclopedia) Theodotion, supposed to be a Jewish proselyte, also from Pontus, made a Greek translation in the latter half of the second century, which is mainly a revised version of the Septuagint. Symmachus, an Ebionite ofthe latter half of the second century, made a very faithful translation of the Hebrew, and his style was superior to that ofthe two just mentioned. Ancient Versions 95 His version was made use of by Jerome when he made his Latin version, the Vulgate. These three Greek versions are referred to by the revisers who prepared the Authorized Version, in the remark able preface which is reproduced in a later chapter, and by the Jewish revisers in their preface to the new translation of 1917, the latest ofthe revised versions at the date of this writing. In the early part of the third century a great scholar flourished at Alexandria, named Origen. He was dissatis fied with the Greek version then existing and himself revised the Septuagint. He published his "Hexaplar," or six- version edition, with the following columns side by side: (1) The Hebrew text; (2) the Hebrew text transliterated into Greek; (3) Aquila's translation; (4) the translation of Symmachus; (5) his own revision of the Septuagint; (6) Theodotion's translation. Several minor revisions of the Septuagint were made in the fourth century; one by Eusebius, of Caesarea, for use in Palestine; one by Hrsychius, of Alexandria, for use in Egypt; and one by Lucian, of Antioch, for use in Asia Minor. The most important translation of the Old Testament into Syriac is known as the "Peshito" or "simple." It was probably made in the second century, and was referred to by Ephraem the Syrian in the fourth century. It was most likely made by Jews who had become Christians. Another Syriac version was made early in the seventh century by Bishop Paul, of Telia, and it is a translation from the Greek of Origen's Hexaplar. The Latin version known as the Vulgate, because trans lated into the common or vulgar tongue, is the chief Latin translation. There had been others before it, which are known as the Old Latin, but there were great variations between those in use in different parts. An African Latin version and an Italian Latin version were the principal; some of the early English paraphrases and translations were made from the Old Latin, not from the Vulgate. The Vulgate was translated by Jerome at the request of Pope Damasus. Jerome was born about 340 a.d. at Stridon on the border of Dalmatia, and was undoubtedly the greatest 96 The Book of Books scholar of his day. He traveled considerably in Italy and the east and studied at Constantinople under Gregory Nazianzen. He went to Rome again in 382, where he became I X Ti U' I r "f a .UT.CTi'OTN ri i P.P : •.-"-. NCLIBIO %¦ W '¦?iP Jisiwrr-cL buf ^Jo^nirjc lob •Uir^lUtf-fiTTipkrvCT Ani.\tc> *^&ziq:(urrcetiipra- fil>- c~:n\1'flise- t-cfxutr p c* Ojcf yja i-i a 1 'fcp rr- m 1 Li a o u i u CtITI.\."iiU.v. r.vr"rfi>;ii Oilinqui ^fnr.vciuoi.-j: lu^tioum Ccaut jjinucr xcfTuntL.\rnulzx*jimtf Crxrq: mriU fr^Ajrjrf'.\/iri.-LWuJUiii oerdomcfunurciuifci-. li ftn>- C:rm!rtrnrrrui.VAl\!^'i-i.1'Yu.v/'i dCT-CTinSc'tiberfTiri.Jrtf" C-"<7"»iur-t)if; (C!£frtc>iAriU. (^cri/ur- verify diluaiUl •.i^T'r-i.tW l;oU->c.\ii(rAp/,"„.,^L, to/' Oico6at £"Tiir7i. M'Y^rTr-X'rri.'AutViMr^ilj ecbencaycertnrdno mcorAib-Juif (icfxcicbxr i QuxJsm^uze^ie-cumui^itfferikfiLidt'urf^Jtti l-cir C0f*j',clni> sjfutc inixr-eorezi.-un f\ (^Liidivirclnl? llM.-)cluTiif-'C7tiir-tf ponc/rrir.Mr Cir-cti OT-7-AC-rpCj-A/n'..uLvLiu'A iT>i\:/!:Q:i.-?ii"r.Vciftj7jj. - ».:¦¦.¦. Sj"'-i1'i^>0'l^^'^^fir>t7Hai77ifli7ri ioLvaiit7i.-e-rox^t low estate to which the church had fallen, and did his best to expose the wickedness of the clergy; and, having come to see that a great factor in liberating the people from the iniquity, tyranny, and exactions of the existing church sys tem would be the possession of the Bible in the English tongue, he set about the task of supplying it — not alone, but with the assistance of faithful followers who obtained their inspiration from him. Professor Burrows says: To Wiclif we owe, more than to any one person who can be mentioned, our English language, our English Bible, and our reformed religion. ... In Wiclif we have the acknowledged father of English prose, the first translator of the whole Bible into the language of the English people, the first disseminator of the language of the English people, the first disseminator of that Bible amongst all classes, the foremost intellect of his times brought to bear upon the religious questions of the day, the patient and courageous writer of innumerable tracts and books, not for one, but for all the different classes of society, the sagacious originator of the whole system of ecclesiastical reformation, which in its separate parts had been faintly shadowed forth by a genius here and there, but which acquired consistency in the hands of the master. By him and by those he had trained that Reformation was so firmly planted that it took deep root in the land, and after giving the impulse to similar and later movements on the con tinent, issued at last in the great system under which we live, one almost identical with that of the Rector of Lutterworth, who died a century and a half before his work had fulfilled its appointed results. Wiclif founded no colleges, for he had no means; no human fabric enshrines his ideas; no great institution bears his name. The country for which he lived and died is only beginning to wake up to a sense of the debt it owes his memory. And yet so vast is that debt, so overpowering the claim, even when thus briefly summarized, that it might be thought no very extravagant recog nition if every town in England had a monument to his memory, and every university a college named in his honor. . . . Consider what a portent this Oxford Doctor (or Professor, as he virtually was) must have appeared in the fourteenth century, Wiclif's Bible 107 attacking from his chair, close to this very spot, every portion of the existing Church system, from the pope at the head to the friar at the foot, not with the vulgar weapons of reckless fanaticism sharpened upon popular prejudice, still less with the weapons of professed unorthodox sentiment, but with the well-tempered steel of philosophical reasoning, based on an appeal to the Scriptures and the Primitive Church, and invested with the defensive panoply of a strictly moral, industrious, self-sacrificing, courageous life. The church livings were held by foreign incumbents who received large incomes therefrom, but did no service; the vacancies were filled by the pope, contrary to the English law; the Mendicant Orders (Dominicans, or Black friars; Francisians, or Grey friars; Carmelites, or White friars; and Augustinians) originally introduced into England with a view to suppressing evils, had become degenerate, and, • instead of ministering to were fleecing the people. Tn the words of an old English song, No baron or squire or knight of the shire Lives half so well as an holy friar. Wiclif preached and wrote pamphlets against these evils, and his "Poor Priests," called Lollards, circulated his literature among the people. He quoted freely from Scrip ture, and came to see that the greatest help in freeing the people from priestly tyranny and imposition would be the possession of the Bible. In 1374 Wiclif was one of the members of a commission sent to Bruges to discuss with commissioners from the pope some ofthe things which not he alone, but the king and par liament also, had taken objection to, among them being the practice of the pope to fill the English benefices and appoint foreign absentees who drew the income but did no work. Here he undoubtedly got a deeper insight into the abuses that needed remedying, and returned more determined than ever to do his best to reform them. Soon after this, in 1378, the great papal schism occurred, with rival popes at Rome and Avignon, each cursing the other and giving the lie to any claim to real church headship. In 1374, on his return from Bruges, Wiclif was made Rector of Lutterworth, a position which he held until his death. io8 The Book of Books Wiclif was twice tried for heresy; first at Blackfriars, London, in May, 1378, and second, by the convocation at Oxford in 1382, but though condemned and excommunicated, he was permitted to return to Lutterworth, where he con tinued his work of attacking the church system and trans lating the Bible. One of the canons passed at the Council of Toulouse, in 1229, prohibited the possession of the Bible, in the follow ing words: LUTTERWORTH CHURCH We also forbid the laity to possess any of the books of the Old or New Testament, except, perhaps, the Psalter or Breviary for the Divine offices, or the Hours of the Blessed Virgin, which some, out of devotion, wish to have; but having any of these books translated into the vulgar tongue, we strictly forbid. Therefore any attempt to translate the Bible for the use ofthe common people was contrary to the canons ofthe church. But Wiclif proceeded with the work in spite of the ecclesiastical prohibition, and, having first published an English translation of the Revelation (Apocalypse) of John, he followed it with the Gospels and, about 1380, the com plete New Testament. An edition with the Old Testament Wiclif's Bible 109 added, making the complete Bible, was finished about 1^82, although this is partly the work of Nicholas of Hereford. The Apocrypha was included, and at Baruch 3 : 20, in the manuscript which is preserved in the Bodleian Librarv, there is an abrupt termination. This is taken to indicate that Nicholas of Hereford was arrested after he had got that far, and the remainder was done by Wiclif or some of his followers. There is at present considerable doubt expressed by scholars as to the part Wiclif himself took in the work of translation, some even asserting that he did ver}" little, if any, and that the work was done by others at his instigation and under his supervision. However this may be, the work must be credited to Wiclif in some form or another, and to him must be given the credit of furnishing the English people with a complete Bible in their own tongue. Concerning W iclif being the translator, Baber says in his Historical Account: Some authors have doubted whether \\ iclif ever translated the Scriptures. When Huss, a martyr to \S lcIiFs principles, and one nearly his contemporary, speaks of such a production; when amongst the accusations brought against the reformer by Knigh ton, this pious labor seems in the opinion of this author to be bis highest offence; when Wiclif in one of his homilies mentions the severe usage he met with because he dared to enable the people at large to read in their own tongue the revealed word of God; and when, in every list given of his works by his numerous biographers, mention is always made of his having translated the Scripture into EngHsh, every doubt upon this point must, one would think, for the future vanish. WicliFs version is a translation from the Vulgate, not from the original Greek and Hebrew. It therefore shares any defects which the Vulgate possesses. Wiclif was seized with a paralytic stroke on December 29, 13S4, while offici ating at Mass, and died on the 31st, being buried in the chancel of his church. Walsingham is quoted by Eadie as thus expressing him self in relation to WicliFs sudden death : In the ninth vere of this kyng, John Wiclif, the orgon of the devel, the enmy of the Cherch. the confusion of men, the ydol of heresie, the meroure of ypocrisie, the norischer of scisme, be the rithful dome of God, was smet with a horibil paralsie threwoute his body. no The Book of Books Another enemy of Wiclif thus expressed himself con cerning him and his work: This Master John Wycliffe hath translated the Gospel out of Latin into English, which Christ had intrusted with the clergy and doctors of the Church, that they might minister it to the laity and weaker sort, according to the state of the times and the wants of men. So that by this means the Gospel is made vulgar, and laid more open to the laity, and even to women who can read, than it used to be to the most learned of the clergy and those of the best understanding! And in this way the gospel pearl is cast abroad and trodden under foot of swine, and that which used to be precious to both clergy and laity is rendered as it were the common jest of both. The jewel of the clergy is turned into the sport of the laity, and what was before the chief gift of the clergy and doctors of the Church, is made forever common to the laity. It is not to be wondered at that the priests were incensed at Wiclif and did their best to suppress the Bible. A bill was brought into Parliament in 1390 for that express pur pose, but thanks to John of Gaunt, Duke of Lancaster, it was not passed. The Duke said: We will not be the dregs of all. Seeing other nations have the Law of God, which is the law of our faith, written in their own language, I will maintain our having this law in our own tongue, against those, whoever they be, who first brought in this bill. In 1408, at the Convocation of Canterbury, when Arch bishop Arundel presided, one of the constitutions contained a clause of which the following translation is given by A. W. Pollard in his Records of the English Bible: We therefore enact and ordain that no one henceforth on his own authority translate any text of Holy Scripture into the English or other language, by way of a book, pamphlet, or tract, and that no book, pamphlet, or tract of this kind be read, either already recently composed in the time of the said John Wyclif, or since then, or that may in future be composed, in part or in whole, publicly or privily, under pain of the greater excommunication, until the translation itself shall have been approved by the dio cesan of the place or if need be by a provincial council. Whoever shall do the contrary to be punished in like manner as a supporter of heresy and error. Arundel referred to Wiclif as "that pestilent wretch, the son of the old serpent, the forerunner of Antichrist," who had "completed his iniquity by inventing a new trans lation of the Scriptures." Wiclif's Bible iii But the constitutions of the Canterbury Convocation were powerless to prevent the spread ofthe Bible when once it had been put into such form that the people could read it. dip. PJIb/'f lion Hit flpl/jlrftrtli'iiuul Bt'jiuuuii (Ullloa 0fnlif|/ci,n/,ii tttpapcttu- nfyupuv m pt i DUoflutptmr.fti(r.rri»lJ)|icpm' i ipflsaaipiuij'fufinatropiff^flt intrt-tui (iiuuXitprtutifiPciinVuim xfc' Wwjirttn irppiioiifpptflnjrfmrai 10^ "dr BiHiiiio. 10(1 itljc pt i|Mli> putt Tfc licfoitffiA'trcittoiqiofoanip.crf ?§^rp )nt8S put tpasinvrof lirmrpi lii)iii ftopccnta of f^cmlt iwionr * AM o|icroi/ic pc UiCfi^afiiuJifof UjiiW/'trt»vtt(iaii>M£)r of pti u>i£S lirti- iiioio l/fn jjniwoto (JtOcrnf^P- Crt dpiittioai bpiB gofiugt into ()tiMnc.-tooficoma(aooaMuis,iS ,.„ . ... Wtolioinuni^itf riop(f>t»f ' iwi(i«litwuitjniti|;iii^K(i» U'MtiuMKhiitn^DOiofjBWiB' ttiutattmcut* UlCiitCOlMfliui:.. (WlAf ftoultuict biil)CWmmm L.us uvsviuii-ugt fto vf Oniitimif roiioicutrpijitoispArtfiiiw' Hf moil wrto pf oil1 m-mi/Mic wpfn>;ou into lioiaitci frffM lit mas* tnKfu-opAcoS' oonof nvt&ftrcuiirhjj gwugc uitQ&atciefoito (it u«n46J(yitiir,T" T A PAGE OF WICLIFS BIBLE This is from a copy in the British Museum (From Nelsons' "Encyclopaedia") The version of 1382 was revised by some one or more of Wiclif's followers, the work usually being attributed to John Purvey, and a new edition was published in 1388, the original 112 The Book of Books copy of which is in the library of Dublin University. So- numerous were the copies of the two versions, that after all the efforts to suppress it, and after all the destruction of time and circumstance, there are still extant, according to Westcott, about a hundred and fifty copies, thirty being of the earlier version and the others of the later. The people were glad to get such a Bible. They met in secret to read it or hear it read. Few could own copies on account both of the slowness of multiplying them by hand and of the expense of such multiplication. But Martineau has said: Those who could not give money would give a load of hay for a few favorite chapters, and this in times when the possession of such a manuscript might very probably be the means of bringing the owner to the dungeon or the stake. They were forced to hide their treasure under the floors of their houses, and sit up all night, or retire to the lonely fields or woods, to hear and read without interruption the word of the Book of Life. Many suffered for reading the Bible. Some were burned with copies around their necks; others were executed for teaching their children; they were hunted by the clergy like wild beasts. Though Wiclif did not die a violent death at the hands of his enemies, as it might have been expected he would, and though the pope had refused to order WicliFs body to be exhumed and dishonored, the Council of Constance in 1 41 5 ordered his bones to be disinterred and burned, a decree which was not carried into effect till 1428, and of which the following quaint account is given by Thomas Fuller in his Church History: Hitherto the Corpse of John Wickliffe had quietly slept in his grave, about one and fourty years after his death, till his body was reduced to bones, and his bones almost to dust. For though the Earth in the Chancel of Lutterworth in Leicester-shire, where he was interred, hath not so quick a digestion with the Earth of Acheldama, to consume Flesh in twenty foure houres, yet such the appetite thereof, and all other English graves, to leave small rever sions of a body after so many years. But now such the spleen of the Council of Constance, as they not only cursed his Memorie, as dying an obstinate Heretick, but ordered that his bones (with this charitable caution, if it may be discerned from the bodies of other faithful people) to be taken out of the ground and thrown farre off, from any Christian buriall. Wiclif's Bible "3 In obedience hereunto Richard Fleming Bishop of Lincoln, Diocesan of Lutterworth, sent his Officers (Vultures with a quick sight scent at a dead Carcase) to ungrave him accordingly. To Lutterworth they come, Sumner, Commissarie, Official, Chancellour, Proctors, Doctors, and the Servants (so that the Remnant of the body would not hold out a bone, amongst so many hands) take, what was left, out of the grave, and burnt them to ashes, and cast them*into Swift a Neighbouring Brook running hard by. Thus this Brook hath conveyed his ashes into Avon; Avon into Severn; Severn into the narrow Seas; they, into the main Ocean. And thus the Ashes of Wickliff are the Emblem of his Doctrine, which now, is dispersed all the World over. THE RIVER SWIFT Into this river Wiclif's bones were cast forty years after his death. The church tower is visible in the background Fuller, after quoting from a popish manuscript that Wiclif had recanted and died a good Catholic, and having asked if he had why was not the Catholic Church sufficiently reconciled without burning his body after so many years, goes on to say: But though Wickliff had no Tombe, he had an Epitaph, such as it was, which a Monk afforded him, and that it was no worse, thank his want, not of malice, but invention, not finding out worse expressions, The Divels Instrument, Churches Knemie, Peoples con fusion, Hereticks Idol, Hypocrites Mirror, Schisms Broacher, hatreds sower, lyes forger, flatteries sinke, who at his death 114 The Book of Books despaired like Cain, and stricken by the horrible Judgements of God, breathed forth his wicked Soul to the dark mansion of the black Divell. In Lutterworth Church a tablet has been placed to Wiclif's memory, of which through the courtesy of the present rector, Rev. T. H. Croxall, I am able to present an excellent illustration. WICLIF TABLET IN LUTTERWORTH CHURCH The inscription is as follows: "Sacred to the memory of JOHN WICLIF the earliest champion of ecclesiastical reformation in England. He was born in Yorkshire in the year 1324. In the year 1375 he was pre sented to the rectory of Lutterworth, where he died on the 3 1st of Decem ber, 1384. At Oxford he acquired not only the renown of a consummate schoolman, but the far more glorious title of the Evangelic Doctor. His whole life was one impetuous struggle against the corruptions and encroachments of the papal court and the impostures of its devoted auxiliaries, the mendicant fraternities. His labours in the cause of scriptural truth were crowned by one immortal achievement, his transla tion of the Bible into the English tongue. This mighty work drew on him, indeed, the bitter hatred of all who were making merchandize of the popular credulity and ignorance." The following example of WicliFs style will show the great advance that English had made, by his time, over the m Wiclif's Bible 115 Anglo-Saxon specimen of the Lord's Prayer given in an earlier chapter: Oure fadir that art in heuenes: halowide be thi name / thi kyngdom come to / be thy wille done: as in heuene & in erthe / gif to vs this day: oure brede ouer other substaunce / and forgyue to vs oure dettis: as we forgyuen to oure dottours /and leede vs not into temptacon but delyuer vs fro al euyl amen/ The Lord's Prayer as above given is from a reprint of WicliFs 1380 New Testament made from a manuscript in the collection of Lea Wilson, of Norwood, at one time the property of Bishop Reynolds, of Norwich, 1670, and later of the Monastery of Sion, in Middlesex, to whom it was pre sented by the widow of Sir Wm. Danvers, "In the viij yeere of the reigne of kyng Henry the Eytethe. Jn the yeere of or lord god a m. fyve hundred and seventeen," partly in the hope that by the gift "she the moore tenderly may be comytted vnto the mercy of or lord god by the hooly dem- erytes of mastre confessor and his Bretherne aforeseid," printed 1848 for William Pickering, London. This was the first time the 1380 Testament was printed. The New Testa ment ofthe 1382 edition had been printed on several previous occasions (by Lewis in 173 1; Baber in 1810; in Bagster's Hexapla, 1841), and in 1850 Rev. Josiah Forshall and Sir Frederic Madden published the whole 1382 Bible in four large volumes, through the University Press at Oxford. CHAPTER IX THREE GREAT DEVELOPMENTS: THE RENAIS SANCE, THE REFORMATION, THE INVENTION OF PRINTING BETWEEN the publication of Wiclif's manuscript Bible in 1382 and the first printed English New Testament by Tindale in 1525 an important period of nearly a hundred and fifty years intervened. During that time there had been great developments, the three most important of which were the Renaissance, the Reformation, and the invention of the art of printing from movable type. Before the invention of printing from movable type, a process of printing from wooden blocks had been in opera tion, but for how long is not known. In the early fifteenth century there were wood-engravers and block-printers, and the art is said to have been practiced for a long time before in oriental countries. It is called xylography. The paper was laid on the inked block and rubbed. The most notable example of this kind of printing is the Biblia Pauperum which consisted of leaves on which were printed illustrations and some Latin texts descriptive of them. One of them is reproduced here. The Biblia Pau perum was not a Bible, strictly speaking, as only a few incidents and scenes were used. In 1884 the Smaller Biblia Pauperum was published in facsimile, with an introduction by Dean Stanley. There is considerable uncertainty as to just how, when, and where the incident occurred which is supposed to have given the original idea from which modern printing has developed, and as to who is entitled to the credit for the invention. It is generally supposed that Johan Gansfleisch better known by his maternal name of Gutenberg which he (116) Three Great Developments 117 adopted in later life, was cutting letters from the bark of a tree, and either that he wrapped them up and noticed after ward the stain that was left on the wrapping by the moist letters, or that he accidently dropped one in some purple dye that was standing near, and, after lifting it out, again accidentally dropped it upon a dressed skin, whereon it left IfgWinlibiuinnyrto'tStr 5«irfaurgjt5hiufo'afiMtt DirnyityiKtWgs nttuffrras alHS [nafiatmibiplWf nl Z Hfl fi'ml?Mtatl*iiRpforirat5i tirtt om'mrMR turtr IrfrpuliR rurflveimhicfgitiliji'ltimbjtf A PAGE OF THE BIBLIA PAUPERUM Original in the British Museum (From Nelsons' "Encyclopedia") a bright purple mark. Whatever truth there may be in the story about Gutenberg, it is tolerably certain that some such apparently trivial circumstance originated the idea of putting the principle to practical use. It is also true that about the middle of the fifteenth century movable type was being used for printing books. n8 The Book of Books The invention is by some attributed to Laurens Jans- zoon Coster, of Haarlem, in Holland, and the improvement of it to Gutenberg. The Encyclopcedia Britannica devotes GUTENBERG STATUE AT STRASBURG (Courtesy of Miss A. M. Smith) many pages to the pros and cons ofthe question and declares for Coster; but the more general opinion is in favor of Gutenberg. One of the earliest references to the subject Three Great Developments 119 is a statement by John Schoeffer, 'son of Peter Schoeffer, in the German translation of Lioz published at Mainz in 1505: "The admirable art of printing was invented in Mentz by the ingenious Johan Gutenberg and was subsequently improved and handed down to posterity by the capital and labor of Johan Fust and Peter Schoeffer." In 1456 a Latin Bible was printed at Mainz by Guten berg. This is variously known as the Mazarin Bible, the 42-line Bible, and the Gutenberg Bible. Other works were issued from the same press by Gutenberg and his partner, Fust, and later by Fust and Schoeffer. About 1470 the first English printing press was set up by William Caxton at the sign of the Red Pale, in the Almonry, London, under the shadow of Westminster Abbey. He had learned the art on the continent. Of the works he printed some are still extant. The first printing press in North America was estab lished at Harvard College in 1639, but printing was done at an earlier date in South America. Wooden presses were first used for applying the pres sure necessary to make the imprint of the inked type upon the paper. At the beginning of the eighteenth century iron hand-presses were introduced. Later, as mechanical devel opment advanced, presses were operated by power — first steam, then the gas-engine, and lastly electricity — ranging from presses to print small jobs in one color to the gigantic newspaper and multi-color presses of the present day. Side by side with the development of the presses has been the improvement in regard to type. Typesetting by hand has been largely replaced by machine composition, and the art of illustration has so progressed that there is little use at the present day for the once valuable wood- engraver, and his art has given way to the various photo chemical processes by which the modern single-color and multi-color work is produced. There is a statue in honor of Gutenberg at Mainz, and another at Strasburg, and he is represented as having just pulled from the press a sheet of paper having the imprint Fiat lux. What a splendid motto that was! It was adopted by the first English printer, William Caxton, who set up his 120 The Book of Books press at Westminster about 1470 — Fiat lux, "Let there be light," the Latin form of the divine command which caused day to scatter the darkness of primeval night. That great printer is buried in Westminster Abbey, not far from where his press stood, and in the adjacent St. Margaret's Church is a Caxton window for which Dr. Farrar, then Archdeacon of Westminster, requested Lord Tennyson to write an inscription which reads as follows: His cry was, " Light, more light, while time shall last "; He saw the glories growing on the night, But not the shadows which that light shall cast Till shadows vanish in the Light of Light. GUTENBERG TAKING AN IMPRESSION (Courtesy of Miss A. M. Smith) The Museum Plantin-Moretus at Antwerp contains a good collection of early printing presses and early printed Bibles. Christopher Plantin was a famous printer who established himself at Antwerp in 1549 and worked there for forty years, till his death in 1589. The Museum possesses a Bible in three parts printed in folio by A. Pfister in 1460, the Biblia Latina. The most important Bible published by Plantin is the Biblia Regia, or Polyglot Bible, in nine volumes folio, issued by order of King Philip II from 1568 to 1573. Three Great Developments 121 It seems a far cry from the crude presses of Gutenberg and Caxton to the giant presses of today; but though there has been wonderful progress in regard to size and speed, those who have had the opportunity to examine the first AN OLD WOODEN PRINTING PRESS As used in Caxton's days book known to have been printed, the Gutenberg Bible, are impressed with the beauty ofthe work; the brightness, after nearly five hundred years, of the jet-black ink; the clean- 122 The Book of Books Three Great Developments 123 cut type; and the excellence and durable whiteness of the paper. For exquisite workmanship it compares very favor ably with modern products; for durability it far surpasses most of them. It may be of interest to give a few details of a modern press in contrast to the wooden press as used in Caxton's days. The writer saw the wooden press (of which an illus tration is given) in operation at the printing exhibition in London in 1906, when Mr. McAnally was running off souvenir sheets headed "Let there be light," for sale at one penny each. By courtesy of the proprietor of the Evening Bulletin, Philadelphia, I am able to present an illustration of one of the largest modern presses, the size of which may be judged from the workmen upon and around it. At the Bulletin plant five of these enormous presses were installed in 1921, four others are being added at the moment of writing (1922), and there are twelve of four-fifths the capacity, and when the twenty-one are in operation they will print 300,000 copies of a forty-page newspaper in an hour, which is equiva lent to 5,000 a minute, or 800 a second. The paper is fed to these presses from rolls weighing more than half a ton each, and as each day's issue is about half a million copies, there is a daily consumption of 140 tons of paper. The typesetting, or composition, is chiefly done by machinery, and such wonderful progress has been made in the art of engraving that illustrations of current events can pass through the stages of photographing, engraving, and printing and be in the hands of the public in about an hour. These presses not only print, but cut, fold, count, and deliver the newspapers to a traveling belt, at the rate above mentioned. One cause which contributed to the invention and progress of the art of printing was the movement known as the Renaissance. For three or four centuries there had been a growing feeling of discontent, amounting later to revolt, at the idea that the church was of paramount authority over the lives and circumstances of men. The study in the universities was fitting men to lead in the attack upon the church — its authority, and its morals — and in the emanci pation ofthe people. The principles which found expression in the writings and sermons of Wiclif, and which spread both 124 The Book of Books in England and on the continent, ultimately led to the Refor mation. The spread of learning created a demand for books, and the art of printing facilitated their production. Almost simultaneous with the invention of printing was the capture of Constantinople by the Turks in May, 1453, and the consequent impetus to classical culture and learning which followed upon the westward flight of the scholars of Greece. I XT- jhih& | . ppjpSal W '¦& MARTIN LUTHER (Courtesy of Charles H. Clarice) Wiclif has been styled the "Morning Star ofthe Refor mation," but the full day did not come until after the Renaissance had prepared the way, and until a powerful aid had arisen in the printing press. There had been many like Wiclif in England and Huss in Bohemia who had pro pagated the principles of the Reformation before Luther, Calvin, Melancthon, Zwingli, and Knox, whose names are generally associated therewith. Revolt had been spreading for several centuries but the break in the church resulting in the two sections of Catholics and Protestants, which have Three Great Developments 125 remained separate ever since, did not come until a few noble souls had sufficient courage to give open defiance to the pope and his aides. Martin Luther was pre-eminent among these. He was born November 10, 1483, at Eisleben, in Germany, and died there February 18, 1546. He was the son of a miner, and was educated at the University of Erfurt with a view to becoming a lawyer. But he entered the Augustinian convent at Erfurt in 1505 and was ordained priest in 1507. In 1508 he became a professor at the Uni versity of Wittenberg and in 15 10 visited Rome. His spirit was stirred by the corruptions of the church, and later he saw the strong contrast between faith, as expounded in the Epistle to the Romans, and the works of the church. Particularly was he incensed at the sale of indulgences by Tetzel, the emissary of the pope, and on October 31, 15 17, he nailed his famous ninety-five theses to the door of the church at Wittenberg. He was excommunicated by the pope in June, 1520, and burned both the pope's bull and the canon law. At the Diet of Worms in 1521 he came under the ban ofthe emperor as well. In 1530 the Lutheran Confession of Faith was expounded at Augsburg and the break between the church and the Reformers was complete. In Switzerland, Scotland, and other countries the Reformation spread. In England a break with Rome came because of personal differences between King Henry VIII and the pope rather than for doctrinal reasons. The Gutenberg Bible was printed in Latin, and the type was an excellent imitation of the manuscripts. It was printed between 1450 and 1456 but does not contain any date or name of printer. It is also called the 42-line Bible, from the fact that it had 42 lines to the page; another a few years later had 36 lines. Another name for it is the Mazarin Bible, because a copy was found in the library of Cardinal Mazarin. It was in two volumes, with a total of 641 leaves which were not numbered. The printing is jet black, and the copies are variously ornamented by hand. In some there is little but the coloring of the capital letters in red and blue, with headlines of alternate red and blue letters; others were richly decorated in the margins in addition to the capitals and initials. About forty copies are extant, 126 The Book of Books ommmi^nm &utim iufftts Itrai di onan . onibaa 5 wte amtecur ct uobs wK* ouunumts anunarrai notua tr jbkbj bob pubittm jar &n> ntos : ttftiStag ntJaa anp gnmiitroe miHiipaiaaiainn'6afmBnranrraa^fom raffiLft outntr oiiigat? ego Iparaastso m ibdmq m m oSnts fenndptgnoribmifiqjIprH' to* Sue p amra rumens narinpooSa* tijnB&hmra iar ma nmr . ^rt&OHftn" toi nnranttt (ana aiam rara pic* &BEtu t| mctmmoto ratumera mc< Sim nstu tr msa&rafi mrto tflS amp aimoitiriunSrfuantuagdiB grant iKt . fe nfe he 50 fno qfa a^ifiua naarijrtBiigfiaii mffcnoe antra pt quos trsfari pciiana ragnfi raJDnct- popsr mcfen uoa ipfitnna fiirrqa maHnBfuaCatisiutnoianra.JRon aiffKteHfiiqiijuanHnuB atmimarf nranaanlaiaa aatea-^naataf oe* tesiranmfij grrgii quo bob Ipnt? SmAm sate epitope ops acdffi are ati: qua aniHifiratfagunttSm. ^fcoqmuatafciorpjSllfcaui HaHimafapiapaas f nas:noptr< mninqufe " jptftf. afcteranr tu drate MMMM 3BG0St qntjrirau«iuno- oaa fetncHS ran* nm toa«n< torn ^attitssm fan- pegaaih asrura {plaamtjaHrfjiepis KatKipjs i| "rrasBBSsftt, *XX*fitft& Eraia ofirnDi nobtarqtu Br latoran? ttsopffiTfufopnimRtmoa-ar rat rammrnrtbi but i^rfinquomaip bi« p . Btanua t magta tartij; araptt. it wiiK bin EcnpsfiriagtraiiJ una tzrsmt rii oriiibuoflli8.(map?auif Emio fatf til o iuiut* potumbfune 6rg collu poult o&ataimur turtolnt TOmapmnuuRijoqiJlWEaatquO' maampttuatannnEtfno'rf&ntudifc afe ortwaMr ra al» naui^SIjEX f\ urn out fatfu tCCrr ut nautgare rutaiu'.i?rijanma&qutnaitro!m: ertntti pn^-fttuinutmHau? na nan tralfatamtf pbtnirnafrtnlnnns aauigattmtf.fjiajpatuifrtnt'auteops rrimqn&ta ra ao taiftta uaut= gaaimuaiIraaattHihn9Btum.|b! rtrim afluie tfpofuura nm onus.|n unras out Difnpte manlhn? ibi bir< buefiptra.RuipauinJiiatBtj(mrfc minttEafttnisirrt^toIblima.J&fi- ptttseftittoptaficth ttemuebrtrjem ass nae omnttoaira potto i Blip afip foras outtasmrt pfma gnms in iiaott oraramMi ru raltfcnflrntf tnmrtm afan&mtfnauntUi aut n&i* tram I fua. JHoaono nautaanmr tf< pttnta a trto tt&mJmn0 ptolo siaiiB: tt folnrana fcactto mourn? But ona apnb Blos.JJUia am bit pofrduam* mue trfcrK.fr intra tro ra tmnu fflfit iignraegdsfltq nat onus te&pttm: ntafiro'apunrit.lpttauttratipjtrara fife utrgtnts jpmamft rii ran* tanraurgtara autfc&pmatftan rat a mura jtftm mat agabna . la raatmfi&taanoaraiitgBnapmfctt sUtgans lUdptaa^ man? lmJftt S!m^itw9f«MBB.^ituaii9t?Jn»%vfst affigrtmiflfau&limfta:tt A PAGE OF THE GUTENBERG BIBLE This page is in the library of the University of Pennsylvania Three Great Developments 127 some printed on vellum; and the prices obtained for copies at sales in recent years have made records. A copy was sold in New York in 191 1 for fifty thousand dollars. A mutilated copy was split up into separate leaves in 1922, which sold with a neat leather case and descriptive circular for one hundred and fifty dollars each. A beautiful copy is in the New York Public Library, and there are not more than eight in the United States. The Gutenberg Bible is printed in two columns, and the only indication when a new book begins is the use of a six-line initial letter and a new headline to the page. A new book begins anywhere in the column. The first volume has eight pages of introduction before Genesis and ends with the Psalms part way down the first column of the last page. The second volume has one and a quarter columns of prologue to Solomon's Proverbs. The Apocrypha ends in the middle ofthe first column ofthe first page ofthe leaf, and the second page is blank. The New Testament is prefaced with two pages of prologue to Matthew. From a bibliographical point of view it is the most interesting book in the world. With the Reformation and the Renaissance and the advent of printing, Greek students turned to a consideration of the text of the New Testament. Erasmus published his first Greek Testament in 15 16 at Basle in Switzerland. It was bilingual, having Greek and Latin in two columns. It was produced in great haste and with a poor supply of manuscripts, and while of great use was also very defective. Other editions were published in 1519, 1522, 1527, and 1535. An interesting fact about the Greek Testaments of Erasmus is that the much discussed verse, 1 John 5 : 7, is not in the first or the second edition, and it is said that when he was taken to task about its omission he said he left it out because it was not in the manuscript he used, and that if a manuscript was found which contained it he would insert it in a later edition. This he did in his third edition, because a manuscript had been found, the Codex Montfortianus, which contained it. It would appear that the manuscript was specially made to contain it, for it may be seen in Trinity College, Dublin, and while there are 455 leaves, 128 The Book of Books 2rifi3^rc»tt.cauntenlati» iCrallfl.».lBfe. Z&bct£%cbi+ ^ftfua.bcb. ! c EZECHIEL. EZEkIHA. Cs.l 9 jft t*ati t m irkcHm^amto qiuno "' Aii^!lT«l'»TuTf!o](Kui'Te< T*T<^ iKTift qnlim millo: i «(0 erf in tiWdle cipriDI'Mta n)]> Itinil' JUfii 'nf £BXfja'^D''rt( ITlT»ll'ff'(T« Oin 'itMHV 1 Dpfrlironl edit 1 ndi'dfiooM cd^qt>i!it* mfllo. Ijic annua quim" tap!'- tMUTIlV^*,l"/,",«l-TTJ7'Wtf vWfrTiiT'fi?;*'" mwrta regM fmcbli % fmtfle rtrbO Mif AMTMf T&AxfftAwtttMRItl' (jif f^/itjo A.iyaotl^fou W nublcl iUid bu« . fs;ijtt)l(ro rifctdny rup ftutiKa (IMbor. t f JrtjJ fiifc im iiijn* WM t T-tvTT)TitJ»"5-X(flif-ui f^n Wfc^tf Wf*i »}d «blh t c«t lytic oufcrtownlrtwc ab, ot|lon< * ifjVi , i >j if iv tniCfja ?iajp>» SfXiTS feel &ftm Ut nuort iMtfii* In to 1 f|ilc»4«U)ri3jliD«' * l«ni« l(Lp vj fii^u. ircu i>; 4a* i fpinijad rol * inine ¦.'i f*(r* Ttu mMC tii epifiH i* •s™ i *i" *» p»" dfd qu ilmilWiJ j ijiiao; oUiifr. -r bc< »Jffo »• e-Bi «[ VwMJ" Ttaf^u* Ji^m ¦ ii" i'vnt fcifrcuftf -Jv» (UMl; flrntlltii.lo Mi; [rt da. i qMOlW h* tS», ifls/l^n WfWTWV llimtf. tfc TlnTrtpt *^» fcmi-.ik ^1 f«liiur;i'.' W ntrivv* , crJrrfili. -t leuw p*nne X.sAwV-lliuiAa^fai ai «Tif« nth* *iwi *"!ifi» ijlnitu i>rtb' eo>i i-i.^-.'i .'ti i-'> Tioi ¦¦¦j,'i'ii> iviiJi ,X^*W *f.'ruV« tO» * pftlW (p; r ;*lifl'fK Sift jl'TVY .,'-,01 pp.- n! avTvl li* TW*fW i;c«Y*>* Uonl* ¦ Wltiu jn* ino:: « fa.tw tlm!l a flirtthi* ¦ qutrnwit 9 (ja™ a4lc quamioi. f «U ci'8 crlvuK wfefl qooiniiii Tuliiiiiycu.c,6» nuT-'n t'iTiT«|&^rti SiwJir T5~( Tt'sf Kf ffi' U*r»» J\Wu iumw ml (nwiti. t est trtfibam ftipcr (dlpoa too: T »nGff*ip i-orf ***** f"« T«u ffuV*T«C (WW , ts" i»in«i «"""* tfWKlfsi »", jjwJI*lM(.^C*w«i fp4o__ ' imimilanu mtriMy TtuWw^-ro.'su ai ' -i inii'M" ir{^u^*tMTriMLti Wit n4 T««.-TMWf.t m brJio aiafiO jtflw 3ft «r to »^j fm Z-» iVi^itpaT.^iu n frt'erw tCi i-'t^t if amt wi* IwnQ '*t|jn*o «i.lcnaof0ftcie»Siil:r& (initfuor'penue'viii. *V.( pnd« eortira oo«io l|-;.kt;1"rfctl:,&.' phut* •ticdttconVc|ii.iM3iitj "pC-lu'WniUr'Sfdrmlle*^fi afjiertiw'ei^'cJitcii* ti».' fcr manus 'homiim *fiib^»timi» comm'liiM *qnittuattpMlftiW'5ft cuVWjxnm.; oo-vacooo- *pcrqn.itniorp.utc« ha* bebsnft'nmeteffl cr mr « *pcuncmrfliafffirin>,'WJ"¦altrru," Nun^fcucrtcbl Hir'1fuincc.!*;rirfe>i't'nri ojm'niitc" fade ful'grii* dictufirr.'Simdlruilojujf 'viiltni eoflfi" tdcica'hol* 'SfjdM'ltoWii'aMortrfi•iplaro Qtt«or:llCidc» nfit 'bonf"'j1i«**n',-lipfornfn qiiartnor:'"* f.u UViiqlc coriii'&ptncfoin'cxtcfl re'dernp/Duf iviic'fln* , Eiilorfl'ifigf Mn]r:'6(Aic •tcgfUaftr corpciM roni. •Et viiiiqitixkp coru'eo* nm*r.i'.-i':flu'!.iiTibiihb3r. ' Vbl'cwt impetus" (par. pJIHtc f fittdicbanm t* nee 'rrac rtcMti 1 i*cii .1 m bn 1 1 ftflt'Etfitrjltilwto'aJirtffl S'afpc^"15 conV^fi CBW twmWzn[**afdcntiufit?flj»([afpectni*Bpadaifl.¦H^'aatvilio'ililairrc*ftenh'S ile ' l;.,ncBfulciir •¦catcAci "Er'aLib.ii'ibat "S.'fciK-i-tcUinir'i taifllrfi tic'ftilfinruwmiftsndit ]3 ' Wp^' ^s ' nirp' 137 'rvrf ^otfnj -{^'3 ¦ mtrrfi '^^o™ iV 1 .^*ym*hJ"pjD d-'kvj^ji; ¦Vri" ^ ' on^a * prrp '-Dis ' n»y An^^d'm,rnsi'D7>3J3i,ai''J3ip nrr' ims * hit jefe "vjs ' isy' &A '-j^fe ' J*13 ;"* ' p^l? " ripd™ V 1} iiirrj nnv^:' n^2 iwf rj frn1 A PAGE OF THE COMPLUTENSIAN POLYGLOT (From "Tfte Biblical World") Three Great Developments 129 the one with that verse on is of different material from the rest; and Dr. Scrivener, in a note on p. 173 of his Plain Introduction to the Criticism of the New Testament, quotes the following remark of a witty Irish prelate: "We often hear that the text of the Three Heavenly Witnesses is a gloss; and anyone that will go into the College Library may see as much for himself." That leaf was glazed; the other leaves were not. Erasmus was a Protestant, but before he began the preparation of his Greek New Testament, another was being prepared for printing by a Catholic cardinal, Francis Ximenes de Cisneros, in Spain. This was commenced in 1502 and completed in 15 14, but was not published till 1520, three years after the cardinal's death. This version is known as the Complutensian Polyglot, being published at Complutum, in Spain, and containing, in parallel columns, Latin and Greek. The Old Testament contained Hebrew, Latin, and Greek. It was frequently reprinted, sometimes with considerable revision. In 1534 Simon de Colines published, at Paris, a Greek Testament, combining the Erasmus and Complutensian texts with various readings of his own introduction. Robert Stephens (or Estienne), step-son of De Colines, published new versions in 1546, 1549, and 1550 at Paris, and in 1551 at Geneva. The text mainly followed that of Erasmus in his 1527 and 1535 editions. In the 1551 edition the text is divided into verses for the first time; a division into chapters had already been made. Theodore Beza, a noted reformer, issued a Greek Testa ment, based on that of Stephens, with some changes, in 1565, at Geneva, with several later editions until 1605. He had the use of the Codex Beza? already referred to and the Codex Clarmontanus, which earlier revisers had not. In 1624 an edition was published at Leyden in Holland, by two brothers, Bonaventure and Abraham Elzevir. It was republished in 1635 and 1641, and was practically a reprint of Beza's version. From a phrase used in the preface to the second edition, "textum receptum" it has been called the textus receptus or the "received text." As Stephens' and Beza's were substantially that of Erasmus, his was in reality the received text. 130 The Book of Books In 1675 an edition was published by Bishop Fell, at Oxford, and another by John Mill in 1707. These did not differ materially from Stephens' text, but there were added to Mill's edition about thirty thousand various readings. Manuscripts of great value were now available for the scholars, and they had begun to use them critically upon the text. Later versions transferred many of the readings to the text. The very early and valuable Alexandrian and Vatican manuscripts had become available, and a proposal was made by Dr. Richard Bentley, in 1720, to substitute for the received text that of the early centuries. Bengel issued a Greek Testament at Tubingen in 1734, in which he retained the received text, and noted variations in the margin. In 175 1 Wetstein published a version at Amsterdam, which was the received text, mainly from the Elzevir edi tions, with notes as to the various readings, and extensive quotations from the Fathers and Greek, Latin, and Hebrew writers. With Johann Jakob Griesbach there came a transition from the received text based on the late cursive manuscripts to one according to the earlier uncials. His first edition was published in 1775, but his second edition, 1796-1806, was much more valuable, and a third was published in 1827, fifteen years after his death, edited by David Schulz and with considerable critical additions. In 1830 an edition was published by J. M. A. Scholz, which differed very little from Griesbach's. With Carl Lachmann's edition of 1842-1850 came the complete reversion to the oldest manuscripts. He ignored the received text and cursive manuscripts and translated direct from the uncials. But the most valuable of all the old manuscripts, the Sinaitic, had not then been found; and there was room for further amendment after Tischendorf had published his facsimile edition of Codex N . Constantin Tischendorf, born at Lengenfeld, in Saxony, January 18, 1815, deciphered the Ephraem palimpsest in 1840-1843 and discovered the Sinaitic manuscript 1844 and 1859. With all the critical, textual material that had been collected previously he had greater facilities for revising the Three Great Developments 131 Greek text than any had had before him. Altogether he published eight editions of the Greek Testament, the first in 1841 and the last from 1864 to 1872. He died at Leipzig, December 8, 1874. Samuel Prideaux Tregelles was born at Falmouth, January 30, 1813, and died at Plymouth, April 24, 1875. He was a diligent scholar and published a Greek Testament in parts from 1857 to 1872. -.-¦ mReS!*!^' "•""*-¦: ^M ffl p ': pjS " >- JIB BB. . JittWSta 1 K^ Ai » ' DR. S. TREGELLES Editor Greek New Testa ment and one of the Revisers, 1870 -1875 CONSTANTIN TISCHENDORF Henry Alford, Dean of Canterbury, published a Greek Testament in four volumes from 1849 to 1861. Each passed through several editions, and improvements were made as new and valuable materials were discovered. In 188 1 appeared the revised text of Westcott and Hort, in two volumes, the first containing the text and the second an introduction and extensive notes. This is still recognized as the oldest and best text which it is possible to obtain with the material at present available. No 132 The Book of Books important discovery of manuscripts affecting the text has been made since the Sinaitic manuscript was published. Dean Alford, Bishop Westcott, and Mr. Hort were all members of the English Revision Committee, and their DR. B. F. WESTCOTT, BISHOP OF DURHAM Joint editor with Prof. F. J. A. Hort of the Greek Testament, and one of ofthe Revisers, r870-i88i labors in textual criticism had prepared them admirably for the work. Two other members of the revision committee issued volumes of the Greek Testament just about the time that the Revised English Version was published, 1881. Dr. Scrivener gave the received text, as followed by the revisers Three Great Developments 133 in the Authorized Version, together with the variations adopted by the revisers. Archdeacon Palmer gave the Greek Testament as followed by the Revision Committee of 1870. The following is a summary of the rules followed by the editors of the Greek text as summarized by Dr. Schaff: 1. Knowledge of documentary evidence must precede the choice of readings. 2. All kinds of evidence, external and internal, must be taken into account, according to their intrinsic value. 3. The sources of the text must be carefully sifted and classi fied and the authorities must be weighed rather than numbered. One independent manuscript may be worth more than a hundred copies which are derived from the same original. 4. The restoration of the pure text is founded on the history and genealogy of the textual corruptions. 5. The older reading is preferable to the later because it is presumably nearer the source. In exceptional cases later copies may represent a more ancient reading. 6. The shorter reading is preferable to the longer, because insertions and additions are more probable than omissions. 7. The more difficult reading is preferable to the easier. Transcribers would not intentionally substitute a harsh, ungram- matical or unusual reading for one that was unobjectionable. 8. The reading which best explains the origin of the other variations is preferable. 9. "That reading is preferable which best suits the peculiar style, manner, and habits of thought of the author; it being the tendency of copyists to overlook the idiosyncrasies of the writers." — Scrivener. 10. That reading is pfeferable which shows no doctrinal bias whether orthodox or heretical. n. The agreement of the most ancient witnesses of all classes decides the true reading against all medieval copies and printed editions. 12. The primary uncials, >? B, C, and A — especially X and B — if sustained by other Greek uncials (as D, L, T, H, Z) and first-class cursives (as 33), by ancient versions, and ante-Nicene citations, outweigh all later authorities, and give us presumably the original text of the sacred writers. CHAPTER X WILLIAM TINDALE AND THE FIRST PRINTED ENGLISH NEW TESTAMENT WILLIAM TINDALE was born at or near North Nibley, near Berkeley in Gloucestershire, about the year 1484. The exact place and date are not known. A monument has been erected at Nibley Knoll, of which the following particulars are taken from the record ofthe inaug uration, 1866. It is a cenotaph (or empty tomb) consisting of a square tower 26 feet 6 inches wide at the base and in feet high, exclusive ofthe cross at the top. It is entered on the east side, and a staircase within leads to a gallery. It commands an extensive view from Warwickshire to the Bristol Channel, over the Severn, into Wales, covering thirteen counties. The foundation stone was laid by Colonel Berkeley, May 29, 1863, and it was inaugurated November 6, 1866, by the Earl of Ducie. The cost was about eight thousand dollars. Very little is known of Tindale's family or of his early years. For the best information on the subject the reader is referred to William Tyndale, a Biography, by R. Demaus. Some interesting items are given in Acts and Monuments, by George Foxe, who styles Tindale the "Apostle of Eng land." He says that "he was brought vp from a child in the Vniuersitie of Oxford, where he by long continuance grew vp, and increased as wel in the knowledge of tounges, and other liberall Artes, as especially in the knowledge of the Scriptures; whereunto his mynde was singularly addicted." The family of Tindale had adopted the name Hychyns (Hitchins or Hotchyns), possibly, as Arber sug gests, for the sake of concealment during the Wars of the Roses; so he is sometimes referred to by this name in extracts which follow. He is supposed to have taken his (134) William Tindale 135 degree of Master of Arts at Oxford in 1515 and to have been ordained to the priesthood about 1520 or 1521. From Magdalen Hall, Oxford, Tindale went to Cambridge and in all probability attended lectures there by Erasmus. About 1520 he went as tutor and chaplain in the family of Sir John Walsh, at Little Sodbury Manor, about fifteen miles from Bistol and not far from the place of his birth. By courtesy of the present rector of Little Sodbury (Rev. H. Hy. Golledge), I am enabled to present some excellent WILLIAM TINDALE (Photo by Murray Dowdlng from an old engraving) illustrations from photographs taken by Mr. Murray Dowd- ing, of Chipping Sodbury. It was doubtless while at Sir John Walsh's that Tindale made up his mind to translate the Bible into English and print it for the enlightenment of his fellow-men. He had opportunity while there to come into close touch with the ignorance and wretchedness of the clergy. Demaus says that religion had degenerated "into a round of superstitious customs and ceremonial observ ances"; and it is recorded that at a later date Bishop Hooper i36 The Book of Books (of Gloucester), in the reign of Edward VI, found many clergy in Gloucestershire who could not repeat the Ten Commandments, name the author of the Lord's Prayer, or say where it could be found. The Convocation of Canter bury had forbidden the translation of Scripture into English THE TINDALE MEMORIAL AT NORTH NIBLEY (Photo by Murray Dowdlng) or the reading of such translations without authority of the bishop. Foxe says: The sayde Tyndall beyng schole maister to the sayde maister Welche his children, and being in good fauour with his maister, sat moste commonly at his owne table, whiche kept a good ordin ary, having resort to hym, many tymes diuerse great beneficed William Tindale 137 men, as Abbots, Deanes, Archedeacons, and other diuerse doctors, and learned men. Amongst whome commonly was talke of learn ing, as well of Luther and Erasmus Roterodamus, as of opinions in the scripture. The saide Maister Tyndall being learned and which had bene a studient of diuinitie in Cambridge, and hade therein taken degree of schole, did man}' times therein shewe his mynde and learnyng, wherein as those men and Tyndall did varie in opinions and iudgementes, then maister Tyndall would shewe them on the booke the places; by open and manifest scripture, the whiche continued for a certaine season, diuerse and sondry tymes vntyll in the continuance thereof, those great beneficed doctors waxed weary and bare a secret grudge in their hartes against maister Tyndale. LITTLE SODBURY MANOR HOUSE The residence of Sir John Walsh, who was champion to Henry VIII at his coronation. Henry visited the manor house with his queen, Anne Boleyn, and it is said that she watched the sports from the bay window of the upper story at the right of the picture. (Photo by Murray Dowdlng) The ecclesiastical authorities were aroused against him. He was cited to appear before them and was told that he was "a heretic in sophistry, a heretic in logic, a heretic in his Divinity," that he bore himself very boldly, and that he should be otherwise talked with. Foxe continues: 138 The Book of Books And sone after Maister Tyndall happened to be in the com- panie of a learned man, and in communing and disputing with him, droue him to that issue that the learned manne sayde, we were better be without Gods lawe then the Popes: Maister Tyndall hearing that, answered hym, I defie the Pope and all his lawes, and sayde,* if God spare my lyfe ere many yeares, I wyl cause a boye that dryueth ye plough, shall knowe more of the scripture then thou doest. RUINS OF TINDALE'S CHURCH The old church of St. Adeline at Little Sodbury dates from 1500. It was disused and dismantled in 1858. The two yew trees are about five hundred years old and were most likely there in Tindale's days. On the hill to the right is a Roman camp inside a British camp. The top part of the manor house may be seen at the left of the picture. (Photo by Murray Dowdlng) Realizing that the opposition to him was becoming very great, he resolved to leave his position, and so one day said to Sir John Walsh, "I perceive that I shal not be suffered to tary long here in this countrey, nor you shalbe able to kepe me out of their handes, and what displeasure you might haue therby is harde to knowe, for the whiche I should be ryght sory." William Tindale 139 So in the summer of 1523 he went to London, his mind fully made up to translate and print the Bible if a way could possibly be found to do it. Humphrey Monmouth, a London draper, assisted Tindale, and shortly after, in 1528, was charged with heresy, and in his answer to the charge in his petition to Wolsey and the Council he gives some details of Tindale's stay with him. He says: A W£* "4 W ! ""¦ il^* wjfehm*\' ~~~* tt-*oy< A-- ¦£ 4/ 1 i- i J MT ¦ Eh? t Wr 4 1 - » f • ¦ -¦¦ '":W - ¦ , ¦ ',"¦ . • r* AS^K^BI — -p'fc a m 1 0 Mil %***M ¦¦.¦'¦ 'j ,,,: O-i '."•?.•; ";JB ST. ADELINE'S CHURCH, LITTLE SODBURY The stones from the old church were carted down and used to build the present church (Photo by Murray Dowdlng) Upon iiii yeres and a half past and more I herde the foresaid Sir William preach ii or iii sermons at St. Dunstan's in the west, in London; and after that I chaunced to meet with him and with communication I examyned what lyving he had. He said he had none at all; but he trusted to be with my Lord of London in his service. And therefore I had the better fantasy to him. And afterward he went to my Lord and spake to him, as he told me, and my L. of London answered him, that he had Chaplaines inough, and he said to him, that he would have no more at that tyme. And so the Priest came to me againe, and besought me to help him, and so I took him into my house half a yere: and there he lived Hke a good Priest, as methought. He studied most part of the day and of the night, at his book. 140 The Book of Books Tindale stayed in London nearly a year, and then, deciding that there was no chance to get his translation printed there, went to the continent. It is a matter of doubt whether he ever visited Luther at Wittenberg. Some scholars think he did and there finished his translation; others think he did not; but there is no definite evidence either way. At any rate, he was at Cologne in 1525 super intending the printing of his New Testament by Peter INTERIOR OF ST. ADELINE'S CHURCH This shows the stained glass window and the martyr's pulpit. The figures are those of Archbishop Cranmer, Bishops Hooper, Ridley and Latimer, and William Tindale. The photograph was taken by Mr. Murray Dowding, of Chipping Sodbury, a descendant of Bishop Ridley. Quentel. Along with him was William Roye, who, accord ing to Tindale's own statement, which will be quoted later, had helped him in his work of translation. The fact that he was printing the New Testament leaked out, and the chief agent in the opposition to the work has himself given William Tindale 141 an account of how he discovered it. His name is John CochUeus, or Johann Dobneck, and, writing of himself in the third person, he says: Two English apostates, who had been sometime at Witten berg, sought not only to subvert their own merchants (who secretly favored and supported. them in their exile) but even hoped that, whether the king would or not, all the people of England would in a short time become Lutherans, by means of the New Testament of Luther, which they had translated into the English language. They had already come to Cologne, that thence they might convey, secretly, under cover of other goods to England, the Testament so translated, and multiplied by printers into many thousands. For they had so much confidence of managing the business well, that, at the first onset, they asked from the printers six thousand to be given from the press. But fearing lest they should meet with a very heavy loss, if anything happened unfortunately, they only put three thousand to the press; which, if they should happily be sold, could with ease be printed anew. . . . At that time, John Cochlseus, Deacon of the Church of the Blessed Virgin at Frankfort, lived as an exile at Cologne. . . . Having become more intimate and familiar with the Cologne printers, he sometimes heard them confidently boast, when in their cups, that whether the King and Cardinal of England would or not, all England would in a short time be Lutheran. He heard also that there were two Englishmen lurking there, learned, skilful in languages, and fluent, whom, however, he never could see or converse with. Calling, therefore, certain printers into his lodging, after they were heated with wine, one of them, in more private discourse, discovered to him the secret by which England was to be drawn over to the side of Luther — namely, That three thousand copies of the Lutheran New Testament, translated into the English language, were in the press, and already were advanced as far as the letter K in ordine quarternionum. That the expenses were fully supplied by English merchants; who were secretly to convey the work when printed, and to disperse it widely through all England, before the King or Cardinal could discover or prohibit it. Cochlseus, being inwardly affected by fear and wonder, dis guised his grief, under the appearance of admiration. But another day, considering with himself the magnitude of the grievous dan ger, he cast in mind by what method he might expeditiously obstruct these very wicked attempts. He went, therefore, secretly to Herman Rinck, a patrician of Cologne and Military Knight, familiar both with the Emperor and the King of England, and a Counsellor, and disclosed to him the whole affair, as, by means of the wine, he had received it. He, that he might ascertain all things most certainly, sent another person into the house where 142 The Book of Books the work was printing, according to the discovery of Cochlseus: and when he had understood from him that the matter was even so, and that there was great abundance of paper there, he went to the Senate, and so brought it about that the printer was inter dicted from proceeding farther in that work. The two English apostates, snatching away with them the quarto sheets printed, fled by ship, going up the Rhine to Worms, where the people were under the full rage of Lutheranism, that there, by another printer, they might complete the work begun. Rinck and Cochlseus, how ever, immediately advised by their letter the King, the Cardinal, and the Bishop of Rochester that they might, with the greatest diligence, take care lest that most pernicious article of merchandise should be conveyed into all the ports of England. The secret being discovered, Tindale fled to Worms, and there issued his small, or octavo, New Testament, in an edition of three thousand printed by Peter Schoeffer. If the larger one, the quarto, begun at Cologne, was ever completed, it was completed at Worms, but there is doubt whether any further printing was done on that edition. At any rate, no complete copy has ever been found, and only one fragment is extant. It was discovered in 1836 by a bookseller in London and came into the possession of the Right Hon. Thomas Grenville, and is part of the Grenville Library in the British Museum. It contains only the Prologue and the first twenty-one chapters of Matthew and a portion of chapter twenty-two. It has been reproduced in facsimile by Edwin Arber (1871) with copious intro duction, and the illustrations here given are from that reproduction. Ofthe octavo edition two copies are extant. One, with only the title-page missing, is in the Library of the Baptist College, Bristol, and was reproduced in facsimile in 1862, by Francis Fry. The illustration here given is from that facsimile. The other copy is incomplete; it is in the library of St. Paul's Cathedral, London. Warned by Cochlseus, the clergy were on the look-out for Tindale's Testaments as soon as they were issued. Other warnings had been sent also. At that time Henry VIII had not broken off relations with Rome and declared against the supremacy of the pope. William Tindale 143 Edward Lee, Almoner of Henry VIII, was traveling on the continent in 1525 and wrote to the king from Bordeaux on December 2d, in part as follows: Please it your Highnesse moreover to undrestand that I am certainlie enformed as I passed in this contree that an Englishman, your subject, at the sollicitation and instance of Luther, with whome he is, hathe translated the Newe Testament in to English, and within fewe dayes entendethe to arrive with the same em- printed in Englond. I neede not to advertise your Grace what infection and daunger may ensue heerbie, if it be not withstonded. This is the next waye to fulfill your realme with Lutherians. For all Luthers perverse opinions bee grownded opon bar wordes of Scriptur not well taken ne vnderstonded, wiche your Grace hathe opened in sondrie places of your royall Booke. All our forfadres, governors of the Churche of Englond, hathe with all diligence for- bed & exchued publication of Englishe bibles, as apperethe in Con stitutions provincall of the Churche of Englond. Nowe, Sire, as God hathe endued your Grace with Christen courauge to sett forthe the standard against thies Philistees and to venquish them, so I doubt not but that he will assist your grace to prosecute and performe the same, that is to vndre treade them that they shall not nowe againe lift vppe their hedds, wiche they endevor nowe by meanes of Englishe Bibles. They knowe what hurte suche books hath doone in your Realme in tymes passed. Hithretoo, blessed be God, your Realme is save from infection of Luthers sect, as for so mutche that althowg anye peradventur bee secretlie blotted within, yet for fear of your royall Majestie, wiche hathe drawen his swerd in Gods cause, they dar not openlie avowe. Wherefor I can not doute but that your noble Grace will valiauntlie maignetaine that you have so noblie begonne. Copies were smuggled into England in various ways. They were put in barrels and packages and reached some who were ready and willing to distribute them; but the distributors were afterward persecuted as well as the pub lishers. The clergy were greatly incensed and took all possible measures to suppress the books. Foremost among the enemies of Tindale was the bishop whose help he had first sought — Cuthbert Tonstal, Bishop of London. The following portion of a letter will serve as a specimen of the attitude of the clergy to Tindale's Testaments. It is from Robert Ridley, chaplain to Tonstal, to Henry Golde, chap lain to Warham, Archbishop of Canterbury. 144 The Book of Books Maister Golde, I hartly commande me vnto you. As con- cernyng this common and vulgare translation of the new testament in to englishe, doon by Mr. William Hichyns, otherwais called Mr. W. Tyndale, and frear William Roy, manifest lutheranes heretikes and apostates, as doth oppynly apeir, not only by their daily and continuall company and familiarite with Luther and his disciples, bot mych mor by their commentares and annotationes in Mattheum et Marcum in the first print, also by their preface in the 2d prent, and by their introduccion in to the epistle of Paule ad Romanos al to gither most posoned and abhominable hereses that can be thowght; he is not filius Ecclesise Christi thet wold HOW THE PEOPLE RECEIVED THE ENGLISH BIBLE Gathering in secret to hear it read (From Stoughton's "Bible Translations and Translators." Courtesy ofthe Religious Tract Society) receaue a godspell of such damned and precised heretikes, thowh it wer trew, lyk as Paule and our Saviour Christ wold not take the trew testimonial of Evil Spretes that prased Criste trew saying Quod filius dei erat. An interesting story is told in Halle's Chronicles of the efforts made by Tonstal to secure the whole of the Testa ments and burn them: William Tindale HS Here it is to be remembred, that at this present tyme, Willyam Tyndale had newly translated and imprinted the Newe Testa ment in Englishe, and the Bishop of London, not pleased with the translacion thereof, debated with hymself, how he might compasse and deuise, to destroye that false and erronious translacion (as he saied). And so it happened that one Augustine Packyngton a Mercer and Merchant of London, and of a greate honestie, the same tyme was in Andwarp, where the Bishope then was, and this Packyngton was a man that highly fauored William Tindale, but to the bishop vtterly shewed himself to the contrary. The bishop desirous to haue his purpose brought to passe, commoned of the New Testamentes, and how gladly he would bye them. Packyng ton then hearyng that he wished for, saied vnto the bishop, my HOW THE CLERGY RECEIVED THE ENGLISH BIBLE Burning New Testaments at St. Paul's (From Stoughlon's "Bible Translations and Translators." Courtesy ofthe Religious Tract Society) Lorde, if it bee your pleasure I can in this matter dooe more I dare saie, then moste of the Merchauntes of Englande that are here to sell, so that if it be your lordshippes pleasure, to pay for theim, for otherwise I cannot come by them, but I must disburse money for theim, I will then assure you, to haue euery boke of them, that is imprinted and is here vnsolde. The Bishop thinkyng that he had God by the too, when in deede he had (as after he thought) the Deueil by the fiste, saied, gentle Master Packyngton, do your diligence and get them and with all my harte I will paie for them, whatsoeuer thei cost you, for the bokes are erronious and naughtes and I entende surely to destroy theim all, and to 146 The Book of Books burne theim at Paules Crosse. Augustine Packyngton came to Willyam Tyndale and saied, Willyam I knowe thou arte a poore man, and hast a hepe of newe Testamentes, and bokes by thee, for the whiche thou hast both indaungered thy frendes, and beg gared thy self, and I haue now gotten thee a Merchaunt, whiche with ready money shall dispatche thee of all that thou hast, if you thykne it so proffitable for your self. Who is the Merchant said Tyndale? The bishoppe of London, saied Packyngton, O that is because he will burne them saied Tyndale, ye Mary quod Packyngton, I am the gladder said Tyndale for these two benefites shall come therof, I shall get money of hym for these bokes, to bryng myself out of debt (and the whole world shall crie out vpon the burnynge of Goddes worde.) And the ouerplus of the money, that shall remain to me, shall make me more studious to correct the said Newe Testament, and so newly to Imprint the same once again, and I trust the second will much better like you, then euer did the first: And so forward went the bargain, the bishop had the bokes, Packyngton had the thankes, and Tyndale had the money. Afterward when mo newe Testamentes were Imprinted, thei came thicke and threfolde into Englande, the bishop of London hearyng that still there were so many Newe Testamentes abrode, sent for Augustyne Packyngton and saide vnto him: Sir how commeth this, that there are so many Newe Testamentes abrode, and you promised and assured me that you had bought al? then saied Packyngton, I promes you I bought all that then was to bee had : but I perceiue thei haue made more sence, and it will neuer bee better, as long as thei haue the letters and stampes, therefore it wer best for your lordshippe to bye the stampes to, and then are you sure: the bishop smiled at hym and saied, well Packyngton well, and so ended this matter. The Prologue to Tindale's quarto edition of 1525, the Grenville Fragment, is as follows: The. Prologge. I haue here translated (brethern and susters moost dere and tenderly beloued in Christ) the newe Testament for youre spiritual edyfyinge / consolacion / and solas: Exhortynge instantly and besechynge those that are better sene in the tonges then y / and that haue hyer gyftes of grace to interpret the sence of the scripture / and meanynge of the spyrite / then y / to consydre and pondre my laboure / and that with the spyrite of mekenes. And yf they perceyue in eny places that y have not attayned the very sence of the tonge / or meanynge of the scripture / or haue not geven the right englysshe worde / that they put to there handes to amende it / remembrynge that so is there duetie to doo. For we have not receyved the gyftes of god William Tindale H7 ^pttioggt fomit tint ttflttflittto Cbtetbernanfc fu frere nwfi&ereano tenberly bcPonefc m(Th:t(l } the ite* weCeftament foi yourefpirituaffe:; &j?fnnge/conjoladon/anb folae: SEjcbotfynge iriffantly anb befecbynefe tbofetbat Are better fene in thctongf then y / an> tljat fe ponfcte my Iabourc / Mb tbat w»tb tbe (pytitc ofmefcne6. 2fnfc V7"tbeyperce)we in eny places tbatybave not attaynefc tj>e pery fence of tbe tonjjc / ot meanynge of tbe fcripture / ot baue not #e»en the right cnglyfibe wofte/ tbattbeypwttotbereban^?toamcn&cit/rememfayn0etbatjo igtberetwetie to 5. £ottpebat>enorre«yt>e&tbe;fity(lfof#ob fot oHre|ePiieaonly/ot fotto byfce tbem:buffo:t&beffa>t»etbem onto tbc bononnnge of 0oi> an^ d?:ift/a»& efcy fringe of tbe con* tfreflacion /webt'd? » *be boty ofcbtifJ. fLZbe caiifcs tbflt move* tnetotranflate /y tbougbt bewr tbatotberfbutecymagion/tbentbatyl^ulocrebearcerbem. iTfc o:e o»cr y fuppofed yt fuperflnoits / fo; n?bo y& fb bfynbe to ayewby lygb* f bnlfce be fbewefc to tbem tbat walfc in fcercf> \u» 1 where tbey cannot but ftomble/ant> where to ftembfe yetoa|fytme tbat{j»t> t> the nraiFcaufeofyiwfl7anb»crtne$ to proce&e oure of fylfot I anfc rb« Iyinjre f bulbc be grounbeb in tron^tb an* pery tie / an* nott ratb«" en> n Cbegofpellofe.iTlarfe iij Cb«0ofpelIof@.£uFe iiij £begofpeIofe jEpbeftans, ri Ibepiflleof6.paulto rbePbiliPpians rij Ibe piftle 0 f ©.paul to tb e Colloffians jriif Ibe fyr|tpiftteof 0.paul vnto tbe leffclonians riiif Ib« feconbe piftle of 0.paul vnto the leffalonians rv IbefrrftpifHcof6.pauItoIfmotbe. xvi IbefeconbepifHeofS.paultoIimotbe. xvii Ibepiffleofo.paultolitus rpiij IcpifHeof6.paul vnto Philemon nr Ibe fyrfi piffle of S.pcter rr Ibe fcconbe piftle of ©.peter rri Ibe fyrff piftle of ©.3bon riy Ibefeconbcpi(lleof@.3bon rriij «.vtt>/Zi>t fonne alfo of ZbiA P»w arefpftrs Cafcabambegat^c; Cb*. ffi%J™t 3|«acbe0att3acob: cl?cflr prom?feb 3acob beflfttt 3"b«6 anb bye b«s vntotfcem. 3ubaabegatpbaree: Obren; anb 3«r*m of tbamar: Pbared begatt Jfifrom: £from began 2f ram: _ ___ \Zram bega«2(mmabab: 3mmabab begatt naafian: tflaaflon begatt Salmon: Salmonbeganboocofrabab: Boos began obebof rutb : begatt3efl*e: 3e(f< began barib tbe fynget CSawo tbe fynge began Solomon/of ber tbat woe t be Solomon begatroboam: Cro)fe ofwy: Koboam began 2(bia: abia began afa: 2ffabegatttofap£at:3ofapbatbegatt3oram:3oram begattia&: tfje^iae begatt ttTanafles: iftanaflcfj bega«2imon: atnonbe^att3opa6: _b"ega"rto7bfo^ jcpasbegattScc^omaeanbbfebretbrertftboottbetymeof fe lefre bd??n<>e tbecaptinifcofbabifon l?i?m afrerl?iet>«# C2fflcrt{>ej>w>«eleb captive to&«bil«n/3eeu.p:v.e. A PAGE OF THE GRENVILLE FRAGMENT (From Arber's reprint) is wrapped in synne / and is in daunger to dethe and hell) heare no moare ioyus a thynge / then suche glad and comfortable tyd inges of Christ. So that he cannot but be glad and laugh from the lowe bottom of his hert / if he beleve that the tydynges are trewe. Sainct m«tb«w leretfroutcerte* yne generation*/ i OeTcribetb. £it# rides linage from solomo/aF ter tfee laweof^&ofes/butTLucaet>e(cri'/ bet I? it according to nature/fro na^ tban folomoebr'/ otfcer.jForrfcela^ we called? tbem a mannes djiterf •afyid} Ijiebrooer William Tindale 151 If To strength such feythe with all / god promysed this his evagelion in the olde testament by the prophettes (as paul sayth in the fyrst chapter vnto the romans). Howe that he was chosen oute to preache goddes evangelion / wchich he before had promysed by the prophettes in the holy scriptures that treate of his sonne wchich was borne of the seed of davyd. In the thryd chapter of gennesis / god saith to the serpent: y wyll put hatred bitwene the and the woman / bitwene thy seede and her seede / that silfe seede shall tread thy heed under fote. Christ is this womans seede / he it is that hath troden vnder fote the devylles heed / that is to saye synne / dethe / hell / and all his power. For with oute this seede can no man avoyde synne / dethe / hell and euerlastynge danacion. If Agayne gen. xxii. god promysed Abraham sayige: in thy seede shall all the generatios of the erthe be blessed. Christ is that seede of Abraham sayth saynct Paul in the thryd to the galathyans He hach blessed al the worlde through the gospel. For where Christ is not / there remaineth the cursse that fei on ada as soone as he had synned / So that they are in bondage vnder the dominacion of synne / dethe / and hell. Agaynste this cursse blesseth nowe the gospell all the worlde / in asmoche as it cryeth openly / who so ever beleveth on the seede of Abraha shalbe blessed / that is / he shalbe delyvered fro synne / dethe and hell / and shall hence forth contynue righewes / lyvinge / and saved for euer / as Christ hym sylffe saith (in the xi of John) He that belev eth on me shall never more dye. If The lawe (saith the gospell of John in the first chapter) was geven be Moses: but grace and veritie be Jesus Christ. The lawe (whose minister ys moses) was geven to brynge vs vnto the knowl ege of oure selves / that we myght there by fele and perceave what we are of nature. The lawe condemneth vs and all oure dedes / and is called of Paul (in the thyrd chap, of the second pistle vnto the corrinthians) the mynystracion of dethe. For it kylleth oure consciences and driveth vs to desperacion / in as moche as it requyreth of vs that whych is vnpossible for vs to doo. It requy- reth of vs the dedes of an whole / man. It requyreth perfecte love from the lowe bottome and grounde of the hert / as well in all thinges whych we suffre / as in tho thinges whych we doo. But saith John (in the same place) grace and veritie is gevin vs in christ. So that when the lawe hath passed vppon vs / and codemned vs to deth (whych is his nature to doo) then have we in Christ grace / that is to saye favoure / promyses of lyfe / of mercy / of perdon frely by the merites of Christ / and in Christ have we veritie and trouthe / in that god fulfillith all his promyses to the that beleve. Therfore is the gospell the ministracion of lyfe. Paul calleth hit / in the forerehearced place of the secod chap, to the cor. the mynistracion of the spyrite / and of rightewes nes. In the gospell when we beleve the promyses / we receave the spyrite of lyfe / and are justified in the bloud of Christ from 152 The Book of Books 0.H1«tbttbys croffe Anbfolowetb me/te nott mete fame. ^etb«tfynbci'b *3ntb: a Wfcip* a&ar.irc^etbatreceapitb you/reccavitbmttanbbe tbat recta* ,h^hJt„S!Ati. *»*•* pitbme/receacitbbimtb«tfeinmc.^etbatreceat)itbapro# togoP?r/;ffi pbet*mtbciiftmepfapropbet/fbal!receftvefeIy tie T»6ne& to/ _ b:#e acuppeofcolbc & tcftteronly/mtbertAmeofabifek t^S^JSSSSl pl?:3teByouofamittb/be fbAllnottlofeby* mwrbe. l%ejZm$»% KfifiM^S fu<5 b Ab enbeb bis precept? «mto \>ie> bifciplee/be movyri? a ma / ? t r ^^^Jbepartebtbece/topreacbeanbteacbeitbere citee. ^L^ 7°0effl CXC$tn3bon beinge in prefonberbetbeivoiff of4>r«ft/be tgoj£WOure alltbf fent froo ofbis bifcipleeanb faybe vntobmt. 2(ite tbou be newe reftartur beto tb«tfb«ncome:orf|>aHi»clohfo:anotber.3e(u6anftr>ercb kenetj? tocecayez efa.fci anbfaybevntotbem.cSoanbfbcn)e3bont»b«t>'ebavebe:ofJU,e^nr,?efa»'tb'be anb fenc.IbtWynbfc/tbe bflltgco/tbelyppere arclenfeb; ^riStlK^' Ibebeefbeare/tbebee&arereyfebppa0eine/anbtbegofpeHasbu>aca^fnr3l^> ie> pjeacbebeto the porrc. 2fnb bftppy i$bctbat'* "Wt 15 fSe aetfcef fuppo^ borte by me. feo / 7 be bjm felfe CJEvenaetbeybeparteb / 3eftie began to fpcaFe vnto tbe dfo «rtrefter/ibfe people of 3bo». tyat wentyefor to fein tbe wylbeme* E^JJ^JS roetyeouttofearebetcaveringeraitbtbetvynbeftberwbAt Ver ttben rfcey fa^ went ye out forto fe^roentyeto fc a man clorbeb in (afre ray* we fym put to fo vy mentfBebolbe/tbey tbatwearefrofte clotbynge are in Fyngf leafcmb/fdldeiw boufe6.Sutt»b«f wet ye out forto fe^tcet ye out to fe/a pro? fr5 *'?'/' incwf Pbetf $*e 3 fayesoto you/anb more tbe a propbet.^o: tbi's ie *' Mt Mtn' 2fe4ta.beoftpbomiti6tvrytte.J5eboIbe/3febemymefTengerbefore ii\- tb? facexpb'eb f|»«II prepaiie tby a>aye beforetbe. CPerelyyfayevntoyou/amogetbccbylbrenoftDomen aro fe t^ere nott a gretter tj>cn 3b°" b<>prifl ? tiot witbffon-- A PAGE OF THE GRENVILLE FRAGMENT (From Arber's reprint) William Tindale 153 all thinges where of the lawe condemned vs. Of Christ it is written in the fore rehearced first chapter of Jho: This is he of whose aboundaunce / or fullnes / all we haue receaved / grace for grace / or favoure for favoure. That is to saye / for the favoure that god hath to his sonne Christ / he geveth vnto vs his favour / and good will / as a father to his sonnes. As affirmeth Paul sayinge: whych loved vs in his beloved before the creation of the worlde. For the love that god hath to Christ / he loveth vs / and not for oure aune saikes. Christ is made lorde over all / and is called in scripture goddes mercy stole whosoever flyeth to Christ / can nether heare nor receave of god eny other thinge save mercy. 1f In the olde testament are many promyses / whych are nothinge els but the evangelion or gospell / to save those that beleved them / from the vengaunce of the lawe. And in the newe testament is ofte made mencion of the lawe / to condem them / whych beleve nott the promyses. Moreouer the lawe and gospell maye never be seperate: for the gospell and promyses serve but for troubled consciences whych ar brought to desperacion and fele the paynes of hell and dethe vnder the lawe / and are in captivitie and bondage vnder the lawe. In all my dedes y muste have the lawe before me to condem myne vnperfectnes. For all that y doo (be y never so perfecte) is yet damnable synne / when hit is com pared to the lawe / whych requyreth the grounde and bottoom of myne hert. I muste therefore have alwayes the lawe in my sight / that y maye be meke in the spyrite / and gyve god all the laude and prayse / ascrybinge to hym all rightewesnes / and to my sylfe all vn rightewesnes and synne. I muste also have the promyses before myne eyes that y despeere nott / in whych promyses y se the mercy / favoure / and good wyll of god apon me in the bloud of his sonne Christ whych hath made satisfaction for myne vnper fectnes / and fulfilled for me / that whych y coulde nott doo. If Here maye ye perceave that two manner of people are fore deceaved. Firste they whych iustifie themsilfe with outewarde dedes / in that they abstayne outwardly from that whych the lawe forbiddeth / and doo outwardly that whych the lawe com- maundeth. They compare themselves to open synners and in respecte of them iustifie themselues condemnynge the open syn ners. They se nott howe the lawe requyreth love from the bottom of the hert. If they dyd they wolde nott condene there neghbours. Love hydeth the multitude of synnes / saith saynct Peter in his first pistle. For whom y love from the depe bottom and grounde of myne hert / hym condem y nott / nether recke his synnes / but suffre his weaknes and infirmytie / as a mother the waknes of her sonne / vntill he growe vppe in to a perfecte ma. % Those also are deceaved whych with oute all feare of god geve themselves vnto all maner vices with full cdsent and full delectaciS / havinge no respecte to the lawe of god (vnder whose vegeaunce they are locked vp in captivitie) but saye: god is merci- full and christ dyed for vs / supposinge that suche dremynge and 154 The Book of Books ymaginacio is that fayth whych is so greatly comeded i holy scripture. Naye that is nott fayth / but rather a folisshe opynion spryngynge of there awne nature / and is nott geuen them of the spyrite of god. Trewe fayth is (as sayth the apostle Paul) the gyfte of god and is geven to syners after the lawe hath passed apon them and hath brought there constiences vnto the brym of despera- cion / and sorowes of hell. If They that have this right fayth / consent to the lawe that it is rightewes and good / and iustifie god which made the lawe / (nott withstondinge that they can nott fullfill it / for there weak- nes) and they abhorre whatsoever the lawe forbyddeth / though they cannott avoyde it. And there greate sorowe is / because they cannot fulfill the will of god in the lawe / and the spyrite that is in them cryeth to god nyght and daye for strength and helppe with teares (as sayth Paul) that cannot be expressed with tonge. If The firste / that is to saye a iusticiarie / which iustifyeth hym silfe with his outwarde dedes c5senteth nott to the lawe inwarde / nether hath delectacion therein / ye / he wolde rather that no suche lawe were. So iustifieth he nott god / but hateth hym as a tyrat / nether careth he for the promyses / but will with his awne stregth be faveour of hym silffe: no wyse glori- fyeth he god / though he seme outwarde to doo. If The seconde / that is to saye the sensewell persone / as a volupteous swyne / nether feareth god in his lawe / nether is thankfull to hym for his promyses and mercy / which is sett forth in Christ to all them that belewe. If Te right christen mam consenteth to the lawe that hit is rightwes / and iustifieth god in the lawe / for he affyrmeth that god is rightwes and iuste / which is autor of the lawe / he beleveth the promyses of god / and so iustifieth god / iudgynge hym trewe and belevinge that he will fulfyll hys promyses. With the lawe he condeneth hym sylfe and all his dedes / and geveth all the prayse to god. he beleueth the promyses / and ascribeth all trouth to god / thus every where iustifieth he god / and prayseth god. If By nature through the faule of adam / are we the chyldren of wrath / heyres of the vegeaunce of god by byrth / ye and from oure concepcion / we haue oure fellowshippe with the damned devylles vnder the power of derknes vnd rule of satan / whyle we are yett in oure mothers wombes / though we shewe not forthe the freutes of synne / yett are we full of the naturall poyson where of all synfull dedes sprynge / and canott but synne outwardes (be we never so yonge) yf occasion be geven / for oure na nature is to doo synne / as is the nature of a serpent to stynge And as a serpent yet yoge / or yett vnbrought forthe is full of poyson / and cannott afterwarde (when the tyme is come and occasion geven) butt brynge forthe the freutes there of. And as an edder / a William Tindale 155 toode / or a snake is hated of man / (nott for the yvell that it hath done / but for the poyson that is in it and hurt which it can nott but doo) So are we hated of god for that naturell poyson which is conceaved and borne with vs / before we doo eny out warde yvell. And as the yvell / which a venumous worme doeth / maketh it nott a serpent: but be cause it is a venumous worme. therefore doeth it yvell and poysoneth. And as the frute maketh not the tree yvoll: but because it is an evyll tree / therefore bryng- eth it forth evyll frute / when the season of frute is. Even so doo nott oure evyll dedes makes vs evyll: but because that of nature we are evell / therefore we bothe thynke and doo evyll / and are vnder vengeaunce / vnder the lawe / convicte to eternall dam- nacion by the lawe / and are contrary to the will of god in all oure wyll / and in all thynges consent to the wyll of the fende. 1f By grace (that is to saye by favoure) we are plucked oute of Adam the grounde of all evyll and graffed in Christ the rote of all goodnes. In Christ god loved vs his electe and chosen / before the worlde bega / and reserved vs vnto the knowlege of his sonne and of hys holy gospell / and when the gospell is preached to vs he openeth oure hertes and geveth vs grace to beleve and putteth the spirite of Christ in vs / and we knowe hime as oure father moost mercyfull / and consent to the lawe / and love it inwardly in oure hert / and desyre to fulfyll it / and sorrowe because we cannot / which will (synne we of frayltie never so moche)is suffi cient till more strength be geve vs / the bloud of Christ hath made satisfaction for therefte: the bloud of Christ hath obteyned all thiges for vs of god. Christ is oure satisfaction / redemer / delyv- erer / saveour from vengeaunce and wrath. Obserue and merke in the pistles of Paul / and Peter / and in the gospell and pistles of Jhon what Christ is vnto vs. 1f By fayth are we saved only in belevynge the promyses / . And though faith be never with oute love and good werkes / yet is oure savinge imputed nether to loue nor vnto good werkes / but vnto fayth only. For loue and werkes are vnder the lawe which requyreth prefection / and the grounde and fontayne of the hert / and daneth all imperfectnes. Nowe is faith vnder the promyses wich dane not: but geve all grace / mercy and favour / and what soever is conteyned in the promyses. 1f Rightewesnes is divers / Blynde reason ymageneth many maner of rightewesnesses. As the iuste ministracion of all manner of lawes / and the observing of them / and morall vertues werein philosophers put there felicitie and blessednes / which all are nothige in the sight of god. There is in lyke maner the iustifyige of ceremones / some ymagio them there one selves / some conter- faicte other/ sayinge in there blynde reason: suche holy persons dyd thus and thus / and they were holy me / therefore yf y doo so lyke wyse y shall please god: but they have none answer of god / that that pleaseth. The iewes seke rightewnes i there 156 The Book of Books ceremonies which god gave vnto them / not for to iustifie: but to describe and paynt Christ onto them / of which iewes testifieth paul sayinge howe that they have affectio to god: but not after knowledge / for they go aboute to stablisshe there one iustice / and are not obediet to the iustice or rightewesnes that cometh of god. The cause is verely / that excepte a man caste awaye his awne ymaginacion and reason / he cannot perceave god / and vnderstonde the vertue and power of the bloud of Christ. There is the rightewesnes of workes (as y saide before) whe the hert is a waye / they fele not howe the lawe is spirituall and cannot be fulfilled / but from the bottom of the hert. Ther is a full right ewesnes / when the lawe is fulfilled from the groude of the hert. This had nother Peter nor Paul i this lyfe perfectly: but syghed after yt. They were so farforth blessed in Christ / that they hugred and thursted after it. Paul had this thurste / he cosented to the lawe of god / that it ought so too be / but he founde an other luste in his membres c5trary to the luste and desire of his mynde / and therfore cryed oute sayinge : Oh wretched man that y am: who shall delyvre me from this boddy of dethe / thankes be to god throwe Jesus Christ. The rightewesnes that before god is of value / is to beleve the promyses of god / after the lawe hath confovnded the conscience. As when the temporall lawe ofte tymes condeneth the thefe or morderer and bryngeth hym toE execution / so that he seith nothinge before hym but present dethe / and then cometh good tydiges / a charter from the kynge and delyvereth him. Lykewyse when gooddes lawe hath brought the synner into knowlege of him sylfe / and hath cofounded his / conscience / and opened vnto him the wrath and vengeaunce of god / then cometh good tydinges / the Evagelion sheweth vnto him the promyses of god in Christ / and howe that Christ hath purchesed perdon for him hath satisfied the lawe for him / and peased the wrath of god / and the povre synner beleveth / laudeth thanketh god / throwe Christ / and breaketh oute into excedlge inward ioy and gladnes / for that he hath escaped so greate wrath / so hevy vegeaunce / so fearfull and so everlastinge a dethe / and he hence forth is an hugred and a thurst after more rightewesnes / that he might fulfill the lawe / and morneth contynually com- medinge his weaknes vnto god in the bloud of oure saviour Christ Jesus If Here shall ye se compendiously and playnly sett oute the order and practise of every thynge afore rehearsed. 1f The faule of adam hath made vs heyres of the vegeauce and wrath of god / and heyres of eternall danacion. And hath broughtus into captivite and bondage vnder the devyll. And the devyll is oure lorde / and oure ruler / oure heed / oure governour / oure prince / ye and oure god. And oure wyll is locked and knet faster vnto the will of the devyll / then coude an hundred thowsand William Tindale 157 cheynes bynde a man vnto a post. Vnto the devylles will cosent we / with all oure hertes / with all oure myndes / with al oure myght / power / strength / will and luste. With what poysened / deadly / and venunous hate / hateth a man his enemy! With howe greate malice of mynde inwardly doo we fley and murther! With what violece and rage / ye and with howe fervent luste comytt we aduoutrie / fornicacion / and such lyke vnclennes! with what pleasure and delectation inwardly serveth a glotton his belly! With what diligece disceave we! Howe busyli seke we the thynges of this world! What soever we doo / thynke or ymmagion / is abominable in the syght of god. And we are as it were aslepe in so depe blyndnes / that we can nether se / not'fele in what misery / thraldom / and wretchednes we are in / tyll moses come and wake vs / and publesshe the lawe. When we heare the lawe truly preached / howe that we ought to love and honoure god with all oure strengthe and myght / from the lowe bottom of the hert: and oure neghbures (ye oure enemys.) as oureselues inweardly from the groude of the hert / and to doo whatsoever god biddeth / and absteyne from what soever god forbiddeth / with all love and meknes / whit a fervent and a burnynge luste / from the center of the hert / then begynneth the conscience to rage aginst the lawe / and agenst god / No see (be hit never se greate a tempest) is so vnquiet. It is not possyble for a naturall man to consent to the lawe / that hit shuld be good / or that god shuld be rightewes / which maketh the lawe. Mannes witte / reason / and will / are so fast glued / ye nayled and cheyned vnto the will of the devyll. Nether can eny creature lowse the bodes / save the bloud of Christ. If This is the captivitie and bondage whece Christ delyvred vs / redemed / and lowsed vs. His bloud / his deethe / his pacience / in suffrynge rebukes and wronges / his preyaers and fastynges / his mekenes and fulfillynge of the vtmost poynte of the lawe / peased the wrath of god / brought the faver of god to vs agayne / obteyned that god shuld love vs fyrste / and be oure father / and that a mercyfull father / that" will consydre oure infirmitates and weaknes / and will geve vs his spyrite ageyne (which was taken awaye in the fall of Adam) to rule govern and strength vs / and to breake the bondes of Satan / wherein we were so streyte bounde. When Christ is thus wyse preached / and the promyses rehearced / which are conteyned in the prophet tes / in the psalmes / and in diveres places of the fyve bokes of moses: then the herttes of them which are electe and chose / begin to wexe softe / and to melte att the bouteous mercy of god / and kyndnes shewed of Christ. For when the evagelion is preached / the spyrite of god entreth 1 to them which god hath ordeined and apoynted vnto eternall life / and openeth there inward eyes / and worketh such belefe in the. Whe the wofull cSscieces fele & taste howe swete a thige the bytter dethe of Christ is / & howe mercy- 158 The Book of Books full & lovinge god is through Christes purchesynge and merittes / They begyn to love agayne / and to consentt to the lawe of god / howe that hit is good / and ought so to be / and that god is rightewes whych made it / And desyre to fulfill the lawe / even as a sicke ma desyreth to be whole / and are anhongred / and a thirst after more rightewesnes / and after more stregthe / to ful fill the lawe more perfectly. And in all that they doo / or omitt and leave vndone / they fele goddes honoure / and his will with meknes / ever condemnynge the onperfecnes of there dedes by the lawe. 1f Nowe Christ stondeth vs in dobie stede / and serveth vs two maner wise. First he is oure redemer / delyverer / reconciler / mediator / intercessor / advocat / atturney / soliciter / oure hoope / comforte / shelde / proteccion / defender / strength / helthe / satisfaction / and salvacion. His bloud / his death / all that he ever dyd / is oures. And Christ himsilffe / with all that he is or ca doo / is oures. His bloud shedynge and all that he dyd / doeth me as good service / as though y mysilffe had done it. And god (as greate as he is) is myne with all that he hath / throw Christ and his purchasynge. If Secondaryly after that we be overcome with love and kyndnes / and nowe seke to doo the will of god (whych is a christen manes nature) Then have we Christe, an ensample to counterfet / as saith christ him silffe in Jhon: I have geven you an ensample. And in another evangeliste / he saith: He that wilbe greate amonge you shalbe youre servaunt and min ister / as the sone of ma ca to minister and not to be ministered vnto. And Paul saith: Counterfet Christ. And Peter saith: Christ died for you / and lefte you an ensample to folowe his steppes. What soever therfore faith hath receaved of god throw Christes bloud and deservynge / that same must love shed oute everywhitt / and bestowe hit on oure neighboures vnto there proffet / ye and that though they be oure enemys. Be faith we receave of god / and be love we shed oute agayne. And that must we doo frely after the ensample of Christ with oute eny other respecte / save oure neghboures welth enly / and nether loke for rewarde in erth /ner yett in heven for oure dedes: but of pure love must we bestowe oureselves / all that we have / and all that we ar able to doo / even on oure enemys to brynge them to god / considerynge nothynge but there welth / as Christ dyd oures. Christ dyd nott his dedes to obteyne heven therebi (that had bene a madnes) heven was his alreddy / he was heyre thereof / hit was his be enheritaunce: but dyd them freely for oure sakes / cosider- inge no thinge but oure welth / and to brynge the favour of god to vs agayne / and vs to god. As no naturall sonne that is his fatheres heyre / doeth his fatheres will because he wolde be heyre / that he is alreddy be birth: his father gave him that yer he was borne / and is lothther that he shuld goo with oute it / then he himsilfe hath witt to be: but of puer love doeth he that he doeth. William Tindale 159 And axe him why he doeth eny thynge that he doeth / he answer eth: my father bade / it is my fatheres will / it pleaseth my father. Bondservauntes worke for hyre / Children for love. For there father with all he hath / is theres alreddy. So doeth a christen man frely all that he doeth / considereth nothynge but the will of god / and his neghboures welth only. Yf y live chaste / I doo hit nott te obteyne heven thereby. For then shulde y doo wronge to the bloud of Christe: Christes bloud hath obteyned me that / Christes merettes have made me heyre thereof. He is both dore and waye thetherwardes nether that y loke for an hyer roume in heve / then they shall have whych live in wedlocke / other then a hoare of the stewes (yf she repent) for that were the pryde of lucifer: But frely to wayte on the evangelion / and to serve my brother with all / even as one hande helpeth another / or one membre another / because one feleth anotheres grefe / and the payne of the one is the payne of the other. What soever is done to the leest of vs (whether it be good or bad) it is done to Christ. And whatsoever is done to my brother (if y be a christen man) that same is done to me. nether doeth my brotheres payne greve me lesse then myne awne. Yf hit were not so: howe saith Paul? let him that reioyseth / reioyse in the Lord, that is to saye christ / whych is lorde over all creatures. Yf my merettes obteyned me heve / or an hyer roume there / then had y wherein y myght reioyse besydes te Lorde. If Here se ye the nature of the lawe / and the nature of the evagelion. Howe the Lawe byndeth and daneth all me / and the Evalion lowseth them agayne. The lawe goeth before / and the evagelio foloweth. When a preacher preacheth the Lawe / he byndeth all consciences / and when he preacheth the Gospell / he lowseth them agayne. These two salves (y meane the Lawe and the Gospell) vseth God and his preacher to heale and cure synners with all. The lawe dryveth oute the disease / and maketh hit apere / and is a sharppe salve and a freatinge corsey / and kylleth the deed flesshe / and lowseth and draweth the sores out by the rotes / and all corrupcion. It pulleth from a man the trust and confidece that he hath in himsilfe / and in his one workes / merittes / deservinges and ceremones. It killeth him / sendeth him downe to hell / and bryngeth him to vtter desperacion / and prepayreth the waye of the lord / as hit is wrytten of Jhon the Baptest For hit is nott possible that Christ shuld come to a man / as loge as he trusteth in himsilffe / or in eny worldly thynge. Then commeth the Evangelion / a more gentle plaster / whych sowpleth / and swageth the wondes of the conscience / and bryngeth helth. It bryngeth the spyrite of god / whych lowseth the bondes of Satan / and copleth vs to god. and his will throw stronge faith and fervent love / with bondes to stronge for the devyll / the world / or eny creature to Iowse them. And the povre and wretched synner feleth so greate mercy / love / and kyndnes in god / that he is 160 The Book of Books suer in himsilfe howe that it is nott possible that god shuld for sake him / or withdrawe his mercy and love from him. And boldly cryeth out with Paul sayinge: Who shall seperate vs fro the love that god loveth vs withall? That is to saye, what shall make me beleve that god loveth me nott? Shall tribulacio? Anguysshe? Persecucion? Shall huger? Nakedness? Shall a swearde? Nay / I am sewer that nether deeth / ner lyfe / nether angell/ nether rule / ner power / nether present thynges / ner thynges to come / nether hye ner lowe / nether eny creature is able to seperate vs fro the love of god which is in Christ Jesu our lorde. In all suche tribulacions a Christen man perceaveth that god is his father / and loveth hym / even as he loved Christ when he shed his bloud on the crosse. Fynally / as before / whe y was bod to the devyll and his will y wroght all maner evyll and wickednes / nott for helles sake which is the rewarde of syne / but because y was heyre of hell by byrth and bondage to the devyll / dyd y evyll. for I could none other wese doo. to doo syn was mi nature. Even so nowe sence y am copied to god by Christes bloud / doo y well / nott for hevens sake : but because y am heyre of heven by grace and Christes purchesynge / and have the spyrit of god / I doo good frely / for so is my nature. As a good tree bryngeth forth good frute / and an evyll tree evyll frute. By the frutes shall ye knowe what the tree is. a mannes dedes declare what he is within but make him nether good ner bad &c. We must be first evyll yer we doo evyll / as a serpent is first poysened yr he poysen. We must be also good yer we doo good / as the fyre must be first hott yer hit warme eny thynge. Take an ensample. As those blynde which are cured in the evangelion / coude nott se tyll Christ had geven them sight / And deff coude nott here / tyll Christ had geven them hearynge / And those sicke coude nott doo the dedes of an whole man / tyll Christ had geven them health : So can no man doo good in his soule / tyll Christ have lowsed him oute of the bondes of sata / and have geve him wherewith to doo good / ye and firste have powred into him that selfe good thynge whych he shedeth forth afterwarde on other. Whatsoever is oure awne is synne. Whatsoever is above that / is Christes gyfte / purches / doynge / and workynge.. He bought it of his father derely with his bloud / ye with his moost bitter death and gave his lyfe for hit. Whatsoever good thynge is in vs / that is geven vs frely with oute oure deservynge or merettes. for Christ's bloudes sake. That we desyre to folow the will of god / it is the gyfte of Christes bloud. That we nowe hate the devylles will (where vnto we were so fast locked / and coulde nott but love hit) is also the gyfte of Christes bloud / vnto whom belongeth the preyse and honoure of our good dedes / and nott vnto us. William Tindale 161 The following is the Lord's Prayer from the Grenville fragment. A great advance in the language will be seen in comparison with the specimens given of Anglo-Saxon and from Wiclif: 0 oure father / which art in heven halowed be thy name. Let thy kyngdom come. Thy wyll be fulfilled / aswell in erth / as hit ys in heven. Geve vs this daye oure dayly breade. And forgeve vs oure treaspases / even as we forgeve them whych treaspas vs. Lede vs nott in to temptacion. but delyvre vs from yvell / Amen. The quarto edition had notes in the outer margin and references in the inner. There were ninety-one notes, and the majority of these were from Luther's translation. In translating, Tindale made use of the Greek translation of Erasmus (which had been printed in 1516 and reprinted in 1 519), the Vulgate, the Latin text printed with Erasmus' Greek, and Luther's German translation which had been published in 1522. He did not base his translation on Wiclif's, but made it independently. The octavo edition published at Worms contained only the text of the New Testament and a three-page address "To the Reder." There were 12 wood cuts, no notes or marginal references, and no chapter headings. The address follows : To the Reder. GEve diligence Reder (I exhorte the) that thou come with a pure mynde / and as the scripture sayth with a syngle eye / vnto the wordes of health / and of eternall lyfe: by the which (if we repent and beleve them) we are borne a newe / created a fresshe / and enioye the frutes off the bloud of Christ. Whiche bloud cryeth not for vengeaunce / as the bloud of Abel: but hath purchased lyfe / love / faveour / grace / blessynge / and whatsoever is prom ysed in the scriptures / to them that beleve and obeye God: and stondeth bitwene vs and wrathe / vengeaunce / cursse / and what soever the scripture threateneth agaynst the vnbelevers and dis obedient / which resist / and consent not in their hertes to the lawe of god / that it is ryght / wholy / iuste / and ought soo to be. Marke the playne and manyfest places of the scriptures / and in doubtfull places / se thou adde no interpretacion contrary to them: but (as Paul sayth) let all be conformable and agreynge to the fayth. 162 The Book of Books Note the difference of the lawe / and of the gospell. The one axeth and requyreth / the wother perdoneth and forgeveth. The one threateneth / the wother promyseth all good thynges to them that sett their trust in Christ only. The gospell signifieth gladde ibofifcanee offtaynebefcenbob/artb ffcefhibbf ca/fotbewytto& blexxx'fo bettvppo tfatfa* me boaffe/5b ir w« not oven tbrowentwcawfe it tvaggrotmbebon tbe rocFe. 2(nb wbofoewr beamb tfmettefef*f«f'tfobctb notrbt^tme^ (WbelyrW&Vntoafolyfonitf/wbitybfltfrfc ^owffeapcntlwfonbe'dn&abnnbaHnceofrowne^efcfbeb^nnbtbePubbfcjwn^nbtbetpynosbfblewe//»nbbeetvppontbat^oune,'4bitB»O0 overtbro»en/?e me cQtie.^ep»tt((yitbei?i6b$t> offer tbegyftC'riXJ tiiyofta commaui t>e& to be off reb' mwitnes to ttxmt. VOb£3tfu0 wm etrcb in to Capernaum/ t^ef re«unrlverblic« a « bomeoff tpepalfye 5b tegrewuflypAyneb. 2tnb jTefusfayb-onto bimr^tvpll comeanbatf re him.&bz Ccntuxionafuere* anb faibe:©yr 3 «m nottpojtby tbat tbow PSntlbeft cotntwbec FACSIMILE OF PAGE OF TINDALE'S OCTAVO TESTAMENT, 1525 (From tfie reprint by Francis Fry) tydynges / and is nothynge butt the promyses off good thynges. All is not gospell that is written in the gospell boke: For if the lawe were a waye / thou couldest not know what the gospell meante. Even as thou couldest not se perdon / favour / and grace / excepte William Tindale 163 the lawe rebuked the / and declared vnto the thy sinne / mysdede / and treaspase. Repent and beleve the gospell as sayth Christ in the fyrst of Marke. Applye all waye the lawe to thy dedes / whether thou finde luste in the bottom of thyne herte to the lawe warde: and soo shalt thou no dout repent / and feale in the silfe a certayne sorrowe / payne / and grefe to thyne herte: because thou canst nott with full luste do the dedes off the lawe. Applye the gospell / that is to saye the promyses /vnto the deservynge off Christ / and to the mercye of god and his trouth / and soo shalt thou nott despeare: butt shalt fele god as a kynde and a mercifull father. And his sprete shall dwell in the / and shall be stronge in the: and the promises shalbe geven the at the last (though not by and by / lest thou shuldest forgett thy sylfe and be negligent) and all threatenynges shalbe forgeven the for Christis blouddis sake / to whom commit thy silfe all togedder / with out respect / other of thy good dedes or of thy badde. Them that are learned Christenly / I beseche: for as moche as I am sure / and my conscience beareth me recorde / that of a pure entent / singilly and faythfully I have interpreted itt / as farre forth as god gave me the gyfte of knowledge / and vnder- stondynge: that the rudness off the worke nowe at the fyrst tyme / offende them not: but that they consyder howe that I had no man to counterfet / neither was holpe with englysshe of eny that had interpreted the same / or soche lyke thinge in the scripture before- tyme. Moreover / even very necessitie and combraunce (God is recorde) above strengthe / which I will not rehearce / lest we shulde seme to bost oureselues / caused that many thinges are lackynge / whiche necessaryly are requyred. Count it as a thynge not havynge his full shape / but as it were borne afore hys tyme / even as a thynge begunne rather then fynnesshed. In tyme to come (yf god have apoynted vs there vnto) we will geve it his full shape: and putt out yf ought be added superfluusly: and adde to yff ought be oversene thorowe negligence: and will enfoarce to brynge to compendeousnes / that which is nowe translated at the lengthe / and to geve lyght where it is requyred / and to seke in certayne places more proper englysshe / and with a table to expounde the wordes which are nott commenly vsed / and shewe howe the scripture vseth many wordes / which are wother wyse vnderstonde of the commen people: and to helpe with a declara- cion where one tonge taketh nott another. And will endever oure- selves / as it were to sethe it better / and to make it more apte for the weake stomakes: desyrynge them that are learned / and able / to remember their duetie / and to helpe there vnto: and to bestowe vnto the edyfyinge of Christis body (which is the congre- gacion of them that beleve) those gyftes whych they have receaved of god for the same purpose. The grace that commeth of Christ be with them that love hym. Praye for vs. 164 The Book of Books There is no date and although the title-pages are missing from the two extant octavo copies, as well as from the Gren ville fragment, it is certain that the name of the translator did not appear. To this Tindale makes reference in the preface to his Parable of ihe Wicked Mammon published in 1528:% William Tyndale otherwise called Hychins to the reader Grace and peace with all maner spirituall fealinge and lyuinge worthy of the kyndnes of Chryst, be with the reader and with all that thurst the wyl of God Amen. The cause why I set my name before this lytle treatyse and haue not rather done it in the newe testament is that then I folowed the counsell of Chryst which exhirteth men Math. vi. to doo theyr good deades secretly and to be content with the conscience of welldoynge (and that god seeth vs) and paciently to abyde the rewarde of the last daye which Chryst hath purchased for vs and now wold fayne haue done lyke- wyse / but am compelled otherwyse to doo. Whyle I abode a faythful companyon which now hath taken an other vyage vpon him / to preach christ where (I suppose) he was neuer yet preached (God which put in his herte thyther to goo sende his sprite with him / comforte him and bringe his pur pose to good effecte) one William Roye a man somewhat craftye when he cometh vnto new acquayntaunce and before he be thorow knowen and namely when all is spent / came vnto me and offered his helpe. As long as he had no money / somwhat I could reule him: but as sone as he had goten him money / he became lyke hym selfe agayne. Neuerthelesse I suffered all thinges tyll yat was ended whych I coulde not doo alone wythout one both to wryte and to helpe me to compare ye textes together. When that was ended I toke my leue and bode him farewel for oure two lyues / and as men saye a daye longer. After we were departed he went / and gate him new frendes which thinge to doo he passeth all that euer I yet knewe. And there when he had stored hym of money he gote him to Argentine where he professeth wonderful faculties and maketh bost of no small thinges. . . . Some man wyl aske perauenture why I take ye laboure to make this worke, in as mooch as they will brunne it seynge they brunt the Gospel I answare, in brunninge the new testamente they dyd none other thynge then that I loked for / no more shall they do yf the brunne me also, yf it be gods wyli it shall so be. Neuerthelesse in translatynge the newe testamente I dyd my dutye / and so do I now / and wyll do as moch more as god hath ordered me to do. And as I offered that to all men to correcte it / who soeuer coulde, euen so doo I this. Who soeuer therfore readeth this / compare it vnto the scrypture. If gods worde beare recorde vnto it and thou also felest in thine herte that it is William Tindale 165 so be of good comfort and geve god thankes. Iff gods worde condemne it, then hold it acursed, and so do all other doctrines. As Paul counselleth his galathiens, Beleve not every spyrite sodenly, but iudge them by the worde of god which is the triall of all doctrine and lasteth for ever. Amen. Several editions of Tindale's Testament were issued by others than himself before he issued a revised version as contemplated in the address to the reader in the 1525 octavo. Some of these were tampered with in such a manner as to provoke his anger. It was 1534 before he issued another edition. In the meantime he had published the Pentateuch, 1530, and in the preface to Genesis he gives the reasons which moved him at first to translate the Testament: W. T. To the Reader. When I had translated the newe testament / I added a pistle vnto the latter ende / In which I desyred them yat were learned to amend if ought were founde amysse. But oure malicious and wylye hypocrytes which are so stubburne and hard herted in their weked abhominacions .that it is not possible for them to amend any thinge at all (as we see by dayly experience when their both lyvinges and doinges are rebuked with the trouth) saye / some of them that it is impossible to translate the scripture in to English / some that it is not lawfull for the laye people to have it in their mother tonge / some that it wold made them all heretykes / as it wold no doute from many thinges which they of longe tyme have falsly taught / and that is the whole cause wherfore they forbyd it / though they other clokes pretende. And some or rather every one / saye that it wold make them ryse ageynst the kinge / whom they them selves (vnto their damnatyon) never yet obeyed, And leste these temporall rulars shuld see their falsehod / if the scrip ture cam to light / causeth them so to lye. And as for my translation in which they afferme vnto the laye people (as I haue hearde saye) to be I wotte not how many thousande heresyes / so that it can not be mended or correcte / they haue yet taken so great payne to examyne it / and to com pare it vnto that they wold fayne haue it and to their awne imagi nations and iugglinge termes / and to haue some what to rayle at / and vnder that cloke to blaspheme the treuth / that they myght with as little laboure (as I suppose) haue translated the moste parte of the bible. For they which in tymes paste were wont to Ioke on no more scripture than they founde in their duns or soch like develysh doctryne / haue yet now so narowlye loked on my translatyon / that there is not so moch as one I therin if it 166 The Book of Books lacke a tytle over his hed / but they haue noted it / and nombre it vnto the ignorant people for an heresy. Fynallye in this they be all agreed / to dryve you from the knowlege of the scripture / and that ye shall not haue the texte therof in the mother tonge / and to kepe the world styli in darkenesse / to thentent they might sitt in the consciences of the people / thorow vayne superstition and false doctrine / to. satisfye their fylthy lustes / their proude ambition / and vnsatiable covetuousnes / and to exalte their awne honoure aboue kinge and emperoure / yee and aboue god him silfe. If A thousand bokes had they lever to be put forth agenste their abhominable doynges and doctrine / then that the scripture shulde come to light. For as longe as they may kepe that doune / they will so darken the ryght way with the miste of their sophis- trye / and so tangle them that either rebuke or despyse their abhominations with argumentes of philosophye and with worldly symylitudes and apparent reasons of naturall wisdom. And with wrestinge the scripture vnto their awne purpose clene contrarye vnto ye processe / order and meaninge of the texte / and so delude them in descantynge vppon it with alligoryes / and amase them expoundinge it in manye senses before the vnlerned laye people (when it hath but one simple litterall sense whose light the owles can not abyde) that though thou feale in thyne harte and arte sure how that all is false yat they saye / yet coudeste thou not solve their sotle rydles. If Which thinge onlye moved me to translate the new testa ment. Because I had perceaved by experyence / how that it was impossible to stablysh the laye people in any truth / except ye scripture were playnly layde before their eyes in their mother tonge / that they might se the processe / ordre and meaninge of the texte: for els what so ever truth is taught them / these enny- myes of all truth qwench it ageyne partly with the smoke of their bottomlesse pytte whereof thou readest apocalipsis. ix. that is / with apparent reasons of sophistrye and traditions of their awne makynge / founded with out grounde of scripture / and partely in iugglinge with the texte / expoundinge it in soch a sense as is impossible to gether of the texte / if thou see the processe ordre and meaninge thereof. 1f And even in the bisshope of londons house I entended to have done it. For when I was so turmoyled in the contre where I was that I coude no lenger there dwell (the processe whereof were to longe here to reherce) I this wyse thought in my silfe / this I suffre because the prestes of the contre be vnlearned / as god it knoweth there are a full ignorant sorte which haue sene no more latyn then that they read In their portesses and missales which yet many of them can scacely read (except it be Albertus de secretis mulierum in which yet/ though they be never so soryly lerned / they pore day and night and make notes therein and all to teach the mydwyves as they say / and linwod a boke of constitutions William Tindale 167 to gether tithes / mortuaryes / offeringes / customs / and other pillage / which they calle / not theirs but / godes parte and the deuty of holye chirch / to discharge their consciences with all: for they are bound that they shall not dimynysh, but encreace all thinge vnto the vttmost of their powers and therfore (because they are thus vnlerned thought I) when they come to gedder to the alehouse / which is their preachinge place / they afferme that my sainges are heresy. And besydes yat they adde to of thir owne heddes which I never spake / as the maner is to prolonge the tale to shorte the tyme with all / and accuse me secretly to the chauncelare and other the bishopes officers / And in deade when I cam before the chauncelare / he thretened me grevously / and revyled me and rated me as though I had bene a dogge / and layd to my charge wherof there coude be none accuser brought forth (as their maner is not to bringe forth the accuser) and yet all the prestes of ye contre were yat same daye there. As I this thought the bishope of London came to my remembrance whom Erasmus (whose tonge maketh of litle gnattes greate elephantes and lifteth vpp aboue the starres whosoeuer geveth him a litle exhibition) prayseth excedingly amonge other in his annotatyons on the new testament for his great learninge. Then thought I / if I might come to this mannes service / I were happye. And so I gate me to london / and thorow the accoyntaunce of my master came to sir harry gilford the kinges graces countroller / and brought him an oration of Isocrates which I had translated out of greke in to English / and desyred him to speake vnto my lorde of london for me / which he also did as he shewed me / and willed me to write a pistle to my lorde / and to goo to him my silf which I also did / and delivered my pistle to a servant of his awne / one wyllyam hebilthwayte, a man of myne old accoyntaunce. But god which knoweth what is within hypocrites / sawe that I was begyled / and that that councell was not the nexte way vnto my purpose. And therfore he gate me no favoure in my lordes sight. If Wherevppon my lorde answered me / his house was full / he had mo then he coude well finde / and advised me to seke in london / wher he sayd I coude not lacke a service / And so in london I abode almoste an yere / and marked the course of the worlde / and herde our pratars / I wold say oure preachers how they bosted them selves and their hye authorite / and beheld the pompe of oure prelates and how besyed they were as they yet are / to set peace and vnite in the worlde (though it be not possible for them that walke in darkenesse to continue longe in peace / for they can not but ether stomble or dash them selves at one thinge or a nother that shall clene vnquyet all togedder) and sawe thinges wherof I deferre to speake at this tyme and vnderstode at the laste not only that there was no rowme in my lorde of londons palace to translate the new testament / but also that there was no place to do it in all englonde / as experience doth now openly declare. 1 68 The Book of Books 1f Vnder what maner therfore shuld I now submitte this boke to be corrected and amended of them / which can suffer nothinge to be well? Or what protestacyon shuld I make in soch a matter vnto our prelates those stubburne Nimrothes which so mightely fight agenste god and resiste his holy spirite / enforceynge with all crafte and sotelte to qwench the light of the everlastinge testa ment / promyses / and apoyntement made betwene god and vs: and heapinge the firce wrath of god vppon all princes and rulars / mockinge them with false fayned names of hypocrysye / and servinge their lustes at all poyntes / and dispensinge with them even of the very lawes of god / of which Christe him silf testifieth Matthew, v. yat not so moch as one tittle thereof may perish or be broken. And of which the prophete sayth Psalme. cxviij. Thou haste commaunded thy lawes to be kepte meod / yat is in hebrew excedingly / with all diligence might and power / and haue made them so mad with their iugglinge charmes and crafty per suasions that they thinke it full satisfaction for all their weked lyvinge / to torment soch as tell them trouth / and to borne the worde of their soules helth and sie whosoever beleve theron. If Not withstondinge yet I submytte this boke and all other that I haue other made or translated, or shall in tyme to come (if it be goddes will that I shall further laboure in his hervest) vnto all them that submytte them selves vnto the worde of god / to be corrected of them / yee and moreover to be disalowed & also burnte / if it seme worthy when they have examyned it wyth the hebrue / so that they first put forth of their awne translatinge a nother that is more correcte. In the 1530 Pentateuch there was a prologue to each of the five books. Genesis and Numbers were printed in black letter; Exodus, Leviticus, and Deuteronomy in roman type. There were 11 woodcuts in Exodus, "the forme of Aaron with all his apparell," and objects in the tabernacle. There were some marginal notes of a strongly anti-Roman tendency. Altogether there were 384 leaves with folios. At the end of Genesis was the following colophon: Emprented at Marlborow, in the land of Hesse, by me Hans Luft, the yere of oure Lorde, M.ccccc.xxx, the xvij dayes of Januarii. It was doubtless Tindale's intention to translate the whole Bible, but besides the New Testament and the Penta teuch the only other portion published by him was Jonah, with the following title: The prophet Ionas, with an introduction before, teachinge to understande him and the right use also of all the scripture. William Tindale 169 He had, however, translated from Joshua to 2 Chron icles, the manuscript of which was used by John Rogers in preparing Matthew's Bible. An altered version of Tindale's was published by George Joye at Antwerp, August, 1534. The only copy known is in the Grenville collection at the British Museum. It had the following title: The new Testament as it was written and caused to be written by them which herde yt Whom also oure sauioure Christ Jesus commaunded that they shulde preach it vnto al creatures. This edition contained an "Almanack for 18 yeares" (1526-1543); a "Kalendar" of 12 pages, in black and red; and at the end a table to find the Epistles and Gospels after the use of "Sarysbuery," occupying 26 pages. There were 4 woodcuts, no prologues, and only one note. It was published without a name, and the colophon read: Here endeth the Newe Testament diligently ouersene and corrected and printed now agayn at Antwerpe by me Widowe of Christoffel of Endhoue In the yere of our Lorde. M.ccccc and iiij. in August. Tindale's revised edition appeared in November of the same year, 1534, in which Joye's edition appeared in August. The title-page, of which an illustration is here given, reads: The newe Testament dylygently corrected and compared with the Greke by Willyam Tindale: and fynesshed in the yere of oure Lorde God. A.M.D. & xxxiiij in the moneth of Nouember. There is an address, "W. T vnto the Reder," 17 pages; "A prologe into the iiii Euangelystes shewynge what they were & their auctoryte," 3^ pages (followed by a separate prologue to each ofthe gospels); "A warning to ye reader," concerning printer's errors that may be found, and calling attention to one "in the xxiii chapter of Matthew & in the xxxiii lefFe on the second syde and last lyne," ]A page; "Willyam Tindale yet once more to the christen reader" (in which he deals with the activities of George Joye), S}4 pages; after a blank page is a second title-page: "The Newe Testament, Imprinted at Antwerp by Marten Emper- our. Anno M. D. xxxiiij"; "The bokes conteyned in the Newe Testament"; the text, with 22 woodcuts to the Book 170 The Book of Books of Revelation and 17 in other parts, with quaint headings to the books such as: "The Actes of the Apostles wrytten by Saynte Luke Euangelist which was present at the doynges of them"; "Epistles taken oute of the olde Testament CSrte tie ttjeHeftament/aytylgmtlpcojrecte&antr compared tbttt) tjje| mtkt bv Willvam XinOateanD tptief* fljetiuttljeyeceofou re%oibt<$ob* in tftemonetb of Moutmbtv. TITLE-PAGE OF TINDALE'S 1534 TESTAMENT which are red in the church after the vse of Salsburye vpon certen dayes ofthe yere" and "The Epistles of the sayntes which are also taken oute ofthe olde Testament," 32 pages; William Tindale 171 "Table where in you shall fynde the Epistles and the Gos pels after the vse of Salsbury," 18 pages; "These things haue I added to fill vp the leffe with all" (being a few defini tions), 2 pages. There are in all 424 leaves. A further edition was published by Tindale, the text of which was printed in 1534 and the title added in 1535. The title-page was: •s^The newe Testament yet once agayne corrected by Willyam Tindale: Where vnto is added a Kalendar and a necessarye Table wherin easely and lightelye maye be founde any storye contayned in the foure Euangelistes and in the Actes of the Apostles. If Prynted in the yere of oure Lorde God. M.D. & xxxv. This was followed by "An Almanack for xxi years" (1535-1555) ; a "Kalendar" and "The office of all estates," 16 pages; "Willyam Tindale vnto the Christian Reader," 15 pages; "A prologe into the iiii Euangelistes wherein thou mayst lyghtly fynde any story conteyned in them" followed by "A table for the Actes," 20^ pages; a second title dated 1534, with monogram containing the initials G H; "The bokes conteyned in the newe Testament"; the text; the Epistles, after the use of Salisbury; a table to find the epistles and gospels — a total of 376 leaves, with notes and 36 woodcuts. There were altogether nine other editions in 1535 and 1536, and by 1566 more than forty editions had been issued. These are all minutely described in Francis Fry's handsome volume, published in 1878, A Bibliographical Description of the Editions of the New Testament, Tyndale's Version, I525~t566- Tindale was treacherously arrested May 23, 1535, and imprisoned in Vilvorde Castle, about 18 miles from Antwerp and 6 miles from Brussels. While there he labored diligently at his task of translation, and the only autograph of his extant is a letter written in Latin while he was imprisoned. It was found by Mr. Galesloot in the archives ofthe Council of Brabant and was first published by Demaus. In one place Tindale asks the governor to send him warmer clothing if he is to stay the winter there; and in another he asks for a candle in the evening, as it is wearisome to sit in the dark, and his Hebrew Bible, grammar, and dictionary that he may spend his time in study. 172 The Book of Books After sixteen months' imprisonment Tindale was first strangled and then burned at the stake on October 6, 1536. As he died his last words were a prayer, "Lord, open the King of England's eyes." Edwin Arber says in the conclusion of his introductory essay to the facsimile reproduction of the Grenville frag ment, published in 1871: Of the fruits of the English Scriptures who may sufficiently speak? One great tangible result has been the ennobling and perpetual elevating of the English character. Had the bishops stamped out the Bible, England would have been as Italy and Spain were, and much of the world's history would have been differently written. Hence the story of the English Bible is forever inter woven with the history of England and of the United States. The free Word of God has brought to us freedom of mind, of soul, and of estate; and we in this, as in so many other things, now inherit, without even a passing thought, principles and privileges which our forefathers often times purchased with their lives. May we in like manner be found faithful to all that is true and right in our day and generation, and hand down intact to our children the munificent gifts which we have received, for nothing, from our ancestors. What shall we say of the illustrious translator? Strange alchemy! by transmuting the thought of one language into the expression of another to free a people from ignorance, priestcraft, mental and spiritual serfdom. Yet by the grace of God so it was. Tyndale saw his life's work accomplished. Ere he was taken away the ploughboy came to know the Scriptures. James Anthony Froude has written: The peculiar genius which breathes through the English Bible, the mingled tenderness and majesty, the Saxon simplicity, the grandeur — unequalled, unapproached in the attempted im provement of modern scholars — all are here and bear the impress of the mind of one man and that man William Tyndale. Bishop Ellicott says of Tyndale's 1534 Testament, that it "will remain to the end of time a monument ofthe courage, patience, learning, competent scholarship, thorough faith fulness, and clear English sense of the noble hearted and devoted editor." In the preface to Bosworth and Waring's Gothic and Anglo-Saxon Gospels, published in London, 1865, the descent ofthe Authorized Version is thus stated: William Tindale 173 Our present English Version was based upon the Bishops' Bible of 1568, and that upon Cranmer's of 1539, which was a new edition of Matthew's Bible of 1537, partly from Coverdale of 1535, but chiefly from Tyndale; in other words, our present Authorized translation is mainly that of Tyndale made from the original Hebrew and Greek. VILVORDE CASTLE (From Demaus' "Life of Tindale." Courtesy ofthe Religious Tract Society) CHAPTER XI MYLES COVERDALE AND THE FIRST PRINTED ENGLISH BIBLE MYLES COVERDALE was born in the district of Coverdale, in the North Riding of Yorkshire-, in or about the year 1488. He was educated at Cambridge in an Augustinian monastery presided over by Dr. Barnes, who later was condemned as a heretic. While at Cambridge he studied diligently, possibly under Erasmus, and was pro ficient both in languages and in a knowledge of the Scrip tures. He also while there adopted the principles of the Reformers, and after leaving began to preach against some of the doctrines and practices of Rome. Because of the opposition this stirred he went to the continent about 1527 or 1529, but it is doubtful whether he ever met Tindale. Coverdale's zeal for Bible study is expressed in a letter which he wrote to Thomas Cromwell, who for a time was a great favorite of Henry VIII, but later fell under his dis pleasure and was executed. In that letter Coverdale said: Now I begin to taste of Holy Scriptures: now honour be to God ! I am set to the most sweet smell of holy letters, with the godly savor of holy and ancient doctors, unto whose knowledge I cannot attain without diversity of books, as is not unknown to your most excellent wisdom. Nothing in the world I desire but books, as concerning my learning; they once had, I do not doubt but Almighty God shall perform that in me, which he of his most plentiful favour and grace hath begun. When or where Coverdale did his work of translation is not known, but in 1535 he sent forth the first complete English printed Bible, including both Old and New Testa ments and Apocrypha. The place of printing is not known certainly, but it is supposed to have been printed by (174) Myles Coverdale 175 Froschouer at Zurich. It is important to note that in 1534 Henry VIII had broken with Rome and been recog nized as the head of the church in England. In I53°> influenced doubtless by the attitude of the prelates toward Tindale's New Testament, Henry VIII had MYLES COVERDALE (From an engraving In the 1838 reprint of Coverdale's 1535 Bible) caused it to be known, as quoted by Westcott, from Wilkin's Concilia, that he by the advice and deliberation of his council, and the agreement of great learned men, thinketh in his conscience that the divulging of this Scripture at this time in the English tongue to be committed 176 The Book of Books to the people, should rather be to the further confusion and dis traction than the edification of their souls. But the work of translation and publication had begun, and no ecclesiastical or regal power could stop it. In 1534, at a Convocation at Canterbury presided over by Cranmer, it was resolved to petition the king to vouchsafe to decree that a translation of the Scriptures into English should be made by certain honest and learned men whom the king should nominate; and that the Scriptures so translated should be delivered to the people according to their learning. This, however, had no tangible result. Coverdale's Bible was issued with the title: BIBLIA The Bible / that is, the holy Scripture of the Olde and New Testament, faithfully and truly translated out of Douche and Latyn in to Englishe. m.d.xxxv. S. Paul II Tessa. III. Praie for vs, that the worde of God maie;haue fre passage, and be glorified. &ct. S. Paul Col. III. Let the worde of Christ dwell in you plenteously in all wysz- dome. &ct. Josue I. Let not the boke of this lawe departe out of thy mouth, but exercyse thyselfe therin daye and nighte. &ct. Coverdale's 1535 Bible was published complete, in 1838, by Bagster, the reprint being made from a copy in the library of the Duke of Sussex. The illustration here given is from that reprint. It will be noted that only one of the three verses is in this copy. The title pages differ considerably in the various copies, and in those which have the three verses there is also a Latin inscription on each side between the panels. The title-page may be described thus: At the top in the center is the sun with the Hebrew name Yahweh from which radiates the word of God. On the left are Adam and Eve and the tree of knowledge in which the serpent is intertwined, and, on a scroll, " In what daye so euer thou eatest thereof, thou shalt dye. Genesis 2." On the right is the risen Christ (Mathe 28), with the words, " This is my deare sonne in vhom I delyte, heare him. Matt. 17." In the bottom panel, in the center, is Henry VIII, seated on his throne, with the royal arms beneath his feet. At the left the bishops are presenting to Myles Coverdale 177 him the Bible and at the right the peers are kneeling. Behind the bishops is David with his harp, and on a scroll, " O how swete are thy wordes vnto my throte: yee more then hony &c. Psal. 118." Behind the peers is the apostle Paul, and, on a scroll, " I am not ashamed of the Gospell of christ for it is the power of TITLE-PAGE OF COVERDALE'S BIBLE, 1535 {From the copy in the possession of the Duke of Sussex, from uhich the 18S8 reprint was made) 178 The Book of Books god Ro. i." On the left side is Moses with the tables of the law (Exo. 21), and, below, Ezra reading the law (Esdre 9). On the right side Jesus is speaking to the disciples (Marci 16), and, below, the apostle Peter addressing the multitudes (Actwm 2). An act had been passed that books printed abroad must be sent to England in sheets that the English binders might profit by binding them. So it was possible to change the title-pages and introductory matter in different copies. The words "Douche and Latyn" were objectionable to the clergy, so they were left out in later copies. The earliest copies did not contain a dedication to the king, but the later ones did. Some early copies mentioned "queen Anne" as the king's "dearest just wife, and most virtuous pryncesse"; in later ones "Jane" was substituted. James Nycholson, of Southwark, London, printed the new preliminary pages, and in 1537 printed an edition with a line on the title-page, "Set foorth with the Kynges moost gracious licence." There are no perfect copies of the first edition extant, but a very fine example is in the New York Public Library. It once belonged to Lord Hampton's library and later to J. J. Astor. It is printed in black letter, with roman type to distinguish parts now printed in italics. It is a small quarto with references at the side and with paragraph letters. It is printed in two columns, with many quaint woodcuts. There are separate title-pages to the "Prophetes," set before Isaiah; to the "Apocripha"; to the New Testament; each of which has three rows of three panels, the top and bottom being allegorical, and the middle row having the names of the books in the center and conventional designs at tbe sides. In the center panel of the. title to the Apocrypha the wording is as follows: APOCRIPHA The bokes and treatises which amonge the fathers of olde are not rekened to be of like authorite with the other bokes of the byble, nether are they foiide in the Canon of the Hebrue. The thirde boke of Eszdras. The fourth boke of Eszdras. The boke of Tobias. The boke of Judith. Certayne chapters of Hester. Myles Coverdale 179 The boke of Wyszdome. Ecclesiasticus. The Storye of Susanna. The Storye of Bell. The first boke of the Machabees. The seconde boke of the Machabees. Vnto these also belongeth Baruc, whom we haue set amoge the prophetes, next vnto Jeremy, because he was his scrybe, and in his tyme. The Song of Solomon is headed, "Salomon's Balettes." The colophon is as follows : Prynted in the yeare of oure LORDE M.D. xxxv. and fyn- eshed the fourth daye of October. The Dedication and Prologue are as follows: KYNGE HENRY THE EYGHT, KYNGE OF ENGLONDE AND OF FRAUNCE, LORDE OF IRLONDE &C DEFENDOUR OF THE FAYTH, AND VNDER GOD THE CHEFE AND SUP- PREME HEADE OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLONDE. % The ryght y iust administracyon of the lawes that God gaue vnto Moses and vnto Iosua: the testimonye of faythfulnes that God gaue of Dauid: the plenteous abundance of wysdome that God gaue vnto Salomon: the lucky and prosperous age with the multiplicacyon of sede whiche God gaue vnto Abraham and Sara his wyfe, be geue vnto you most gracyous Prynce, with your dearest iust wyfe, and most vertuous Pryncesse, Quene Anne, Amen. Caiphas beynge bysshope of that yeare, lyke a blynde prophete (not vnderstandyng what he sayd) prophecied, that it was better to put Christ vnto death, then that all the people shulde perysshe: he meanyng, that Christ was an heretike, a deceauer of the people, & a destroyer of the lawe, and that it was better therfore to put Christ vnto death, tha to suffre hym for to lyue, and to deceaue the people. &c. where in very dede Christ was the true prophete, the true Messias, and the onely true Sauiour of the worlde, sent of his heauenly father to suffre the moste cruell, most shamefull, and most necessary death for our redempcyon: accordyng to ye meanynge of the prophecie truely vnderstonde. Euen after the same maner ye blynde bysshoppe of Rome, (that blynde Baalam I saye) not vnderstondynge what he dyd, gaue vnto your grace this tytle: Defendour of the fayth, onely bycause your hyghnes suffred your bysshoppes to burne Gods worde the rote of fayth, and to persecute the louers and mynisters of ye same, where in very dede the blynde bysshoppe (though he 180 The Book of Books knewe not what he dyd) prophecied, that by the ryghteous admyn- istracyon and contynuall diligence of youre grace, the fayth shulde so be defended, that Gods worde the mother of Fayth with the frutes therof, shulde haue his fre course thorowe out all Christen- dome, but specyally in your realme. Yf your hyghnesse now of your pryncely benignite wyll pardon me to compare these two bysshoppes (I meane bysshoppe Caiphas and the bysshoppe of Rome) & theyr prophecies together, I doute not but we shal fynde them agree lyke brethren, though the one be a Iewe and the other a counterfayte Christian. Fyrst, Caiphas prophecied that it was better to put Christ vnto death, then that the people shulde perysshe. The bysshoppe of Rome also, not knowynge what he prophecied, gaue youre grace this tytle: Defendour of the fayth. The trueth of both these prophecies is of the holy goost (as was Baalams prophecie) though they that spake the, knewe not what they sayd. The trueth of Caiphas prophecie is, that it was necessary for mans saluacyon, that Christ by his death shulde ouercome death, and redeme vs. And the trueth of oure Baalams prophecie is, yl your grace in very dede shulde defende the Fayth, Yee euen the true fayth of Christ, no dreames, no fables, no heresie, no papisticall inuencious, but the vncorrupte fayth of Gods most holy worde, which to set forth (praysed be the goodness of God, and increace youre gracyous purpose) your hyghnes with youre most honorable councell, applyeth all his studye and endeuoure. These two blynde bysshopes now agree in ye vnderstadyng of theyr prophecies: for Caiphas taketh Christ for an heretike, Oure Balaa taketh the worde of Christ for heresie. Caiphas iudjeth it to be a good dede to put Christ vnto death, that he shulde not deceaue the people. Oure Balaam calleth defendynge of the fayth, the suppressyng, kepyng secrete, and burnyng of the worde of fayth: lest the lyght thereof shulde vtter his darknes: lest his owne Decretales & Decrees, his owne lawes and constitucions, his owne statutes and inuencious shulde come to none effecte: lest his intollerable exactions and vsurpacions shoulde lose theyr strengthe: lest it shulde be knowen what a thefe and murtherer he is in the cause of Christ, and how haynous a traytoure to God and man in defraudynge all Christen kynges & princes of theyr due obedience: lest we your graces subiectes shulde haue eyes in the worde of God, at the last to spye out his crafty conueyauce and iuglynges: and lest men shulde se, how sore he and his false Apostles haue deceaiied all Christendome, specyally youre noble realme of Englonde. Thus your grace seyth how brotherly the Iewysh bysshoppe and oure Balaam agree together, not onely in myter and outwarde appearaunce: but as the one persecuted the Lorde Iesus in his owne persone, so doth the other persecute his worde and resysteth his holy ordynaunce in the auctorite of his anoynted kynges. For Myles Coverdale 181 so moche nowe as the worde of God is the onely trueth that dryueth awaye all lyes, and discloseth all iuglyng and disceate, therefore is oure Balaam of Rome so lothe that the scripture shulde be knowe in the mother tonge: lest yf kynges and prynces (specially aboue all other) were exercysed therein, they shulde reclame and chalenge agayne theyr due auctorite, which he falsely hath vsurped so many yeres, and so to tye hym shorter: and lest the people beyng taught by the worde of God, shulde fall from ye false fayned obediece of hym and his disguysed Apostles, vnto the true obedience com manded by Gods owne mouthe: as namely, to obey theyr prynce, to obey father and mother. &c. and not to steppe ouer father and mothers bely to enter in to his paynted religions, as his ypocrites teache: For he knoweth well ynough, that yf the cleare Sonne of Gods worde come ones to the heate of the daye, it shal dryue awaye all the foule myst of his deuelysh doctrines. Therefore were it more to the mayntenaunce of Antichristes kyngdome, that the worlde were styli in ignoraunce and blyndnes, and that the scripture shulde neuer come to lyghte. For the scripture (both in the olde testament and in the new) declareth most aboiitdauntly that the office, auctorite and power geuen of God vnto kynges, is in earth aboue all other powers: let them call the selues Popes, Cardynalles, or what so euer they will, the worde of god declareth them (yee and commaundeth them vnder payne of dampnacion) to be obedient vnto the temporall swerde: As in the olde Testa ment all the prophetes, Prestes and Leuites were. And in the new Testament Christ & his Apostles both were obedient them selues, and taught obedience of all men vnto theyr prynces ad temporall rulers: which here vnto vs in the worlde present the persone of God, and are called Goddes in the scripture, bycause of the excellecy of theyr office. And though there were no mo auctorities but the same, to proue the peminence of the temporall swerde, Yet by this the scripture declareth playnly, that as there is nothyng aboue God, so is there no man aboue the kynge in his realme but that he onely vnder God is the chefe heade of all the cogregacyon and church of the same. And in token that this is true, there hath ben of olde antiquite (and is yet vnto this daye) a louynge ceremonye vsed in your realme of Englonde, y* wha your graces subiectes reade your letters, or begynne to talke or come of your hyghnes, they moue theyr bonettes for a signe & token of reuerence vnto your grace, as to their most soueraigne lorde & heade vnder God. which thyng no man vseth to do to eny bysshoppe. whereby (yf oure vnderstondying were nat blynded) we myght euydently perceaue, that euen very nature teacheth ys the same, that scripture cSmaudeth vs: and that lyke as it is agaynst Gods worde that a kynge shulde not be the chefe heade of his people, euen so (I saye) is it agaynst kynde that we shulde knowe any other heade aboue hym vnder God. And that no prest nor bysshoppe is exempte (nor can be law fully) from the obedience of his prynce, the scripture is full both 182 The Book of Books of strayte c5maundemetes, & practises of the holyest men. Aaron was obedient vnto Moses, and called hym his lorde, though he was his owne brother. Eleasar and Phineas were vnder the obediece of Iosua. Nathan the prophete fell downe to the grounde before kynge Dauid, he had his Prynce in such reuerence (He made not the kynge for to kysse his fote as the bysshope of Rome maketh Emperours to do) Notwithstondynge he spared not to rebuke hym, and that ryght sharply when he fell from the worde of God to adultery & manslaughter. For he was not afrayed to reproue hym of his sinnes, nomore than Helyas the prophete stode in feare to saye vnto kynge Achab: It is thou and thy father's house that trouble Israel, because ye have forsaken ye commaundementes of the Lorde, and walke after Baal. And as Johan Baptyste durst saye vnto Kynge Herode: It is not lawful for the to take thy brothers wyfe. But to my purpose I passe ouer innumerable mo ensaples both of the olde Testament and of the new, for feare lest I be to tedyous vnto your grace. Suma, in all godly regiments of olde tyme the kynge and teporall iudge was obeyed of euery man, and was alwaye vnder God the chefe and suppreme heade of the whole congregacyon, and deposed euen prestes whan he sawe an vrgent cause, as Salomon dyd vnto Abiathar. who coulde then stonde agaynst the godly obedience of his prynce (excepte he wolde be at defyaunce with God and all his holy ordinaunces) that were well acquaynted with the holy scripture, which so earn estly comendeth vnto euery one of vs the auctorite and power geuen of God vnto kynges and temporall rulers ? Therefore doth Moses so strately forbyde the Israelites to speake so moche as an euell worde agaynst the prynce of ye people, moche lesse than to disobeye hym, or to withstonde hym. Doth not Ieremy the proph ete and Baruc also exhorte the people in captiuite, to praye for the prosperous welfare of the kynge of Babilon, and to obeye hym, though he was an infidele? In the new Testament wha oure sauioure Christ (beyng yet fre & Lorde of al kynges & prynces) shewed his obedience in payenge the trybute to oure ensample, dyd he not a miracle there in puttynge the pece of money in the fysshes mouth (that Peter myght paye the customer therwith) and all to stablysshe the obedience due vnto prynces? Dyd not Ioseph and Mary the mother of our sauiour Christ departe fro Nazareth vnto Bethlee, so farre from home, to showe theyr obedi ence in payenge the taxe to the prynce? And wolde not oure Savioure be borne in the same obedience? Doth not Paule pro nounce hym to resyste God hym selfe, that resysteth the auctorite of his prynce? And (to be shorte) the Apostle Peter dothe not onely stablysshe the obedience vnto prynces and temporall rulers but affirmeth playnly the kynge (and no bysshoppe) to be the chefe heade. Innumerable places mo are there in scripture, which bynde vs to the obedience of oure prynce, and declare vnto vs, that no man is nor can be lawfully excepte from the same: but Myles Coverdale 183 that all the mynisters of Goddes worde are vnder the teporall swerde: & Prynces onely to owe obedience vnto God & his worde. And where as Antichrist vnto youre graces tyme dyd thrust his heade into ye imperiall crowne of your hyghnes (as he doth yet with other noble prynces mo) that learned he of Satha the authour of pryde, and therin doth he both agaynst the doctryne & also agaynst ye ensample of Christe: whiche because his k)t'l. 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Unbc of(SilMbwito©4ii/.:«b ul tlepbtillv/siib ibetanbeof iEplciUiii mtb l!lii«ffi {011b M nto ti>e f mr«io|l I -c 'MS toiwrbe tjle^oiitb/ a tbercitiSef ibrpliine cf3trio,*bei:ytieoftbc p,tlflte rrens/cutu - rr.ro 5oar.3irjt!x:'t«J'> ffl-b«i» bfitu ff{luM»?l»^erb.«3roMl-evllto^!':obiInl/ 3)i.tc Mb 3«oW4nb feb:3 »" f IC «*W tJttyfebr -CbouUilff(aK>»,w>t!w,K »oe,'w)»^rij-re«tri SFt fe* f iiiinilier: tTlv |cr' £< \M ii.-.,iiirUlo|'coiefee,/Dp -^j tiolf/flijooiicrlbio 0<-' ban.;/lbom;iib-llt!)ii>pc.'p!e into fbc bilbi „ tb.ir3boiietieiientb'eb*.:mof3|rarl.1 Bl - Ae placet, lb.ii f (Occ- cf y our (":« ft o'_ trwbi vpou/bJiie3,ttjien I'nroyoii. 3d 3 ffiybe itt.ip'. A PAGE OF COVERDALE'S BIBLE (From "The Biblical World") euen thyselfe: yf thou hate her, thou hatest thine awne flesh: yf thoucherishe her and make moch of her, thou chensest & makest moch of thyselfe, for she is bone of thy bones, & flesh of thy flesh. And who so euer thou be that hast children, bryng them vp in 194 The Book of Books the nurtour and informacion of the Lorde. And yf thou be ignor- aunt, or art otherwyse occupied lawfully that thou canst not teach them thy selfe, then be euen as diligent to seke a good master for thy childre, as thou wast to seke a mother to beare them: for there lieth as great weight in the one as in ye other. Yee better it were for the to be vnborne, then not to feare God, or to be euel brought vp. which thynge (I meane bryngynge vp well of chil dren) yf it be diligently loked to, it is the vpholdinge of all comon welthes: and the negligence of the same, the very decaye of all realmes. Fynally, who so euer thou be, take these wordes of scripture in to thy herte, and be not onely an outwarde hearer, but a doer therafter, and practyse thyselfe therin: that thou mayest fele in thine hert, the swete promyses therof for thy consolacion in all trouble, & for the sure stablyshinge of thy hope in Christ, and haue euer an eye to ye wordes of scripture, that yf thou be a teacher of other thou mayest be within the boundes of the trueth, or at the leest though thou be but an hearer or reader of another mans doynges, thou mayest yet haue knowlege to iudge all spretes, and be fre from euery erroure, to the vtter destruccion of all sedicious sectes & straunge doctrynes, that the holy scrypture maye haue fre passage, and be had in reputacion, to the worshippe of the author therof, which is euen God himselfe: to whom for his most blessed worde be glory & domynion now & euer. Amen. It is not known certainly who the "five sundry inter preters" referred to by Coverdale are, but they are generally supposed to be: Zwingli's Swiss German version of 1527, Luther's German New Testament of 1522 and perhaps Old Testament of 1534, Pagninus' Latin of 1527, Jerome's Vulgate, and Tindale's New Testament and Pentateuch. In 1538 Coverdale published a revised edition of the New Testament with the Latin of the Vulgate alongside the English. The following specimens of Coverdale's translation will serve for comparison with other versions: Psalm 2: Why do the Heithe grudge? why do the people ymagyn vayne thinges? The kynges of the earth stode vp, and the rulers are come together, agaynst the LORDE ad agaynst his anoynted. Let vs breake their bondes a sunder, and cast awaye their yocke from vs. Neuerthelesse, he that dwelleth in heauen, shall laugh the to scorne: yee euen the LORDE himselff shall haue them in derision. Then shal he speake vnto them in his wrath, and vexe them in his sore dispeasure. Yet haue I set my kynge vpon my holy hill of Sion. As for me I will preache the Myles Coverdale 195 lawe, whereof the LORDE hath sayde vnto me: Thou art my sonne, this daye haue I begotten the. Desyre off me, and I shall geue the the Heithen for thine enheritaunce, Yee the vttemost partes of the worlde for thy possession. Thou shalt rule them with a rodde of yron, and breake the in peces like an erthen vessell. Be wyse now therefore (o ye kynges) be warned, ye that are iudges of the earth. Serue the LORDE with feare, and reioyce before him with reuerence. Kysse the sonne, lest the LORDE be angrie, and so ye perish from the right waye. For his wrath shalbe kindled shortly: blessed are all they that put their trust in him. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6): O oure father which art in heauen, halowed be thy name. Thy kyngdome come. Thy wyll be fulfilled vpon earth as it is in heauen. Geue vs this daye oure dayly bred. And forgeue vs oure dettes, as we also forgeue oure detters. And lede vs not in to teptacion: but delyuer vs from euell. For thyne is the kyngdome, and the power, and the glorye for euer. Amen. Heb. ii : By faith he helde Easter, and the effusion of bloude. Psa. 1 1 (which is Psa. 23 in modern versions) : Thy staffe & thy shepehoke coforte me. Judges 9 : 53 : But a woman cast a pece of a mylstone vpon Abimelechs heade, and brake his brane panne. Job 30: They were the children of fooles & vylanes, which are deed awaye fro the worlde. Now am I their songe, & am become their iestinge stocke. they abhorre me, they fie farre fro me & stayne my face wl spetle. We shall have occasion to consider Coverdale again in connection with some other English Bibles, but a few details of his life may conveniently be stated here. He was in Paris in connection with the printing of the Great Bible in 1538, but came back to England to complete it. A few years later he again went to the continent, and while at Bergza- bern married, served as pastor, and taught school. After the accession of Edward VI, I547> he returned to England and was made Bishop of Exeter, but in Mary's reign was again obliged to flee to the continent. He was with the Reformers at Geneva in 1557, but in 1559 again returned to England. He was given the living of St. Magnus' Church, London, which he resigned in 1566. He died in 1569. His was the honor of giving to the English people the first printed complete Bible. CHAPTER XII MATTHEW'S BIBLE AND TAVERNER'S BIBLE MATTHEW'S BIBLE was issued in 1537, but who Thomas Matthew was is a matter of speculation. If he was an actual person of that name who had an important part in the publication of the Bible that bears his name, nothing more is known of him than that. The usual opinion is, however, that the name is an assumed one, used by John Rogers, the real reviser, to hide his identity on account of the general prejudice against Tindale (of whose version Matthew's Bible was a substantial reproduction in the por tions Tindale translated), and because his personal relations with Tindale would be likely to add to that prejudice in relation to his own work. The title page was as follows: If The Byble, whych is all the Holy Scripture: In whych are contayned the Olde and Newe Testament truly and purely trans lated into Englysh by Thomas Matthew. Esaye i. K^Hearchento ye Heauens and thou earth geaue eare: For the Lorde speaketh. M.D. XXXVII. Set forth with the Kinges most gracyous lycece. John Rogers is notable as the first Protestant martyr put to death in the reign of Mary — on February 4, 1555. He was born at Deritend, Birmingham, about the year 1500. The author of this volume was born at Birmingham, and having spent more than thirty years there is familiar with the associations of "the Deritend Martyr" with St. John's Church. The present vicar, Rev. J. A. Morgan, has sup plied the illustration which is here given and sent a clipping from the Birmingham Daily Mail recording the celebration of the 365th anniversary of the martyr's death, February 4. (196) Matthew's Bible 197 1920, in which some details are given of Rogers' life and martyrdom. John Rogers was educated at Cambridge and took his B.A. degree in 1525. After several years as a rector in London he went to Antwerp about 1534, was chaplain to the English Merchant Adventurers, and became acquainted with Tindale. He brought out his edition of the Bible in 1537 and in the same year married Adriana Pratt, of Bra bant. He had by this time become thoroughly Protestant. He remained on the continent until 1548, when he returned to England, shortly after the death of Henry VIII and the accession of Edward VI. In May, 1550, he was presented with the rectory of St. Margaret Moyses and the vicarage This Monument was erected Oct. 25th, 1883, by Public Subscription, in grateful memory of John Rogers, M.A. Born in Deritend, A. D. 1500. Trans lator in part and Reviser of Matthew's Bible, Placed by Authority in all Churches, 1537. He was leader also of the Noble Army of Martyrs of Queen Mary's Reign, and was burnt in Smith- field, London, A. D. 1555. J. W. Smith, S. Smith, Wardens; W. C. Badger, M.A., Minister. \ JOHN ROGERS A bust in St. John's Church. Deritend of St. Sepulchre's, London, and in 1551 was promoted by Bishop Ridley to be a prebendary of St. Paul's. After the accession of Mary he preached frequent ser mons against the Roman Church, and on one occasion, as he preached at St. Paul's Cross, the queen herself passed and heard his denunciations. He was brought before the Council, but dismissed. In 1553 he was ordered by the Council to keep within his own house, but later was removed to Newgate prison. He was brought a third time before the Council and condemned to death, the presiding bishop being Gardiner, styled by Rogers "the bloody bishop of Winchester." As he was led from Newgate to be burned at the stake in Smithfield he was asked to recant. He replied, "That which I have preached I will seal with my 198 The Book of Books blood"; and to the sheriff's remark, "Then thou art a heretic," he answered, "That will be known when we meet at the judgment-seat of Christ." His wife and eleven chil dren sought to bid him farewell as he went to Smithfield, but the sheriff would not permit them to speak to him. As he was chained to the stake he said God would vindicate the truth of what he had taught, and urged the onlookers to be true to the Protestant faith. Roger's Bible was a revision of Tindale's and Cover- dale's, and though no name is given in the colophon it was in all probability printed at Antwerp by Jacob van Meteren and published by Grafton and Whitchurch. THOMAS CROMWELL (From Lovetl's "Printed English Bible." Courtesy ofthe Religious Tract Society) Archbishop Cranmer, on being shown a copy, was so pleased with it that he approached Cromwell with a view to getting the king to issue a "license that the same may be sold and redde of every person withoute danger of any acte, proclamation or ordinaunce hertofore graunted to the con trary," and he added, in reference to the request that had been made by the Convocation of Canterbury that the king should appoint learned men to make a translation, "untill such tyme that we the Bishops shall set forth a better translation, which I thinke will not be till a day after Domesday." Concerning the translation itself he said, Matthew's Bible 199 "So farre as I haue redde therof I like it better than any other translation hertofore made." The license was granted, as the title-page on some copies shows. A note in the copy in the New York Public Library says that it combines the best work of Tindale and Cover- dale and is generally considered the real primary version of the English Bible. The title-page is printed in red and black and the word ing is set in a fine woodcut representing the Garden of Eden at the left and the crucifixion of Jesus at the right. At the bottom is an allegorical design in two parts representing death as victor and death vanquished. On the back of the title-page is a summary of contents headed, "These thynges ensuynge are ioyned with thys present volume of the Byble." "The Kalendar and Alman ack for xviij yeares," from 1538, occupies 4 pages; "An exhortacyon to the studye of the holy Scrypture gathered oute ofthe Byble," 3 pages: the dedication to Henry VIII, 3 pages; "To the Chrysten Readers. The summe and content of all the holy Scrypture both of the Olde and New Testament. A table for to fynde many of the cheafe and pryncipall matters conteyned in the Byble," 26 pages; "The names of all the bokes of the Byble /wyth the con tent of the Chapters / and in what leafe euery boke begyn- neth," part of a page; "A bref rehersall declarynge how longe the worlde hath endured from the creacyon of Adam vnto thys present yeare of oure Lorde m.d. xxxvii"; "And in the Marget of the boke are there added many playne exposycyons of soch places as vnto the symple and vnlearned seame harde to vnderstande." A full-page woodcut, the Garden of Eden, faces Gene sis 1, and there are many woodcuts in the book. The text is divided into four sections, with separate title-pages. At the bottom ofthe first page ofthe "exhortacyon" are orna mental initials, about two inches square, I R, and at the end of the dedication similar initials H R. The title-page to the Apocrypha reads: The volume of the bokes called Apocripha Contayned in the comen Transl. in Latyne whych are not founde in the Hebrue nor in the Chalde. 200 The Book of Books TITLE-PAGE OF MATTHEW'S BIBLE, 1537 (From the copy in the New York Public Library) Matthew's Bible 201 The Apocrypha in Matthew's Bible contains Baruch, the Song ofthe Three Children, and the Prayer of Manasseh in addition to those in the "Apocripha" of Coverdale's edition. The New Testament title-page reads: The newe Testament of our sauyour Jesu Christ / newly and dylygently translated into Englyshe with Annotacions in the Mergent to helpe the Reader to the vnderstandynge of the Texte. Prynted in the yere of oure Lorde God. M. d. xxxvii. At the end ofthe book is a table "Wherein ye shall fynde the Epistles and the gospels / after the vse of Salisbury." The colophon reads : The ende of the newe Testament and of the whole Byble. To the honoure and prayse of God was this Byble prynted and fynesshed in the yere of oure Lorde God a, m.d. xxxvii." The Song of Solomon is headed: "The Ballets of Solo mon: called in Latyne Canticu Canticorum." The dedication is as follows: To the moost noble and gracyous Prynce Kyng Henry the eyght / kyng of England and of Fraunce / Lorde of Ireland &c. Defender of the faythe: and vnder God the chefe and supreme head of the church of Engeland. It hath bene vsed of olde auncyent custome (most redoubted and prudent Prynce) to dedycate soche bokes as men put forth in to lyght (whether they be made of their awne industrye and proper wyttes / or translated forthe of one language in to another) to some noble Prynce / Kynge or Emperour / or otherwyse excel lent in byrth or renowne: to thyntet that the worck myght frelyer and boldelyer be occupyed in the hades of men / as a thynge hauyng sauecondet & beyng put in to the tuicyon of the Prynce / vnto whom it is offred & dedycate. This custome not onely aunciet but also laudable / haue youre syngular and rare gyftes in worldly regyment / and the vertuous and Godly moderacion of mayntenynge true preachers for the inducynge of your symple subiectes to the syncerytie and purenes of Christes Gospell: with the other many folde and syngular vertues / wherwyth the Prynce of Prynces hath indued your hyghnes / encoraged me to embrace. For vnto whom or in to whose proteccyon shulde the defence of soch a worck be soner comytted (wherin are contayned the infal- lyble promeses of mercy in the olde testament prefygured & in the newe fulfylled / wyth the whole summe of Christyanitye) then vnto his maiestye / which not onely by name and tytle / but most 202 The Book of Books euydently & openly / most Christenly & with most Godly pollicye / dothe professe the defence thereof? The want of lernynge / The obscureness & lownes of byrth / The lack of youre graces knowledge &c. shuld haply haue vtterly forbydden me / to haue interprysed the dedycacion herof to so puyssant a Prynce: But the experience of youre graces benygnyte / wherthroughe youre prayse is renoumed and hyghly magnifyed / euen amoge straungers and alyentes / not alone amoge your awne subiectes / The Godly moderacion of youre heuenly polycye / wherwith ye suppresse supersticyon and mayntene true holynes / inflameth me to some part of boldenes: Specyally syth the thyng which I dedycate is soch as your grace studyeth dayly to forther. In which studye & endeuoure he cotynewe you / whych hath moued you to so holesome a purpose: and geue the same dylygence vnto other Christen Prynces and forren potentates / that he hath breathed & instyled in to your breaste. For the cheafe & pryncypall thyng appartaynynge to Prynces & nobles (which thyng it is good to se that your grace doth well consyder) is: to defende / forther / set oute & augment the knowl edge of God. Moses ye faythfull seruant of the Lorde / prophecy- ing by ye sprete y* Israel shulde haue a Kynge / comaunded : that he ones set on ye seat of his kyngdome / shulde reade the seconde lawe (meanynge the boke of Deuteronomye) all the dayes of his lyfe: to thyntent that he myght learne to feare the Lorde his God / for to kepe all the wordes of his lawe & ordynaunces / and that he shulde not returne from the commaundement ether to the right hand or to the left. He perceaued / vndoubted that yf the Prynce him selfe were so affectuously anymated vnto the kepynge of the lawe / as he is there expresly comaunded : it shulde not a lytell inflame hym to an ardent and burnyng zeale of settyng out Goddes glorye / in fortherynge the thynges in that lawe expressed : And knewe what wholsome and Godly lawes soche a kynge wolde indeuoure hym selfe to enstablyshe / by which the lawe of God myght the better be obserued / & the largelyer and farther sprynge abroade: And saw right well that soch a Prynce coulde not but will his subiectes to reade & folowe all the poyntes of that lawe / which he himselfe was so strayghtly bounde both to kepe & reade. Further in that he willeth the Kynges of Israel / not ones to swarue from the lawe of the Lorde ether to the ryght hande or to the left / he instructeth them / to fulfyll the worde of God playnly / purely / without superstycion : not to be exalted thorou prosperytye / ner deiecte in aduersytye: to cleaue and leane vnto the worde of God in tyme of glorye & renoune / and in tyme of dishonoure and ignomynie to amplyfye ryghtwesnes & to loue veritye: which thinges sene in ye nobylytie / adde no smal sporre vnto the comens to imitate & follow the same. Yee they so worck in ye hertes of the noble / that they be enforced what by ensample of lyfe / & by pollytyke ordynaunces to ye vse inuented / to allure soche as Matthew's Bible 203 be vnder their subieccyo to ye performaunce thereof. That Moses there comaundeth vnto the kynges of Israel / partayneth vnto all ye Prynces of the Christen name. That he there calleth the lawe is to vs the holy scripture & worde of ye most holy & myghtie God. Unto prynces (euery one in his dominion) belongeth the amply- fiynge therof / as of the rote of all Godlynes. Now in as moche as the Lord hath raysed you vp before other prynces of oure tyme / most earnestly to hearcken vnto this cSmaundement of his seruaunt Moses / & to attempt the thynges that do not a lytel auauce Goddes glorye: & hath also opened your eyes to se the falsheed of the subtell and the innocency of the Godly: to note the wylynes of the chyldren of this worlde / & the symplycitye of the holv: to extyrp & abolyshe enorme & fylthy abuses / and in their steades to rote & fyre the ryght / true / & parfect doctryne of Christian- ytie: ther is founde no man /vnto whom ye translacyon of the Lordes lawe can so worthely be offred and dedycate as vnto your most gracyous highnesse. For I nothing mystrust but that it shal most acceptably come in to your most fauourable & sure proteccyon. Therof doth your peculyar desyre of fortheryng soche lyke Iaboures sufficiently assure me. It is no vulgare or comen thynge which is offred in to your graces protecci5 / but the blessed worde of God : which is euerlastyng & ca not fayle / though heaue & earth shuld perish. So precious a thynge requyreth a singular good patrone & defendar / & findeth no nother vnto who the defence therof may so iustly be comitted as vnto your graces maiestye. It is ye lawe of the celestiall King which ruleth all thynges with a beck / & yet is it some tyme greatly forthered or hyndered by the ayde & hyndrauce of earthly & worldly prynces. Long & oft was it obscured & darckened / yee & in maner cleane abolished in ye tyme of the comen wealth of Israel. The wylye iuggeling of ye preastes in persuadyng ye prynces & rulars to be conformable to their inuencyons / & the rashe beleuynge people / which thought euerything an oracle that the prestes breathed in to their breastes / dyd oft & many tymes fyll all full of super- sticyon and Idolatrye. From the tyme of Ahab vnto ye raygne of kyng Hezekiah / laye true holynes and the perfect sekynge of God vtterly oppressed: And Hezekiah in his tyme renued the lawe to hys perfeccyon / & hath therfore his worthy prayse in the scrip ture: But hys sonne Manasseh set vp agayne all the wyckednes that his father had suppressed. Josiah after he had ones readde the boke of the lawe founde in ye teple / let no tyme slyp tyll he had called all Israel together / put downe all kyndes of Idolatrie / & holden the feast of passouer accordynge to the lawe. His sonne Jehoahaz / with the reast of the kynges following dyd dis content and displease the Lorde / maynteynyng supersticyo & Idolatrye in steade of godlynes / & causing the people to applye theselues therto. The nomber of the euell kinges was vsually greater than the nombre of the good / as the bokes of ye kynges & 204 The Book of Books Parali. do clearly testifye. Soche was y" sutteltie of ye false prophetes y* they fyrst & principally bewitched ye princes to ye defence of their Imaginacios: wh5 as their heades / ye people were costrayned to folow. The youth of Manasseh was a mete praye for the false proph etes and prestes of Baal / which dyd instant hym / compasse hym / and leadde hym as it hath bene with a lyne to their trade of Idolatrye. They had learned in the tyme of Ahab to do sacry- fyce vnto Idoles / wherby their lucre & aduauntage was not a lytell increased: which thynge (for feare of punyshment be ye sure) they had intermytted and left of all the Rayne of that good Kynge Hezekiah. In his dayes they were copelled to haue the lawe of God in honoure. They in deade abhorred the true wor- shyppyng of God / but dyd obey the Kynges comaundementes faynedly thorow Ipocrysye / and were in hert most wycked and wretched. But they so subtely depraued the tyme of the domyn- yon of young Manasseh that they persuaded hym by their craft to reiect and set asyde the lawe of the Lorde / as the new founde relygyo of hys father Hezekiah: & to receaue the superstycyos which his fore father Ahab / as moare aged & wyser had instytute: yee and those agreable to the lawes of other nacyons. His apply- able and conformable wyttes dyd they so bewitch / that he thought it greate holynes to dysanull all that his father had most godly redressed : & to retayne all the olde superstycyons / rytes and customes of Idolatrers: to kyll & slaye all that by any meanes shewed loue or zeale to true religio & godlynes: so that he cruelly filled the cytie of Jerusale with the bloude of the Prophetes / & of soch as warred & fought agaynst Idolatrye. In lyke maner dyd they with Jehoahaz / which shortly had put downe his fathers decrees: settyng moare by ye superstitios of his forefather Ahab / than by the godlynes of his good father Josiah. False prophetes / Ipocrytish preastes / & the mutable & vnconstant comenaltye / haue euer bene readye to receaue their olde phantastycall dreames / & haue for the moast parte contynually preuayled agaynst the true Prophetes & preachers of the Lorde. The exaples herof (yf there shulde so many be rehearced as ye Chronycles of all tymes do mencyo) wolde make a great & an huge volume. Nether thinke I it best to trouble your grace wl a so long a processe as to recite the. And the experieces of soch as shall herafter come / are only knowe vnto ye Lorde: nether knoweth any man what chauge may fall. But for ye fortunate & prosperous estate of this oure tyme (so farre as concerneth thys youre graces Reaulme) are hyghe and vnceassable thanckes to be geuen vnto the Lorde of Lordes: which hath dealt so mercyfully wyth the inhabytauntes therof / as to sende them a Prynce that contynually studyeth to se the enryched in all poyntes of true godlynes. Who so remayneth vnthanckfull herein / is not alone vngodly but also wretched. For soche a Prince as geueth no care vnto ye inchauntemente of Matthew's Bible 205 false preachers is one of the greatest gyftes of God / & soch a worldly blessyng to a comen wealth as requyreth an earnest thanckesgeuynge therfore. That Hezekiah and Josiah were vnto Israel / the same is youre grace vnto ye Reaulme of England: yee the godly haue greate hope that your prayse shalbe farre aboue theirs. They helde the verytye & trve worshyppynge of God / but onely for their awne tymes. Your graces wysdome / illumyned of God / shall (we trust) so fyrmely stablyshe the trade of Godlynes in your lyfe tyme / that it shall neuerthelesse florysh / after your deceasse. Youre deuyne gouernaunce / no lesse fortunate than polytyque / putteth vs in hope of soche a redresse as shalbe per manent and durable / and so surely grounded / that the wont iuggelyng & venemous persuasions of false preachers shall not be so noysome vnto youre posteryte / as they haue bene vnto the former age. This hope haue the godly eue of forren & straunge nacyons in your graces goodnes / moch moare they of your awne reaulme. Soche confidence haue they conceaued by your former actes / wherthrough youre grace hath so exceedyngly profyted this affayre. The euerliuyng Lord so prospere youre begonne purpose vnto soch effect / that the thinge may be cotynually which ye haue begone: And so streacth oute his myghty hande and worcke so strogely in you / that no stoarme of false Prophetes (the very destroyers of Princes and Realmes) maye hereafter be able to extynct the lyght / whych now in your graces dayes hath begonne to shyne: And double vnto you the addycyo of yeares that was geuen vnto Hezekiah / ouer and aboue those that ye shulde naturally lyue / that ye maye the better accomplysh your moast godly intent: And enspyre soch streames of grace in to youre breast / that you perseuerynge vnto the ende / maye leaue behynde you this testymonye of glorye: that ye haue truly defended the pure fayth of Christ / maynteyned his holy worde / suppressed superstycyon / deleate & put awaye Idolatye / ended the blasphemy of false Prophetes / & brought youre reaulme vnto the true trade of godlynes: And blesse you at thys present wyth a sonne / by youre most gracyous wyfe Quene Jane / which may prosperously & fortunately raygne / & folowe the godly steppes of his father: And after your grace shall geue place to nature /. and forsake thys mortall lyfe / graunte you the rewarde of that vnspeakable and celestyall ioye / whych no eye hath sene / no eare hearde / nor can ascende into the herte of man. So be it. Youre graces faythfull & true subiect Thomas Matthew. The following are specimens from Matthew's Bible: Psalm 91 : 5: So that thou shalt not nede to be afrayed for eny bugges by night. 206 The Book of Books Psalm 2: \^^HY do the Heathen grudge? why do the people ymagyne "" vayne thinges? The Kynges of the earth stande vp / and the rulers are come together/ agaynst the Lorde and agaynst hys anoynted. Let vs breake their bondes asunder / & cast awaye their yock from vs. Neuerthelesse he that dwelleth in heauen / shall laugh them to scorne: yee euen the Lorde hymself shall haue them in derysyon. Then shall he speake vnto them in hys wrath / & vexe them in hys sore dyspleasure. Yet haue I set my Kynge vpon my holy hyll of Syon. As for me I will preache ye lawe / wherof the Lorde hath sayde vnto me: Thou art my sonne / this daye haue I begotten the. Desyre of me / & I shall geue ye the Heathen for thyne enheritaunce / Yee the vttermost partes of the worlde for thy possession. Thou shalt rule them with a rodde of yron /and breake them in peces like an earthen vessell. Be wyse now therfore / O ye Kynges / be warned / ye that are iudges of the earth. Serue the Lorde with feare / and reioyse before hym with reuerence. Kysse the sonne / lest the Lorde be angrye & so ye perysshe from the ryght waye. For his wrath shalbe kindled shortly: blessed are all they that put their trust in hym. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6): O oure father which arte in heuen / halowed be thy name. Let thy kingdome come. Thy will be fulfylled / as well in erth / as it is in heuen. Geue vs this daye oure dayly bred. And forgeue vs oure treaspases / euen as we forgeue oure trespacers. And leade vs not in to temptacion: but delyuer vs fro euyll. For thyne is the kyngedome & the power / and the glorye for euer. Amen. Taverner's Bible Taverner's Bible was issued in 1539 in a handsome folio edition. Very little is known concerning Richard Taverner beyond the fact that he was born in 1505, grad uated at Cambridge, studied afterward at Oxford, and became a lawyer of the Inner Temple. He was at one time employed by Cromwell, but after Cromwell fell into the king's disfavor Taverner was for a time imprisoned in the Tower. He was very eccentric in manner, and when later Taverner's Bible 207 he was licenced to preach as a layman his matter was at times as strange as his manner. He died in 1575. The title-page of Taverner's Bible reads : The Most Sacred Bible, whiche is the holy scripture, con- teyning the old and new testament, translated in to English, and newly recognised with great diligence after most faythful exem plars, by Rychard Taverner. t^° Harken thou heuen, and thou earth gyue eare: for the Lorde speaketh. Esaie. i. tS° Prynted at London in Fletestrete at the sygne of the sonne by John Byddell, for Thomas Barthlet. &~ cvm privilegio ad imprimendum solum, m.d. xxxix. The dedication was to Henry VIII, and was as follows : How hyghly all England is bounde to your incomparable maiestie for the infinite and manifolde benefites receyued at your most gracious handes, from tyme to time without ceasing, eue from the begynning of your most noble rayne: truly no mortal tonge is hable with wordes sufficiently to expresse, or with secret thoughtes of hert worthely to coceyue: Certes, it far passeth bothe the sklender capacitie of my wyt, and also ye rude infancy of my tong to do either thone or thother: yea an other Cicero or Demos thenes wer not ynough herevnto. Wherfore omittinge or rather leauing to some other the iust Encomye and commendacion of your graces most ample dedes, worthy of eternall memorie, yet this one thing I dare full well affirme, that amonges all your maiesties deseruinges, vpon the christen religion (then which surely nothing can be greater) your highnes neuer did thing more accept able vnto god, more profitable to ye auaucemet of true christianitie, more displeasaut to the enemies of the same, & also to your graces enemies, then when your maiestie lycenced and wylled the moost sacred Byble conteynyng the vnspotted and lyuely worde of God to be in the Englysh tong set forth to your hyghnes subiectes. To the setting forth wherof (most gracious & moost redoubted soueraigne lorde) lyke as certeyn men haue neither vndiligetly nor yet vnlernedly traueled. So agayn it can not be denied, but y* some faultes haue escaped their handes. Neither speke I this to depraue or maligne their industrie & paynes take in this behalf: no, rather I think them worthy of no litle praise & thankes for the same, considering what great vtilitie & profit hath redounded to your graces hole realme by the publysshing and setting forth therof, although it were not finisshed to the ful absolucion and perfection of the same. For assuredly it is a worke of so great difficultie, I meane so absolutely to translate the hole bible that it be faultlesse, that I feare it can scace be doone of one or two persons, but rather requyreth bothe a deper confarrynge of many lerned wittes togyther, and also a iuster tyme and longer leysure. 208 The Book of Books THE MOST SACRED BIBLE; 3Oot)icI)Ct0tl)eholP feriptute , con* terming tbe olD anD neto teftament, tranflatro in to (fngUlfyanD nctolp KtogntfcO font.) apat Diligence after moft fapntful crcm- pliUS,b)> RY CHARD TAVEKNER. IT5" I'arlun trjmi bctHit , anD Ibou cattl) g?«e t ate : fo? the iafit fpcaUctb. UEfaic.u j / j* : pntco at u ottoon in tf Ictcffttfr at the (rant of the fonne br 301m *?o- btu , fo? Chomas J?artt)lct. GXVM PRIV4LEGIO do1 tmprimcridumjolim, M. D, XXXIX. "uTFuTu u u tr-ii— n -u~ tj u u ii x-g ir-u~6"yir8r~D~'ii " inr TITLE-PAGE OF TAVERNER'S BIBLE, 1539 (From the copy in the New York Public Library) Taverner's Bible 209 Wherefore the premisses wel cosidered, forasmuch as ye printers herof were very desirous to haue this most sacred volume of the bible com forth as faultlesse & emendatly, as the shortnes of tyme for the recognising of ye same wold require, they desired me your most huble seruat for default of a better lerned, diligetly to ouerloke & peruse the hole copy and in case I shold fynd any notable default yl neded correctio, to amed the same, according to ye true exeplars, Whiche thynge accordyng to my talent I haue gladly done. These therfore my simple lucubratios & labours, to who might I better dedicate, the vnto your most excellet & noble maiestie, ye only authour & grounde nexte God of this so highe a benefite vnto youre graces people, I meane that the holy scripture is com municate vnto the same. But now though many faultes pchauce be yet left behind vncastigat, either for lacke of lernig sufficiet to so gret an enter prise, or for default of leisure, I trust your maiestie & all other yf shal rede the same, wyll pardon me, consyderynge (as I haue alredy declared) how harde & difficile a thinge it is, so to set forth this worke, as shal be in al pointes faultles & without reprehension. And thus I comit your most gracious & excellet maiestie to ye tucio of ye highest, to who be al honour, glory, & prayse, worlde without ende. Amen. The dedication was followed by "An exhortacion to the diligent studye of the holy scripture gathered out of the Bible," 1 page; "The contentes ofthe Scriptvre," 2 pages; "The names of the bokes of the Bible," 1 page; "A table ofthe principall maters conteyned in the Byble," 25 pages; and, at the end, "Table wherein ye shall fynde the Epistels and the Gospels after the vse of Salisbury," and a colophon: If The ende of the newe Testament and of the hole Byble. 1[ To the honour and prayse of God, was this Byble prynted : and fynysshed, in the yere of our Lorde God, a M.D. XXXIX." The title-page to the New Testament reads: The new testament of our sauiour Jesu Chryst, translated in to English : and newly recognised with great diligence after moost faythfull exemplars, by Rycharde Taverner. Praye for vs, that the worde of God maye haue fre passage and be gloryfied. iv. Tessa, iii. Prynted in the yere of oure Lorde God m.d. xxxix. There were no cuts and few notes. The following are specimens ofthe translation: 210 The Book of Books Psalm 2: Why do the Heythen grudge? why do the people ymagyne vayne thinges? The kynges of the earthe stande vp, & the rulers are come togither, against ye Lorde and against his annointed. Let vs breake their bondes asunder, and cast awaye their yock from vs. But he y( dwelleth in heauen, shall laughe them to scorne: the Lorde him selfe shal haue them in derysion. The shal he speake vnto them in his wrath and vexe them in his sore displeasure. Yet haue I set my kynge vpon my holy hill of Sion. As for me, I will preache the lawe, wherof the Lorde hath sayde vnto me : Thou arte my sonne, this daye haue I begotten the. Aske of me, and I shall gyue the the Heythen for thyne enheri- taunce, Yea the vttermoste partes of the worlde for thy possession. Thou shalt rule theym with a rod of yron, and breake them in peces lyke an earthen vessell. Be wyse now therfore, O ye kynges, be warned, ye that are iudges of the earth. Serve the Lorde with feare, and reioyse before him with reverence. Embrace instruction, least the Lorde be angrye, and so ye perysh from the right waye. For his wrath shalbe kyndled shortly: blessed are all they that put their trust in him. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6): Our father whiche art in heauen, halowed be thy name. Let thy kyngdome come. Thy wyll be done, as well in earthe, as in heauen. Geue vs to daye oure dayly bred. And forgeue vs oure dettes, euen as we forgeue oure detters. And leade vs not into temptation: but delyuer vs from euyel. For thyne is the kingdome and the power, and the glory for euer. Amen. CHAPTER XIII THE GREAT BIBLE AND CRANMER'S BIBLE THE GREAT BIBLE is so called on account of its size — the pages were nine by fifteen inches. It was published in 1539, and an account of its preparation and publication is given by Strype in his Memorials of Arch bishop Cranmer. Having referred to Matthew's Bible he continues: Grafton and the rest of the Merchants concerned in the Work, thinking that they had not Stock enough to supply all the Nation, and this Book being of a Volume not large enough, and considering the Prologues and Marginal Notes gave offence to some, and being put on by those that favoured the Gospel, that as many as possible could be, might be printed, for the dispersing the knowledg of Christ and his Truth; they resolved to imprint it again, which they intended should be of a larger Volume than any before; and therefore it was called, when it came forth, The Bible in the largest Volume. They intended also, in order to this Edition, to have the former Translation revised, and to omit several Prologues and Annotations. And Miles Coverdale was the Man now, that com pared the Translation with the Hebrew, and mended it in divers places, and was the chief Overseer of the Work. But though they left out Matthew's, that is Roger's Notes, yet they resolved to make Hands and Marks on the sides of the Book: which meant, that they would have particular notice to be taken of those Places, being such Texts as did more especially strike at the Errors and Abuses of the Romish Church. Grafton resolved to print this Bible in Paris, if he could obtain leave, there being better Paper and cheaper to be had in France, and more dextrous Workmen. For this purpose the Lord Crumwel, who stood by him in this Enterprise, procured Letters of the King, as Fox relates, to Francis the French King, which were conveyed to Boner then Ambassador at that Court, for him to present them to that King. The Contents of which Letters of King Henry were to this effect, "For a Subject of his to imprint the Bible in English in his Dominion, both in regard of his Paper and Workmen." The (211) 212 The Book of Books King at the same time wrote to his said Ambassador to aid and assist the Undertakers of this good Work in all their reasonable Suits. Boner did not only present this Letter to Francis, and obtained with good Words the Licence desired, but he shewed great Friendship to the Merchants and Printers, and so encouraged them that the Work went on with good Speed and Success. . . . But notwithstanding this Royal Licence, such was the over- swaying Authority of the Inquisition in Paris, that the Printers were had up unto the said Inquisition. . . . The Printer, [Fran cois Regnault] was sent for by the Inquisitors, and charged with certain Articles of Heresy: And the English-men likewise that were at the Cost and Charges hereof, and the Corrector Coverdale. Therefore finding it not safe to tarry any longer, they fled away as fast as they could, leaving behind them all their Bibles, the Impression consisting of five and twenty hundred in Number; which were seized. And if you would know what was done with them, the Lieutenant-Criminal caused them to be burnt in Maubert- place, as heretical books. Only a few escaped, the Lieutenant selling them for Waste-paper to a Haberdasher, being about four dry-Fats full. But however not long after, the English that were concerned in this Work, by the Encouragement of Crumwel, went back to Paris again, and got the Presses, Letters, and Printing- Servants, and brought them over to London. And so became Printers themselves, which before they never intended. . . . To this Impression of the Bible, that came forth in these troublesome Times, and through extraordinary Opposition, the King gave Countenance, commanding the buying and setting it up. For as it had been printed about three Years before; and Crumwel, the King's Vicar-General, in his Injunctions in the King's Name, had ordered all incumbents of Livings to provide one, and to set it up publickly in their Churches; so this Year the King, by his Proclamation in the month of May, did again command, that this Bible of the largest Volume should be provided by the Curates and Parishioners of every Parish, and set up in their Churches. For as yet, notwithstanding the first Injunctions, many Parishes in the Realm were destitute of them: Whether it were by reason of the unwillingness of the Priests to have the English Bible, or the People to be any ways acquainted with it, for fear it should make them Hereticks, as their Curate told them. He stinted also the time, namely, that it should be every where provided before All-Saints Day next coming, and that upon a Penalty of forty Shillings a Month, after the said Feast, that they should be without it. The said Proclamation also set the Price at ten Shillings a Book unbound; and well Bound and Clasped, not above twelve Shillings. And charged all Ordinaries to take care for the seeing this Command of the King the better executed. And upon this, Boner, being newly Bishop of London, set up six Bibles in certain convenient Places of S. Paul's Church; The Great Bible 213 TITLE-PAGE OF THE GREAT BIBLE, 1539 214 The Book of Books together with an Admonition to the Readers, fastned upon the Pillars to which the Bibles were chained, to this Tenor; "That whosoever came there to read, should prepare himself to be edified and made the better thereby. That he should join thereunto his readiness to obey the King's Injunctions made in that behalf. That he bring with him Discretion, honest Intent, Charity, Rever ence, and quiet Behaviour. That there should no such Number meet together there, as to make a Multitude. That it be not read with Noise in time of Divine Service: Or that any Disputation or Contention be used at it." The title-page of the Great Bible was printed in red and black and was as follows : The Byble in Englyshe, that is to saye the content of all the holy scrypture, both of ye olde and newe testament truly trans lated after the veryte of the Hebrue and Greke textes, by ye dylygent studye of dyuerse excellent learned men expert in the forsayde tonges. If Printed by Rychard Grafton & Edward Whit church. Cum priuilegio ad imprimendum solum. 1539. After the title-page came the "Names of the bokes of the Byble, with chapter and leafe"; "The Kalendar & Almanach" (for 17 years); "An exhortacyon to the studye of the holy Scryptures gathered out of the Byble," at the end of which were the words, "God saue the Kynge"; "A descripcyon and successe of the kynges of Juda and Jeru- salen, declarynge whan & vnder what kynges euery prophet lyued. And what notable thynges happened in theyr tymes, translated oute ofthe Hebrue"; "Wyth what iudgment the bokes of the Olde Testament are to be red." There are title-pages before Joshua, Psalms, Apocrypha, and New Testament. The colophon reads: "The ende of the new Testamet: and of the whole Byble, Fynisshed in Apryll, Anno m.ccccc.xxxix. A dno factu est istud." From the part that Cromwell took in furthering this translation of the Bible it is sometimes called Cromwell's Bible. The following are samples of its renderings: Psalm 2: Why do the Heathen grudge together? and why do the people ymagine a vayne thynge? The kynges of the earth stande vp, and the rulers take councell together agaynst the Lorde, and agaynst hys anoynted. Let vs break their bondes asunder, and cast awaye their coardes fro vs. He that dwelleth in heauen, shall laugh them to scorne: the Lorde shall haue them in derysyon. Then shall he speake vnto them in hys wrath, and vexe them in hys sore dyspleasure. Yet haue I set my kynge vpon my holy hyll of Syon. The Great Bible 215 I wyll preach the law, wherof the Lord hath sayde vnto me. Thou art my sonne, this daye haue I begotten the. Desyre of me, and I shall geue ye the Heathen for thine enheritaunce, ad the vttermost partes of the earth for thy possessio. Thou shalt bruse them with a rodde of yron, and breake them in peces lyke a potters vessell. Be wyse now therfore, O ye kynges, be warned, ye that are iudges of the earth. Serue the Lorde in feare, and reioyse (vnto him) wyth reuerece. Kysse the sonne, lest he be angrye, and so ye perysh from the ryght waye yf hys wrath be kyndled but a lytle: blessed are all they that put their trust in hym. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6): Oure father which art in heauen, halowed be thy name. Let thy kingdome come. Thy A CHAINED LIBRARY This is in St. Ann's Church, Hereford (Courtesy of the Bishop of Hereford) will be fulfilled, as well in erth, as it is in heuen. Geue vs this daye oure dayly bred. And forgeue vs oure dettes, as we forgeue oure detters. And leade vs not into temptation: but delyuer vs from euyell. For thyne is the kyngdom and the power, and the glorye for euer. Amen. Seven editions of the Great Bible were issued between April, 1539, and December, 1541. The second edition, in 1540, contained a prologue by Archbishop Cranmer and because of that, this and subsequent editions are sometimes called Cranmer's Bibles. The title-page reads: 2l6 The Book of Books THOMAS CRANMER, ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY (From the frontispiece to Strype's "Memorials of Archbishop Cranmer") Cranmer's Bible 217 If The Byble in Englyshe, that is to saye the contet of al the holy scrypture, both of yc olde, and newe testamet, with a prologe therinto, made by the reuerende father in God, Thomas arch- bysshop of Cantorbury, If This is the Byble apoynted to the vse of the churches 1f Prynted by Edward whytchurche cum priuilegio ad impri- mendum solum m.d. XL After the title-page were the following: "The Kalender and Almanack"; "An exhortacyon to the Studye of the holy Scripture gathered out of the Byble"; "A prologue, expressynge what is meant by certayn sygnes and tokens that we haue set in the Byble" with "God saue the Kynge" in large type at the bottom; "A descripcyon and successe ofthe kynges, etc."; The prologue, " If A prologue or preface made by the moost reuerende father in God, Thomas Archbyshop of Canturbury Metropolytan and Prymate of Englande," with "God saue the kynge" at the end and two sets of initials, H R, the first small, the second about two inches square and very ornamental; "The names of all the bookes of the Byble with number of chapters and leafe where found"; and at the end a table to find the Epistles and Gospels. There are title-pages to Joshua, Psalms, "Hagio grapha," and the New Testament. The translation was considerably revised from the 1539 edition, as will be seen from the following examples : Psalm 2: Why do the Heythen so furiouslye rage together? and why do ye people ymagyne a vayne thynge? The kynges of the erth stonde vp, and the rulers take councell together agaynst the Lorde, and agaynst hys anoynted. Let1 vs breake theyr bondes asunder, and cast awaye theyr coardes from vs. He that dwelleth in heauen shall laugh them to scorn: the Lorde shall haue them in derisyon. Then shall he speak vnto them in hys wrath, and vexe them in hys sore displeasure. Yet haue I set my kynge vpon my holy hill of Syon. I wyll preach the lawe, wherof the Lorde hath sayd vnto me : thou arte my sonne, thys daye haue I begotten the. Desyre of me, and I shall geue the, y° Heythen for thyne enheritaunce, & the vtmost partes of the erthe for thy possessyo. Thou shalt bruse them with a rodd of yron, and break them in peces lyke a potters vessell. Be wyse nowe therfore, 0 ye kinges, be warned, ye that are iudges of the earth. Serue the Lorde in feare, and reioyse (vnto hym) with reuerence. Kysse 2i 8 The Book of Books the sonne, lest he be angrye, & so ye perysshe fro the (ryght) waye, Yf his wrath be kyndled (yee but a lytle) blessed are all they that put theyr trust in hym. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6): Our father which art in heauen, halowed be thy name. Lett thy kyngdome come. Thy will be fulfilled, as well in earth, as it is in heauen. Geue vs this daye oure daylye breade. And forgeue vs our dettes as we forgeue oure detters. And leade vs not into temptacyon: but delyuer vs from euyll. For thyne is the kyngdome and the power, and the glorye for euer. Amen. In the fourth edition, November, 1540, the arms of Cromwell were removed from the title-page, as he had fallen under the displeasure of the king and been executed July 28, 1540. This edition is remarkable for the fact that upon its title-page appear the names of two bishops, one of them the Cuthbert Tonstal who fifteen years earlier, as bishop of London, had so bitterly opposed Tindale's version. The title-page to the fourth and sixth editions reads: The Byble in Englyshe of the largest and greatest volume, auctorysed and apoynted by the commaundement of oure moost redoubted Prynce and soueragyne Lorde, Kynge Henrye the viii, supreme head of this his churche and realme of Englande: to be frequented and vsed in euerj>- churche within this his sayd realme, accordynge to the tenour of his former Iniunctions geven in that behalfe. Ouersene and perused at the comaundemet ofthe kynges hyghnes, by the ryghte reuerende fathers in God, Cuthbert bysshop of Duresme, and Nicolas bisshop of Rochester. Printed by Rycharde Grafton. Cum priuilegio ad imprimendum solum, 1541- The version of the Psalms in the November, 1540, edition of the Great Bible is the one that has been retained in the Prayer Book ofthe English Church to the present day. After December, 1541, no Bibles were printed during the remainder of Henry VIII's reign. After Cromwell's death, the papal section of the clergy seems to have pre vailed upon the king to restrict, if not entirely withdraw, his favor, and so the further printing of the English Bible would be done at considerable risk. It may be that the demand had been supplied for the time being. The two causes combined would sufficiently account for the lack of any editions between 1541 and 1547. CHAPTER XIV THE GENEVA BIBLE TOURING the brief reign of Edward VI, 1 547-1 553, no -'—'new translations ofthe Bible were published, butreprints of Tindale's, Coverdale's, Matthew's, and Cranmer's were made to the number of thirty-five editions of the complete Bible and fifteen of the New Testament. The changed cir cumstances encouraged the spread of Protestant principles, and the English Prayer Book was prepared under the direc tion of Archbishop Cranmer and published in 1549. When Mary came to the throne the persecution of the Protestants was so vigorously conducted that many fled to the continent, and many who remained at home were put to death. John Rogers was the first martyr, and Arch bishop Cranmer and Bishops Hooper, Latimer, and Ridley were among the number. No opportunity was given for new translations, or for new editions of earlier translations, to be issued during her reign. The work of Bible revision, however, was being actively carried on by some who had found refuge at Geneva, among them being Myles Coverdale, who had been deprived of his bishopric at Exeter, but had managed to escape martyrdom. There was at Geneva a colony of Reformers, with John Calvin as leader. In addition to Calvin and Coverdale the company included John Knox, the pastor of the English Church at Geneva; William Whittingham, who had married Calvin's sister, later succeeded Knox as pastor, and after ward returned to England and became dean of Durham; Thomas Cole, Anthony Gilbey, Christopher Goodwin, and Thomas Sampson. In 1557 the New Testament was pub lished. It was mainly, if not entirely, the work of Whit- (219) 220 The Book of Books tingham and was printed by Conrad Badius. The text has been reprinted in Bagster's Hexapla. The title-page reads: The Newe Testament of ovr Lord Iesus Christ. Conferred diligently with the Greke, and best approued translations. With the arguments, as wel before the Chapters, as for euery Boke and Epistle, also diuersities of readings, and moste proffitable annota tions of all harde places: Whereunto is added a copious Table. In the center is a woodcut of Time, with his familiar scythe and sand-glass, drawing a naked female out of a well. At the right is "God by Tyme restoreth Trvth." At the left is "and maketh her victoriovs." At the bottom: "At Geneva. Printed by Conrad Badius M.D. LVII." After the title follow: "The Ordre of the bookes of the Newe testament with the nomber of Chapters," i page; "The Epistle declaring that Christ is the end ofthe Lawe, By Iohn Caluin," 16 pages; "The Translator to the Reader, 4 pages; "To the reader mercie and peace through Christ ovr Sauiour," \Y2 pages; "The Argvment of the Gospel, writ by the foure Euangelists"; the text, with the chapters divided into verses for the first time, and printed in roman type, instead of black letter; "the table of the Newe Testa ment" and "A perfect svppvtation ofthe yeres and time from Adam vnto Christ" — it is strange how exact they thought their chronology was, for it ends: "The whole summe and number of yeres from the begynnyng of the worlde vnto this presente yere of our Lord God 1557, are iust 5531, 6 monethes and the said odde ten dayes." The colophon is: "Printed by Conrad Badius M.D. LVII this Xoflvne." The address to the reader follows : To the Reader mercie and peace through Christ our Sauiour. As the life of a true Christia is moste subiect to the repre- hesion of the worlde: so all his actios, and entreprises, be they neuer so commendable, moue the wicked rather to grudge and murmure, the to glorifie God who is autor of the same. Which euil God hath left to his Churche, as a necessarie exercise, aswel that ma sholde not be puffed vp with opinion of the giftes that he receaueth of his heauely Father: as also that seing how he euer mainteyneth the same in despite of all outrageous tyrannie, he might be more assured of Gods diuine prouidence, and louing The Geneva Bible 221 kyndenes towards his elect. For this cause we se that in the Churche of Christ ther are thre kynde of men: some are malicious despicers of the worde, and graces of God, who turne all things into poison, and a farther hardening of their heartes: others do not openly resiste and contene the Gospel, because they are stroken as it were in a trance with the maiestie thereof, yet ether they quarell and cauell, or els deride and mocke at whatsoeuer thing is done for the aduancemet of the same. The thirde sort are the simple lambes, which partely are already in the folde of Christ, and so heare willingly their Shepeherds voyce, and partly wander ing astray by ignorance, tary the tyme tyll the Shepherde fynde them and bring the vnto his flocke. To this kynde of people, in this translation I chiefly had respect, as moved with zeale, conselled by the godly, and drawen dy [should be " by "] occasion, both of the place where God hath appointed vs to dwel, and also of the store of heauenly learning & iudgemet, which so abundeth in this Citie of Geneua, that iustely it may be called the patron and mirrour of true religion and godlynes. To these therfore which are of the flocke of Christ which knowe their Fathers wil, and are affectioned to the trueth, I rendre a reason of my doing in fewe lines. First as touching the perusing of the text, it was diligently reuised by the moste approued Greke examples, and con ference of translations in other tonges as the learned may easely iudge, both by the faithful rendering of the sentence, and also by the proprietie of the wordes, and perspicuitie of the phrase. For- thermore that the Reader might be by all meanes proffited, I haue deuided the text into verses and sectios, according to the best editions in other langages, and also, as to this day the ancient Greke copies mencion, it was wont to be vsed. And because the Hebrewe and Greke phases, which are strange to rendre in other tongues, and also short, shulde not be so harde, I haue sometyme interpreted them without any whit diminishing the grace of the sense, as our lagage doth vse them, and sometyme haue put to that worde, which lacking made the sentence obscure, but haue set it in such letters as may easely be discerned from the comun text. As concerning the Annotations, wherunto these letters, a, b, c, &c. leade vs, I haue endeuored so to proffit all therby, that both the learned and others might be holpen: for to my knollage I haue omitted nothing vnexpounded, wherby he that is anything exercised in the Scriptures of God, might iustely co- playn of hardnes: and also in respect of the that haue more proffited in the same I haue explicat all suche places by the best learned interpreters; as ether were falsely expounded by some or els absurdely appiyed by others: so that by this meanes both they which haue not abilitie to by the Commentaries upon the Newe testament, and they also which haue not opportunitie & Ieasure to reade them because of their prolixitie may vse this booke in stede therof, and some tyme wher the place is not greatly harde, 222 The Book of Books I haue noted with this marke ", that which may serue to the edifi cation of the Reader: adding also suche commone places, as may cause him better to take hede to the doctrine. Moreouer, the diuerse readings according to diuerse Greke copies, which stade but in one worde, may be knowe by this note ", and if the bookes do alter in the sentence then is it noted with this starre *, as the cotations are. Last of all remayne the arguments, aswel they which conteyne the sume of euery chapter, as the other which are placed before the bookes and epistles: wherof the commoditie is so great, that they may serue in stede of a Commentarie to the Reader: for many reade the Scriptures with myndes to proffit, but because they do not consider the scope and purpose wherfore the holy Gost so writeth & to what ende (which thing the Arguments do faithfully expresse) they either bestowe their tyme without fruit, or els defraude them selues of a great deale which they might atteyne vnto otherwise. To the intent therfore that, not onely they which are already aduanced in the knollage of the Scriptures, but also the simple and vnlearned might be forthered hereby, I haue so moderat the with playnenes and breuitie, that the verie ignorant may easely vnderstande them and beare them in memorie. And for this cause I haue applied but one argument to the foure Euangelists, chiefely for because that all writing one matter, thogh by euery one diuersly handeled, they required no diuersitie of arguments. Thus in fewe wordes I haue declared as touching the chiefe pointes, beseching God so to inflame our hearts with the desire to knowe his diuine wil, that we may meditate in his holy worde both day and night, wherin he hath reueiled it, and hauing atteyned thervnto may so practise it in all our actions, that as we growe in the ripenes of our Christian age, so we may glorifie him more and more rendring to him eternal thankes and praises for his heauenly and inestimable giftes bestowed vpon his Churche, that all thogh Satan, Antichrist, and all his ennemies rage and burste, yet are they not able to suppresse them, nether wil he diminishe them: for seing he doth not onely brydel his ennemies furie, but causeth them to defende and preserue his gifts for the vse of his Churche (as we se the Jewes, Christs professed ennemies preserue the olde testament in moste integritie) what shulde we doute of his bontiful liberalitie towards vs? or why do we not rather with all humilitie and submission of mynde obey him, loue and feare him which is God blessed for euer? To whome with the Sonne and holy Gost be praise, honour & glorie. Amen The following is the Lord's Prayer from the Geneva Testament: 9 Our father which are in heaue, halowed be thy name. io Let thy kingdome come. Thy wil be done euen in earth, as it is in heauen. n Geue vs thys day our dayly bread. The Geneva Bible 223 12 And forgeue vs our debtes, euen as we forgeue our debters. 13 And lead vs not into tentation, but deliuer vs from euil. For thyne is the kingdome, and the power, and the glorie for euer, Amen. In 1560 the complete Geneva Bible was issued, in which the New Testament portion was considerably altered from Whittingham's version of 1557. The title-page ofthe Bible reads: THE BIBLE and HOLY SCRIPTVRES conteyned in the Olde and New Testament. Translated according to the Ebrue and Greke, and conferred with the best translations in diuers langages. With moste profitable annotations vpon all the hard places, and other things of great importance as may appeare in the Epistle to the Reader. At Geneva. Printed by Rovland Hall M.D. LX. In the center ofthe page is a cut ofthe Israelites crossing the Red Sea and around it are the following inscriptions: At the top: "Feare ye not, stand stil and beholde the salva tion of the Lord which he will showe to you this day. Exod. 14.13." Beneath: "The Lord shal fight for you, therefore holde you your peace. Exod. 14, verse 14." At the left, running up: "Great are the troubles ofthe righteous," and at the right, running down, "but the Lord deliuereth them out of all. Psal. 34.19." After the title: "The names and order of all the bookes ofthe olde Testamet with the nombre of their chapters, and the leafe where thei begyn"; Dedication to Queen Eliza beth, 4 pages; "To our beloved in the Lord," &c. after the title-page to the New Testament, the "Description of the holy lande" with a map; at the end, a Table of the Inter pretation of Proper Names; Table of the principal things contained in the Bible, alphabetically arranged; a Chrono logical Table from Adam to Christ. There are numerous woodcuts to illustrate the tabernacle and its furniture, and two 2-page maps to illustrate the wilderness wanderings and the gospel narratives. The following is the dedication : To the most vertvovs and noble qvene Elisabet, Quene of England, France ad Ireland, &c. Your humble subiects of the English Churche at Geneua, with grace and peace from God the Father through Christ Jesus our Lord. 224 The Book of Books THE NEWE TESTAMENT OF OVR LORD lf(»I C lf\l S T, Conferred diligently with the Greke, and beft appro ued tranflacions in diuers languages. F i ^ j(_ f re -\ot, trjip s T 1 1, ~t \D ?g- i t He lo\d s H oil p / qyi r vo\ x ow AT GENEVA. M. Di LX. TITLE-PAGE OF THE NEW TESTAMENT IN THE GENEVA BIBLE, 1560 (From the copy in the New Yort Public Library) The Geneva Bible 225 How hard a thing it is, and what great impedimentes let, to enterprise any worthie act, not only dailie experience sufficiently sheweth (moste noble and vertuous Quene) but also that notable prouerbe doeth cofirme the same, which admonisheth vs, that all thigs are hard which are faire and excellet. And what enterprise can there be of greater importance, and more acceptable vnto God, or more worthie of singuler commendation, then the building of the Lords Temple, the house of God, the Church of Christ, whereof the Sonne of God is the head and perfection ? When Jerubbabel went about to builde the material Temple according to the commandement of the Lord, what difficulties and stayes daily arose to hinder his worthy indeuours, yc bookes of Ezra and Esdras playnely witnesse: how that not only he and the people of God were fore molested with foreyn aduersaries, (whereof some maliciously warred against them, and corrupted the Kings officers: and others craftely practised vnder pretence of religion) but also at home with domestical enemies, as false Prophetes, craftie worldlings, faint hearted soldiers, and oppressors of their brethren, who aswel by false doctrine and lyes, as by subtil counsel, cowardies, and extortion, discouraged the heartes almoste of all: so that the Lordes worke was not only interrupted and left of for a long tyme, but scarcely at the length with great labour and danger after a sort broght to passe. Which thing when we weigh aright, and consider earnestly howe muche greater charge God hath laid vpon you in making you a builder of his spiritual Temple, we can not but partely feare, knowing the crafte and force of Satan our spiritual enemie, and the weakenes and vnabilitie of this our nature: and partely be feruent in our prayers toward God that he wolde bring to per fection this noble worke which he hath begun by you: and there fore we indeuour our selues by all meanes to ayde, & to bestowe our whole force vnder your graces stadard, whome God hath made as our Zerubbabel for the erecting of this moste excellent Temple, and to plant and maynteyn his holy worde to the aduance- ment of his glorie, for your owne honour and saluatio of your soule, and for the singuler comfort of that great flocke which Christ Iesus the great shepherd hath boght with his precious blood, and committed vnto your charge to be fed both in body and soule. Considering therefore how many enemies there are, which by one meanes or other as the aduersaries of Judah and Benjamin went about to stay the building of that Temple, so labour to hinder the course of this building (whereof some are Papistes, who vnder pretence of fauoring Gods worde, traiterously seke to erect idola- trie and to destroy your maiestie: some are worldlings, who as Demas haue forsake Christ for the loue of this worlde: others are ambicious prelats, who as Amasiah & Diotrephes can abide none but them selues: and as Demetrius many practise sedition to maynteyne their errors) we persuade our selues that there was 226 The Book of Books no way so expedient and necessarie for the preseruation of the one, and the destruction of the other as to present vnto your Maiestie the holy Scriptures faithfully and playnely translated according to the langages wherein thei were first written by the holy Gost. For the worde of God is an euident token of God's loue and our assurance of his defence, wheresoeuer it is obediently receyued: it is the trial of the spirits: and as the Prophet saieth, It is as a fyre and hammer to breake the stonie heartes of them that resist God's mercies offred by the preaching of the same. Yea it is sharper then any two edged sworde to examine the very thoghtes and to iudge the affections of the heart, and to discouer whatsoeuer lyeth hid vnder hypocrisie and wolde be secret from the face of God and his Churche. So that this must be the first fundacion and groundworke, according whereunto the good stones of this building must be framed, and the euil tried out and reiected. Now as he that goeth about to lay a fundacion surely, first taketh away suche impedimentes, as might iustely ether hurt, let or difforme the worke: so is it necessarie that your graces zeale appeare herein, that nether the craftie persuasion of man, nether worldly policie, or natural feare dissuade you to roote out, cut downe and destroy these wedes and impedimentes which do not only deface your building, but vtterly indeuour, yea & threaten the ruine thereof. For when the noble Iosias enterprised the like kinde of worke, among other notable and many things he destroyed, not only with vtter confusion the idoles with their appertinances, but also burnt (in syne of detestatio) the idolatrous priests bones vpon their altars, and put to death the false prophetes and sor cerers, to performe the wordes of the Lawe of God : and therefore the Lord gaue him good successe & blessed him wonderfully, as long as he made Gods worde his line and rule to followe, and enterprised nothing before he had inquired at the mouth of the Lord. And if these zealous begynnings seme dangerous and to brede disquietnes in your dominions, yet by the storie of King Asa it is manifest, that the quietnes and peace of kingdomes standeth in the vtter abolishing of idolatrie, and in aduancing of true religion: for in his dayes Iudah lyued in rest and quietnes for the space of fyue and thirtie yere, til at length he began to be colde in the zeale ofthe Lord, feared the power of man, imprisoned the Prophet of God, and oppressed the people : then the Lord sent him warres, & at length toke him away by death. Wherefore great wisdome, not worldelie, but heauenly is here required, which your grace must earnestly craue of the Lord, as did Solomon, to whome God gaue an vnderstanding heart to iudge his people aright, and to discerne betwene good and bad. For if God for the furnishing of the olde temple gaue the Spirit of wis dome & vnderstanding to them that shulde be the workemen thereof, as to Bezaleel, Aholiab, and Hiram: how much more will The Geneva Bible 227 he indewe your grace and other godly princes and chefe gouernours with a principal Spirit, and you may procure and commande things necessarie for this moste holy Temple, forese and take hede of things that might hinder it, and abolish and destroy whatsoeuer might impere and ouerthrowe the same? Moreouer the maruelous diligence and zeale of Iehoshaphat, Iosiah, and Hezekiah are by the singuler prouidence of God left as an example to all godly rulers to reforme their countreys and to establish the worde of God with all spede, lest the wrath of God fall vpon them for the neglecting thereof. For these excellent Kings did not onely imbrace the worde promptely and ioyfully, but also procured earnestly and commanded the same to be taught, preached and maynteyned through all their countryes and domin ions, bynding them and all their subiectes bothe great and smalle with solemne protestations and couenantes before God to obey the worde, and to walke after the waies of the Lord. Yea and in the daies of Kyng Asa it was enacted what whosoeuer wolde not seke the Lord God of Israel, shulde be slayne, whether he were smale or great, man or woman. And for the establishing hereof and performance of this solemne othe, aswel Priests as Iudges were appointed and placed through all the cities of Iudah to instruct the people in the true knollage and feare of God, and to minister iustice according to the worde, knowing that, except God by his worde dyd reigne in the heartes and soules, all mans dili gence and indeauors were of none effect: for without this worde we can not discerne betwene iustice, and iniurie, protection and oppression, wisdome and foolishnes, knollage and ignorance, good and euil. Therefore the Lord, who is the chefe gouernour of his Church, willeth that nothing be attempted before we haue inquired thereof at his mouth. For seing he is our God, of duty we must giue him the preeminence, that of our selues we enterprise nothing, but that which he hath appointed, who only knoweth all things, and gouerneth them as may best serue to his glorie and our sal- uation. We oght not therefore to preuent him: or do any thing without his worde, but assone as he hath reueiled his wil, immedi ately to put it in execution. Now as concerning the maner of this building, it is not accord ing to man, nor after the wisdome of the flesh, but of the Spirit, & according to the worde of God, whose wais are diuers from mans wais. For if it was not lawful for Moses to builde the material Tabernacle after any other sorte then God had shewed him by a patern, nether to prescribe any other ceremonies & lawes then suche as the Lord had expresly commaded: how can it be lawful to procede in this spiritual building any other waies, then Iesus Christ the Sonne of God, who is bothe the fundacion, head and chief corner stone thereof, hath commanded by his worde ? And for asmuche as he hath established and left an order in his Churche for the building vp of his body, appointing some to be Apostles 228 The Book of Books some Prophetes, others Euangelistes, some pastors, and teachers, he signifieth that euery one according as he is placed in this body, which is the Church, oght to inquire of his ministres concerning the wil of the Lord, which is reueiled in his worde. For thei are, saieth Ieremiah, as the mouth of the Lord : yea he promiseth to be with their mouth, & that their lippes shal kepe knollage, & that the trueth & the law shalbe in their mouth. For it is their office chefely to vnderstand the Scriptures & teache them. For this cause the people of Israel in matters of difficultie vsed to_ aske the Lord ether by the Prophets, or by the means of the hie Priest, who bare Vrim & Thummim, which were tokens of light & knol lage, of holines & perfectio which shulde be in the hie Priest. Therefore when Iehoshaphat toke this order in the Church of Israel, he appointed Amariah to be the chief concerning the worde of God, because he was moste expert in the law of the Lord, and colde gyue cousel and gouerne according vnto the same. Else there is no degre or office which may haue that autoritie and priuiledge to decise concerning Gods worde, except withall he hath the Spirit of God, and sufficient knollage and iudgement to define according thereunto. And as euery one is indued of God with greater giftes, so oght he to be herein chefely heard, or at least that without the expresse worde none be heard: for he that hathe not the worde, speaketh not by the mouthe of the Lorde. Agayne, what danger it is to do any thing, seme it neuer so godly or necessarie, without consulting with God's mouth, the examples of the Israelites, deceiued hereby through the Gibeonites and of Saul, whose intention seemed good and necessarie: and of Iosiah also, who for great considerations was moued for the defence of true religion & his people, to fight against Pharaoh Necho King of Egypt, may sufficiently admonish vs. Last of all (moste gracious Quene) for the aduancement of this building and rearing vp of the worke, two things are necessarie, First, that we haue a lyuely & stedfast faith in Christ Iesus, who must dwel in our heartes, as the only meanes and assurance of our saluation: for he is the ladder that reacheth from the earth to heauen: he Iifteth vp his Churche and setteth it in the heauenly places: he maketh vs lyuely stones and buildeth vs vpon him selfe : he ioyneth vs to him self as the mebres and body to the head, yea he maketh him self and his Churche one Christ. The rest is, that our faith being forthe good fruites, so that our godly conuer- sation may serue vs as a witnes to confirme our election, and be an example to all others to walk as apperteyneth to the vocation whereunto thei are called: lest the worde of God be euil spoken of, and this building be stayed to growe vp to a iust height, which ca not be without the great prouocatio of Gods iuste vengeance and discouraging of many thousandes through all the worlde, if thei shulde se that our life were not holy and agreable to our profession. For the eyes of all that feare God in all places beholde The Geneva Bible 229 your countreyes as an example to all that beleue, and the prayers of all the godly at all tymes are directed to God for the preseruatio of your maiestie. For considering Gods wonderful mercies toward you at all seasons, who hath pulled you out of the mouths of the lyons, and how that from your youth you haue bene broght vp in the holy Scriptures, the hope of all men is so increased, that thei ca not but looke that God shulde bring to passe some woderful worke by your grace to the vniuersal comfort of his Churche. Therefore euen aboue stregth you must shewe your selfe strong and bolde in Gods matters: and though Satan lay all his power and craft together to hurt and hinder the Lordes building: yet be you assured that God wil fight from heauen against this great dragon, the ancient serpent, which is called the deuil and Satan, til he haue accomplished the whole worke and made his Churche glorious to him selfe, without spot or wrincle. For albeit all other kingdomes and monarchies, as the Babylonians, Persians, Grecians & Romans haue fallen & taken end: yet the Churche of Christ euen vnder the Crosse hath from the begynning of the worlde bene victorious, and shalbe euerlastingly. Trueth it is, that sometyme it semeth to be shadowed with a cloude, or driuen with a storme of persecution, yet suddenly the beames of Christ the sunne of iustice shine and bring it to light and libertie. If for a tyme it lie couered with ashes, yet it is quickly kindeled agayne by the wynde of Gods Spirit: thogh it seme drowned in the sea, or parched and pyned in the wildernes, yet God giueth euer good successe. for he punisheth the enemies, and deliuereth his, nourisheth them and stil preserueth the vnder his wyngs. The Lord of lordes & King of kings who hath euer defended his, strengthe, cofort and preserue your maiestie, that you may be able to builde vp the ruines of Gods house to his glorie, the dis charge of your conscience, and to the comfort of all them that loue the comming of Christ Iesus our Lord. From Geneua. 10. April. 1560. After the dedication came the translator's address to the reader: To the Christen Reader. Besides the manifolde and continual benefites which Almightie God bestoweth vpon vs, bothe corporal and spirituall, we are especially bounde (deare brethren) to giue him thankes without ceasing for his great grace, and vnspeakable mercies, in that it hath pleased him to call vs vnto this meruelous light of his Gospel, and mercifully to regard vs after so horrible backsliding and falling away from Christ to Antichrist, from light to darcknes, from the liuing God to dumme and dead idoles. & that after so cruel murther of Gods Saintes as alas, hath bene among vs, we are not altogether cast of, as were the Israelites, and many others for the 230 The Book of Books like, or not so manifest wickednes, but receyued againe to grace with most euident signes and tokens of Gods especial loue and fauour. To the intent therefore that we may not be vnmyndful of these great mercies, but seke by all meanes (according to our duetie) to be thanckful for the same, it behoueth vs so to walke in his feare and loue, that all the daies of our life wee may procure the glorie of his holy name. Now forasmuche as this thing chiefly is atteyned by the knollage and practising of the worde of God, (which is the light to our paths, the keye of the kingdome of heauen, our comfort in affliction, our shielde and sworde against Satan, the schoole of all wisdome, the glasse wherein we beholde Gods face, the testimonie of his fauour, and the only foode and nourishment of our soules) we thoght that we colde bestowe our labours and studie in nothing which colde be more acceptable to God and comfortable to his Churche then in the translating of the holy Scriptures into our natiue tongue: the which thing albeit that diuers heretofore haue indeuored to atchieue: yet considering the infancie of these tymes and imperfect knollage of the tongues, in respect of this ripe age and clear light which God hath now reueiled, the translations required greatly to be perused and reformed. Not that we vendicat any thing to our selues aboue the least of our brethren (for God knoweth with what feare and trembling we haue bene now for the space of two yeres and more day and night occupied herein) but being earnestly desired, and by diuers, whose learning and godlynes we reuerence, exhorted, and incouraged by the ready willes of such, whose hearts God likewise touched, not to spare any charges for the fortherance of such a benefite and fauour of God toward his Churche (though the tyme then was most dangerous, and the persecution sharpe and furious) we submitted ourselues at length to their godly iudgmentes, and seing the great oportunitie and occasions, which God presented vnto vs in this Churche, by reason of so many godly and learned men, and such diuersities of translations in diuers tongues: we vndertooke this great and wonderful worke (with all reuerence, as in the presence of God, as intreating the worde of God, whereunto wee thinke our selues vnsufficient) which now God according to his diuine prouidence and mercie hath directed to a moste prosperous end. And this we may with good conscience protest, that we haue in euery point and worde, according to the measure of that knollage which it pleased almightie God to giue vs, faithfully rendred the text, and in all hard places moste syncerely expounded the same. For God is our witnes that we haue by all meanes indeuored to set forthe the puritie of the worde and right sense of the holy Gost for the edifying of the brethren in faith and charitie. Now as we haue chiefly obserued the sense, and laboured alwaies to restore it to all integritie: so haue we most reuerently kept the proprietie of the wordes, considering that the Apostles The Geneva Bible 231 who spake and wrote to the Gentiles in the Greke tongue, rather constrayned them to the liuely phrase of the Ebrewe, then enterprised farre by mollifying their Iangage to speake as the Gentiles did. And for this and other causes we haue in many places reserued the Ebrewe phrases, notwithstanding that thei may seme somewhat hard in their eares that are not well practised, and also delite in the swete sounding phrases of the holy Scriptures. Yet lest ether the simple shulde be discouraged, or the malicious haue any occasion of iust cauillation, seeing some translations reade after one sort, and some after another, whereas all may serue to good purpose and edification, we haue in the margent noted that diuersitie of speache or reading which may also seme agreeable to the mynde of the holy Gost, and propre for our Iangage with the marke ". Againe, whereas the Ebrewe speache semed hardly to agree with ours, we haue noted it in the margent after this sort ", vsing that which was more intelligible. And albeit that many of the Ebrewe names be altered from the olde text, and restored to the true writing and first original, whereof thei haue their signification, yet in the vsual names little is changed for feare of troubling the simple readers. Moreouer whereas the necessitie of the sentence required any thing to be added (for such is the grace and propertie of the Ebrewe and Greke tongues, that it cannot but either by circumlocution, or by adding the verbe or some worde be vnderstand of them that are not wel practised therein) we haue put it in the text with another kynde of lettre, that it may easely be discerned from the common lettre. As touching the diuision of the verses, we haue followed the Ebrewe examples, which haue so euen from the beginning distinct them. Which thing as it is most profitable for memorie, so doeth it agree with the best translations, & is moste easie to finde out both by the best Concordances, and also by the cotations which we haue diligently herein perused and set forthe by this starre *. Besides this the principal matters are noted and distincted by this marke If, Yea and the argumentes bothe for the booke and for the chapters with the nombre of the verse are added, that by all meanes the reader might be holpen. For the which cause also we haue set ouer the head of euery page some notable worde or sentence which may greatly further aswell for memorie, as for the chief point of the page. And considering how hard a thing it is to vnderstand the holy Scriptures, and what errors, sectes and here sies growe dailie for lacke of true knollage thereof, and how many are discouraged (as thei pretend) because thei cannot atteine to the true and simple meaning of the same, we haue indeuored bothe by the diligent reading of the best commentaries, and also by the conference with the godly and learned brethren, to gather briefe annotations vpon all the hard places, aswel for the vnderstanding of suche wordes as are obscure, and for the declaratio of the text, as for the application of the same as may moste apperteine to 232 The Book of Books Gods glorie and the edification of his Churche. Forthermore whereas certeyne places in the bookes of Moses, and the Kings and Ezekiel semed so darke that by no description thei colde be made easie to the simple reader, we haue so set them forthe with figures and notes for the ful declaration thereof, that thei which cannot by iudgment, being holpen by the annotations noted by the lettres a b c. &c. atteyn thereunto, yet by the perspectiue, and as it were by the eye may sufficiently knowe the true meaning of all such places, whereunto also we haue added certeyn mappes of Cosmographie, which necessarely serue for the perfect vnder standing and memorie of diuers places and countreys, partely described and partely by occasion touched, both in the olde and new Testament. Finally, that nothing might Iacke which might bee boght by labors, for the increase of knolage and fortherance of Gods glorie, we haue adioyned two moste profitable tables, the one seruing for the interpretation of the Ebrewe names; and the other conteyning all the chefe and principal matters of the whole Bible: so that nothing (as we trust) that any will iustly desire is omitted. Therefore, as brethren that are partakers of the same hope and saluation with vs, we beseche you, that this riche pearle and inestimable treasure may not be ofered in vayne, but as sent from God to the people of God, for the increase of his kingdome, the comfort of his Churche, and discharge of our con science, whome it hath pleased him to raise vp for this purpose, so you wolde willingly receyue the worde of God, earnestly studie it, and in all your life practise it, that ye may now appeare in dede to be the people of God, not walking any more according to this world, but in the frutes of the Spirit, that God in vs may be fully glorified, through Christ Iesus our Lord, who lyueth and reigneth for euer. Amen. From Geneua, 10. April. 1560. The Geneva Bible was heartily welcomed by the English people, and its popularity may be judged from the fact that a hundred and fifty editions of it were printed between the years 1560 and 1644 — it continued to be printed for more than thirty years after the King James Version was published in 1611. The following specimens are from the Geneva Bible : Psalm 2: 1 Why do the heathen rage, & the people murmur in vaine? 2 The Kings of the earth band them selues, and the princes are assembled together against the Lord, and against his Christ. 3 Let vs breake their bands, and cast their cords from vs. 4 But he that dwelleth in the heauen shal laugh: the Lord shal haue the in derisio. 5 Then shal he speake vnto them in his wrath, & vexe them in his sore displeasure, saying, The Geneva Bible 233 6 Euen I haue set my King vpon Zion mine holie mountaine. 7 I wil declare the decree: that is, the Lord hathe said vnto me, Thou art my Sonne: this day haue I begotten thee. 8 Aske of me, & I shal giue thee the heathe for thine inherit ance, and the endes of the earth for thy possession. 9 Thou shalt krush them with a sceptre of yron, & breake them in pieces like a potters vessel. 10 Be wise now therefore, ye Kings: be learned ye Iudges of the earth. n Serue the Lord in feare, and reioyce in trembling. 12 Kisse the Sonne, lest he be angrie, and ye perish in the waie, when his wrath shal suddenly burne. blessed are all that trust in him. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6) : 9 Our father which art in heauen, halowed be thy Name. 10 Thy kingdome come. Thy wil be done euen in earth, as it is in heauen. 11 Giue vs this day our daily bread. 12 And forgiue vs our dettes as we also forgiue our detters. 13 And lead vs not into tentation, but deliuer vs fro euil: for thine is the kingdome, and the power, and the glorie for eue Amen. conteynyng the olde Tejlamcnl and the new:. THE BISHOPS' BIBLE TITLE-PAGE CHAPTER XV THE BISHOPS' BIBLE npHE BISHOPS' BIBLE was issued in 1568, and, as -*- its name indicates, was the official version of the bishops. It will be remembered that Cranmer, in referring to the version proposed to be issued by the bishops, said he did not think it would be till Doomsday. But the Geneva Bible issued by the Reformers contained some notes which the bishops did not like, and the cordial reception of that version by the people spurred them to action. Matthew Parker, Archbishop of Canterbury, supervised the work and had the assistance of a number of others, mostly bishops, whose initials are affixed to the portions they revised. The version is sometimes called Parker's Bible. The identity of some of the assisting bishops is clear, but there is' doubt concerning others. The initials are not those of the sur names ofthe workers, as English bishops sign with the initials of their first names, but the Latin names of their dioceses instead of their surnames. Thus the Archbishop of Canter bury, Edward Benson, signed Edward Cantuar; the late Archbishop of York, Joseph Ebor.; and the late Bishop of Winchester, S. Winton. The names of the revisers have been preserved in a letter written by Parker and now in the Record Office, London. The letters in the order they appear at the ends of sections, with the identification according to Parker's list, are as follows: W. E. (W. Exon.), William Alley, Bishop of Exeter. R. M. (R. Meneven.), Richard Davies, Bishop of St. David's. E. W. (E. Wigornen.), Edwin Sandys, Bishop of Worcester. A. P. C. Andrew Pierson, Prebendary of Canterbury. T. B. (to the Psalms), ?Thomas Becon (or Bentham, or Bickley). (235) 236 The Book of Books A. P. E. Andrew Perne, Canon of Ely. R. W. (R. Winton), Robert Horne, Bishop of Winchester. T. C. L. Thomas Bentham, Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry. E. L. (E. Londin.), Edmund Grindal, Bishop of London, afterward Archbishop of Canterbury. J. N. (J. Norvic), John Parkhurst, Bishop of Norwich. R. E. (R. Elien.), Richard Cox, Bishop of Ely. G. G. Gabriel Goodman, Dean of Westminster (formerly of Geneva). Besides the above, Parker mentions some whose initials are not in the Bible: William Barlow, Bishop of Chichester; Edmund Scambler, Bishop of Peterborough; and Nicholas Bullingham, Bishop of Lincoln. MATTHEW PARKER (From Sloughlon's "Bible Translations and Translators." Courtesy of the Religious Tract Society) The original issue of the Bishops' Bible was printed by Richard Jugge, in black letter, and was a magnificent folio volume. A fine copy is in the New York Library. A copy was presented to Queen Elizabeth, whose portrait is on the title-page, but there is no dedication. The Great Bible was used as a basis for the revision. In 1571 the Convoca tion of Canterbury ordered every archbishop and bishop to have a copy at home in his dining-room or large hall, one at each cathedral, and as far as possible one in every church. The Bishops' Bible 237 The title-page has in asmall panel at thetop"The.holie. Bible." and, beneath the panel, "conteyning the olde Testa ment and the newe." In the center of the page is a large oval portrait of Queen Elizabeth, with the royal arms above, and the words around the oval, "Elisabeth dei gratia Angliae, Francia; et Hiberniae regina fidei defensor etc." In a panel at the bottom is the Latin of Romans 1 : 16: "Non me pudet Euangelii Christi Virtus enim Dei est ad salutem Omni credenti Rom. 1." After the title-page followed : "The summe of the whole Scriptures, ofthe bookes of the olde and new Testament," 2 pages; a genealogical table and chart from Adam to Christ, with a circle containing "Adam Eve & the tree of Knowl edge." In the upper left corner is a large square with armorial designs of Parker and of Christ Church, Canter bury, combined with the motto, "Mundus transit et con- cupiscentia ejus," the initials M P, and the date 1568. Then follow two pages with subdivisions of the books of the Bible; "A Preface into the Byble folowyng," 6 pages; "Prologue by Thos. Cranmer, late archbishop of Canter- burie," 5 pages; a chronological table; Lessons to be read, 3 pages; Easter table and list of holy days; Order of Psalms for Morning and Evening Prayer; a Calendar, 12 pages; the order of the books. The text is a beautiful black letter, and there are numerous large cuts with ornamental borders. Before Joshua is a title-page with a portrait of the earl of Leicester. The Psalms begin with a large initial containing a portrait of Lord Burghley and the initial B. A title-page precedes the Apocrypha, and a map of the Holy Land is before the New Testament. The title-page to the New Testament has an oval in the center, with the words, "IfThe newe Testament of our sauiour Iesus Christe," and in a panel at the bottom is the English of Romans 1 : 16. A "Preface into the new Testament" occupies 1 page; and at the end of the book is "A table to fynde the Epistles and Gospels read in the Churche of Englande." The 1572 edition contained the Psalms according to the Great Bible with the new translation alongside. The following are specimen translations from the Bishops' Version: 238 The, Book of Books MEattta ewc fa) The "Gofpel by Saint Macch&vvc. Tliefirlt Chapter. renesmealosfeofCliiitltftciiii .Ibml'sm. 1.1 sue manage e>£l)femo(f)crl;ri>im!lD. .-'lEilciiitcrpirtnlionoECrmaeiJiiaittrtl. ^ lo ¦erttasbegat^maFco/'CBaitatrcsbc .-. gjt .Ttnon ,*3mon begat JtrflaB, ll * " 3ofiJsbcgal: Jcrhcnti.tr;. ^ [;iG li2c'l>2ni. ^- about the tvinc ttw mere cat>>eb ailup id* aibi'imi. >i ."tnDaftcitlKV'Uicteb.'oiigbttoyabi'lon > *3ecl)i>iilao begate&ilatbicl, &ala:bicVP begat zoiobabcl. •. '¦¦ 1 1 " — 0'o'j.VjcI licg.it ^iituD, P3biiiDbcet.it,'1 ©iallim,€lialilii: begat .3io:, ' ', 14 .3.w: begat S>aDoc, §>awc!jcg.i(3d)ai i!i Scbrn begat euuD» 15 CiiiiDbcgiiteieaMt.eiMWtbc-gatq-iit '- tbaiuBittbanbcgat Jacob, 16 3am!i begat WeplitiicliutijaiiDf of Cf)a flc.of Ibboin lbasbiwc Jefnc, Hut tscaftb C&attctt- 17 3nt) fo al (lie generations from Iinbam fo Datilb.ntcfouttcaic generations: jEton! E>atflb tonti'I tlK tati'ttiig alba)' into i_-.an-.- loii.are fourtccne gnieeatione. : iuid ftoiit rbe tan.'ttiigattiav>tttto25ab)'lou Unto Clwflc, atr ftmrfect ic goicratlotiG. IS 1T1K butb of Jefus Outfit Ita on dm JDpfe W aMieiiasbto nioHjet tRiHcllias bctiondicD to 3ofcph I licfoic tbo' eaim to Startler ) Hie mas founbe lb«b cbi'lte of rt vc fioii' ghofl. id Ibcn 3ofcpb bn bufbanr. c.bcyuct .1 trait- tcotiBinan, anbnotlbi'lli'iigtoniriiitba.t pubiiciuf nanifJIc, ilus iiiotiOfopauiiiHo putln-ralSa.'. 10 asm mtiric bt tbottgbt tltcTc ibnigcs , be ItolDctbe angel of flit __.o_Dc epptatta bnio b]'intnao:caine,raretiig,3citpbrt»ufoim(; of !Daiitb.fe.itc not to tahc onto tta] '.Bine lb)' Wtfrfo. Hiatlbliltlic (8 coucctucD in b.T. looftiicbol.'gbofl. 11 £>b£ ami bfl'iig fooiflj a fount , mm rtirnt jy fliali cal bis name *3cfu_:foi be flial faur bis i>„, .,, pcopltfiomtbcirfinntfj, *«. 2; (3itt)i3ib.isnoiiiic.tbatitnn'gbtbeftil< fj'llcn.lWittlK lbao fpohcu of the H.0.0 bp tbe piopbctc.fayrmg, j.i *ScboID,aWtSsn BialUc !Wtt) ritilbcaiiD fci.v Cba! Immg fooitb a fonne, aiiD tbei> (balcalie liisnaiiic'eiiunauml.nibiebtobi'tiitctpje.-tatton,i3ociUwl.t&) 14 Sbcuji'fcpb.bo'neu.ivfeci ftomftept, 3 ll tipO 5ral?i3iopvbocSc ^' of itjegaitfotfij |>J of JcTus Chzift, "ifljcfoimcofiDa uio.tlKfonncof .lUMbitm. 1 "Jbialiambc ig.it 3Cahac,*3- (abac begat 3.v . _ ....... ^Jcob,* Jacob be gat 311039,0110 1)18 bJCtble 11. "SnbaBbcgatibbateo.a. zata of Xlwimt, -*i&'iatcs begat ©com , * HJCtom begat X tam. •torn begat amitiaDab, *3ttroiaDab be gat /3aafTon,'/5aaffon begat Salmon. •feibnon begat 15003 of Uacbab,* Kooo begat ©bet) of l_Uirt);*0bcb begat jftfe *>ffc begat DamO tbe tomg, *SautD ffit fcpng bcoai Solomon, of focrtbat lwstljc IWtofQne. "feolomou begat Uoboam, *soboain be gat 3bta,*3bw begat Sfa. *Xa begat JtW 3«faplwl begat Jo- tain ,*Jojam begat ffljtas. Qaaobcgat 3oafl»m, * joatbant- begat " "ias*3tfws begat ejclnas. B,l> A PAGE OF THE BISHOPS' BIBLE (From " The Biblical World") The Bishops' Bible 239 Psalm 2: 1 Why do the Heathen so furiously rage together? and why do the people imagine a vayne thing? 2 The kynges of the earth stande vp: and the rulers take counsell together against god, and against his annointed. 2 Let vs breake [say they] their bondes a sunder: and cast away their cordes from vs. 4 He that dwelleth in heauen wyll laugh them to scorne: the Lorde wyll haue them in derision. 5 Then wyll he speake vnto them in his wrath: and he will astonie them with feare in his sore displeasure. 6 [Saying] euen I haue annointed [him] my kyng: vpon my holy hyll of Sion. 7 I wyll declare the decree, God sayde vnto me: thou art my sonne, this day I haue begotten thee. 8 Desire of me, and I wyll geue thee the heathen for thyne inheritaunce: and the vttermost partes of the earth for thy possession. 9 Thou shalt bruise them with a rod or iron: and breake them in peeces like a potters vessell. 10 Wherfore be you nowe wel aduised O ye kinges: be you learned ye [that are] iudges of the earth. 11 Serue ye God in feare: and reioyce ye with a trembling. 12 Kisse ye the sonne lest that he be angrye, and [so] ye perishe [from] the way, if his wrath be neuer so little kindled: blessed are all they that put their trust in hym. The Lord's Prayer (Matt. 6) : 9 O our father, which art in heauen, halowed be thy name. 10 Let thy kyngdome come. Thy wyll be done, as well in earth, as it is in heauen. n Geue vs this day our dayly breade. 12 And forgeue vs our dettes, as we forgeue our detters. 12 And leade vs not into temptation, but delyuer vs from euyll. For thyne is the kyngdome, and the power, and the glory, for euer, Amen. CHAPTER XVI THE RHEIMS NEW TESTAMENT AND THE DOUAY OLD TESTAMENT ALL the versions of the English Bible that we have already considered were made by those who had more or less Protestant leaning. We now come to a version made by the Roman Catholics, who felt that the publicity given to the English Bible made it necessary for them to set forth a translation which should serve, to some extent at any rate, to counteract the Protestant influence. Just as Protestants had fled to the continent on the accession of Mary, so Catholics of prominence during Mary's reign fled to the continent early in the reign of Elizabeth. Some of these established English Colleges at Douay and Rheims. In 1582 the New Testament appeared. It was trans lated from the Vulgate. It had occupied Gregory Martin, formerly of Oxford, three years and a half, and was revised by Cardinal Allen and Richard Bristow. The title-page was plain in design but very full: The New Testament of Iesvs Christ, translated faithfully into English, out of the authentical Latin, according to the best corrected copies of the same, diligently conferred with the Greeke and other editions in diuers languages: With Arguments of bookes and chapters, Annotations, and other necessarie helpes, for the better vnderstanding of the text, and specially for the discouerie of the Corrvptions of diuers late translations, and for cleering the controuersies in religion of these daies: in the English College of Rhemes. [Here follow Latin quotations from the Psalms and from one of Augustine's tracts, with English translations.] Printed at Rhemes by Iohn Fogny. 1582. Cum priuilegio. On the back of the title-page was "The Censvre and approbation" and then followed a lengthy preface with this heading: (240) The Rheims New Testament 241 "The Preface to the Reader treating of these three points: ofthe translation of Holy Scriptvres into the vulgar tongues, and namely into English;' ofthe causes why this new Testa ment is translated according to the auncient vulgar Latin text: & of the maner of translating the same." After the preface is "The signification or meaning of the Nvmbers and Markes vsed in this New Testament," 1 page. Each chapter is followed by a lengthy annotation. At the end come: "A table of the Epistles and Gospels after the Romane vse vpon Sundaies, Holidaies, and other principal daies ofthe yere," 3^ pages; "An ample and par- ticvlar table directing the reader to al Catholike truthes, deduced out of the holy Scriptures, and impugned by the Aduersaries," 22^ pages; "The explication of certaine wordes in this translation," \]A pages. The following is the Lord's Prayer, which in the margin is called "the Pater noster": Ovr Father which art in heaven, sanctified be thy name. Let thy Kingdom come. Thy wil be done, as in heauen, in earth also. Giue vs to-day our supersubstantial bread. And forgiue vs our dettes, as we also forgiue our detters. And leade vs not into tentation. But deliuer vs from euil. Amen. The translation is characterized by very queer words and phrases, the Latin and Greek forms being retained in many cases. A cup is called a chalice; passover, pasche; and such words as the following are used: azymes, expro- bate, obsecration, coinquination. The remembrance of this peculiarity will help in considering the preface to the King James Version in the next chapter. Some of the notes are very bitter, and Protestants are referred to as those who had cast "the holy to dogges and pearles to hogges." The Old Testament was published at Douay in two volumes 1609-1610, lack of funds preventing its earlier appearance. The title-page was as follows: The Holie Bible Faithfvlly translated into English ovt of the avthentical Latin. Diligently conferred with the Hebrew, Greeke, and other Editions in diuers languages. With Argvments of the Bookes, and Chapters: Annotations, Tables: and other helpes, for better vnderstanding of the text: for discouerie of Corruptions in some late translations: and for clearing Controversies in Religion. 242 The Book of Books By the English College of Doway. Haurietis aquas in gaudio de fontibus Saluatoris. Isaiae 12. You shal draw waters in joy out of the Sauiours fountaines. Printed at Doway by Lavrence Kellam, at the signe of the holie Lambe. M. DC. IX. After the title-page came the "Approbation," 1 page; "To the right vvelbeloved English reader grace and glorie in Iesvs Christ everlasting," 12 pages; "The svmme and partition of the Holie Bible with a brife note of the Canoni cal and Apocryphal Bookes," 6 pages. The second volume commenced with a special preface to the Psalms of 12 pages, and at the end: a Table of Epistles, 1 page; Historical table of times, persons, and notable things of the canonical books of the Old Testament, 24 pages; "A particvlar table of the most principal thinges conteyned as wel in the holie text, as in the Annotations of both Tomes ofthe old Testament," 27 pages; the "Censura" of three English theologians, 1 page; a page of typographical corrections, beginning, "You may please (courteous reader) to amend the more especial errors happened in this Edition by reading thus." The following is the translation of Psalm 2: 1 Why did the Gentiles rage, and peoples meditate vaine things? 2 The kings of the earth stood vp, and the princes came together in one against our Lord, and against his Christ. 3 Let vs breake their bondes a sunder: and let vs cast away their yoke from vs. 4 He that dwelleth in the heauens, shal laugh at them: and our Lord shal scorne them. S Then shal he speake to them in his wrath, & in his furie he shal truble them. 6 But I am appoynted kyng by him ouer Sion his holie hil, preaching his precept. 7 The Lord said to me, Thou art my Sonne, I this day haue begotten thee. 8 Aske of me, and I will geue thee the Gentiles, for thyne inheritance, and thy possession the endes of the earth. 9 Thou shalt rule them in a rod of yron, and as a potters vessel thou shalt breake them in peeces. 10 And now ye kings vnderstand: take instruction, you that iudge the earth. The Douay Bible 243 11 Serue our Lord in feare: and reioyce to him with trembling. 12 Apprehend discipline lest sometime our Lord be wrath, and you perish out of the iust way. 13 When his wrath shal burne in short time, blessed are al, that trust in him. The complete Bible of the Rheims-Douay Version did not appear until 1633-1635, when it was published at Rouen. Since then there have been many changes and revisions, and the Catholic Bible today is very different from that of 1635. The language ofthe Douay Old Testament is as strange as that of the Rheims New Testament. One example will suffice to show this. Some familiar verses from the 23rd Psalm (which is the 22d in the Vulgate) are rendered thus: Our Lord ruleth me, and nothing shall be wanting to me: in place of pasture there he hath placed me. Upon the water of refection he hath brought me up : . . . Thou hast fatted my head with oil: and my chalice inebriating how goodly is it! A CHAINED BIBLE In the British and Foreign Bible Society Library. The Authorized Version, with its original iron chain CHAPTER XVII THE AUTHORIZED VERSION THE AUTHORIZED VERSION has been the great Bible of the English-speaking peoples of the world for more than three hundred years. It is also called the King James Version because its publication was undertaken at the command of that king. When he ascended the throne there were two strong parties in the church, the bishops and the Puritans. Two versions of the Bible were in common use, the Bishops' by the clergy, and the Geneva by the people. The attack made upon all Protestant versions of the Bible by the Rheims New Testament had started a lively conflict between Catholics and Protestants, and in 1589 William Fulke, a staunch Protestant, had printed the Bishops' Version and the Rheims Version side by side with the Catholic notes and his replies to them. The Puritans complained to James about things in the church, and James called a conference at Hampton Court Palace for January 14, 16, and 18, 1604. Among the questions discussed was that of Bible translation, and as an outcome of the confer ence it was decided to make a new translation from the Hebrew and Greek. By July 22, 1604, a selection of fifty- four of the best scholars had been made, and on that date the king sent a letter to Bancroft, Bishop of London, asking him to inform the other bishops and seek their aid in getting the benefit of suggestions from any who had special skill in Hebrew and Greek. Though the king mentioned fifty-four, it is only known that forty-seven actually took part in the work, and there is considerable doubt as to the identity of some of them. Several lists have been compiled and the list given below is perhaps as nearly correct as possible. The workers were divided into six companies of which two met at Oxford, two at Cambridge, and two at West- (244) The Authorized Version 245 minster, each company dealing with a separate portion of the Bible. The whole was afterward reviewed in London by a committee appointed from the six companies, and finally by Bishop Bilson of Winchester and Dr. Miles Smith. The workers received no financial remuneration, but were promised preferment as occasion should arise — some actually were promoted, as will be seen in the notes about each reviser. The first company met at Westminster and had the Pentateuch and historical books to 2 Kings. It was com posed of: Dr. Lancelot Andrews (chairman), Dean of Westminster; afterward Bishop of Chichester, Ely, and Winchester in succession. Dr. John Overall, Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge; afterward Dean of St. Paul's, and Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, and later of Norwich. Dr. Adrian de Saravia, Prebendary of Canterbury. Dr. Richard Clarke, a preacher at Canterbury. Dr. John Layfield, Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. Dr. R. Teigh, Archdeacon of Middlesex. Mr. Burleigh, of Chelsea College, London, Mr. Goeffrey King, Professor of Hebrew at Cambridge. Mr. Richard Thomson, of Clare Hall, Cambridge. Mr. William Bedwell, of St. John's College, Cambridge, a great Arabic scholar. The second company met at Cambridge and had Chronicles to the Song of Solomon. It was composed of: Mr. Edward Lively (chairman), Professor of Hebrew at Cam bridge. [Died 1605.] Dr. John Richardson, Fellow of Emanuel College, Cambridge. Dr. Lawrence Chaderton, Master of Emanuel College, Cam bridge. Mr. Francis Dillingham, Fellow of Christ's College, Cambridge. Mr. Thomas Harrison, Vice-master of Trinity College, Cam bridge. Mr. Roger Andrews, Master of Jesus College, Cambridge (a brother of Bishop Andrews). Dr. Robert Spalding, Professor of Hebrew at Cambridge. Dr. Andrew Byng, Professor of Hebrew at Cambridge. The third company met at Oxford and had Isaiah to Malachi. It was composed of: Dr. John Hardinge (chairman), Professor of Hebrew and President of Magdalen College, Oxford. 246 The Book of Books Dr. John Rainolds, President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. It was he who first suggested the revision at the Hampton Court Palace conference. [Died 1607.] Dr. Thomas Holland, Rector of Exeter College, and Professor of divinity. Dr. Richard Kilby, Rector of Lincoln College, and Professor of Hebrew- Dr. Miles Smith, Prebendary of Hereford, afterward Bishop of Gloucester. Dr. Richard Brett, Fellow of Lincoln College. Mr. Richard Fairclough, Fellow of New College. The fourth company met at Oxford and had the Gospels, Acts, and Revelation. It was composed of: Dr. Thomas Ravis (chairman), Dean of Christ Church, Oxford, afterward Bishop of Gloucester, and later of London. Dr. George Abbot, Dean of Winchester; afterward Bishop of Lichfield and Coventry, then of London, and later Archbishop of Canterbury. Dr. Richard Edes, Dean of Worcester. [Died 1604.] Dr. Giles Thompson, Dean of Windsor; afterward Bishop of Gloucester. , Sir Henry Saville, Provost of Eton; formerly tutor to Queen Elizabeth. Dr. John Perin, Canon of Christ Church, Oxford, and Professor of Greek. Dr. Ravens, Fellow of St. John's College. Mr. John Harmer, Fellow of New College and Professor of Greek. The fifth company met at Westminster and had the Epistles. It was composed of: Dr. William Barlow (chairman), Dean of Chester; afterward Bishop of Rochester, and later of Lincoln. Dr. Ralph Hutchinson, President of St. John's College, Oxford. Dr. John Spencer, President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford. Dr. Roger Fenton, Fellow of Pembroke Hall; later Prebendary of St. Paul's. Mr. Michael Rabbett, Rector of St. Vedast, London. Dr. Thomas Sanderson, Archdeacon of Rochester. Mr. William Dakins, Fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge. The sixth company met at Cambridge and had the Apocrypha. It was composed of: Dr. John Duport (chairman), Prebendary of Ely; afterward Master of Jesus College, Cambridge. The Authorized Version 247 Dr. William Branthwaite, Fellow of Emanuel College; after ward Master of Gonville and Caius College. Dr. Jeremiah Radcliffe, Fellow of Trinity College. Dr. Samuel Ward, of Emanuel College; afterward Master of Sidney Sussex College and Professor of divinity. Mr. John Bois, Fellow of St. John's College; afterward Dean of Canterbury. Mr. Robert Ward, Fellow of King's College, Cambridge. Mr. Andrew Downes, Fellow of St. John's College and Pro fessor of Greek. The king drew up a set of instructions to govern them in their work, which are given by Fuller in his Church History as follows: 1 The ordinary Bible read in the Church, commonly called the Bishops Bible, to be followed, and as little altered as the Originall will permit. 2 The names of the Prophets, and the Holy Writers, with the other names in the text, to be retained as neer as may be accordingly as they are vulgarly used. 3 The old Ecclesiasticall words to be kept, viz: as the word [Church] not to be translated Congregation, &c. 4. When any word hath divers significations, that to be kept which hath been most commonly used, by the most eminent Fathers, being agreeable to the propriety of the place, and the analogie of faith. 5. The division of the Chapters to be altered either not at all, or as little as may be, if necessity so require. 6. No marginall notes at all to be affixed, but onely for the explanation of the Hebrew, or Greek words, which cannot without some circumlocution, so briefly and fitly be expressed in the text. 7. Such quotations of places to be marginally set down, as shall serve for the fit reference of one Scripture to another. 8. Every particular man of each company to take the same Chapter, or Chapters; and, having translated, or amended them severally by himself where he thinks good, all to meet together, conferre what they have done, and agree for their part what shall stand. 9. As one company hath dispatched any one Book in this manner, they shall send it to the rest, to be considered of seriously, and judiciously; for, His Majestie is very carefull in this point. 10. If any company, upon the review of the Book so sent, shall doubt, or differ upon any places, to send them word therof, note the places, and therewithall send their reasons: to which if they consent not, the difference to be compounded at the General Meeting, which is to be of the chief persons of each company, at the end of the work. 248 The Book of Books TITLE-PAGE OF THE AUTHORIZED VERSION The Authorized Version 249 11. When any place of speciall obscurity is doubted of, Letters to be directed by Authority, to send to any learned in the Land for his judgment in such a place. 12. Letters to be sent from every Bishop, to the rest of his Clergie, admonishing them of this Translation in hand; and to move, and charge as many as, being skilfull in the tongues, have taken pains in that kinde, to send his particular observations to the Company, either at Westminster, Cambridge, or Oxford. 13. The directours in each Company, to be the Deans of Westminster, and Chester, for that place, and the Kings Professours in the Hebrew, and Greek, in each Universitie. 14. These Translations to be used, when they agree better with the Text, than the Bishops Bible, viz: Tindals, Matthews, Coverdales, Whitchurch, Geneva. Besides the said directions before mentioned, three or four of the most antient, and grave Divines in either of the Universities, not employed in translating, to be assigned by the Vice-Chancel- lour, upon conference with the rest of the Heads, to be Overseers of the Translations, as well Hebrew, as Greek, for the better observation of the fourth Rule above specified. It has been supposed by some that the work was not actually begun until 1607, but there seems to be evidence that from the time of the appointment of the companies in 1604 the members were engaged upon it in some degree. Fuller says concerning the death of Mr. Lively, chairman of one ofthe Cambridge companies, in 1605: The untimely death of Mr. Edward Lively, much weight of the work lying on his skill in the Oriental Tongues, happening about this time (happy that servant whom his Master, when he cometh, findeth so doing) not a little retarded their proceedings. However the rest vigorously, though slowly, proceeded in their hard, heavie, and holy task, nothing offended with the censures of the impatient people, condemning their delaies, though indeed but due deliberation, for laziness. In 161 1 the new version was published, and concerning it Fuller says: And now after long expectation, and greate desire came forth the new Translation of the Bible (most beautifully printed) by a select and competent number of Divines, appointed for that purpose, not being too many, lest one should trouble another; and yet many, lest many things might haply escape them. It was indeed a most beautifully printed volume, as the writer can testify after an examination of the splendid 250 The Book of Books I he creation Chap.j. JtT ortnewor Id Kli^.l,, •t-Cca.. ttttfr, « : v,K.o. FIRST BOOKE O F M OS E S, called GENESIS. CHAP. I. i Tlieaeaiioiio.HcaucnandEailll, . olrlie li^lit, _ olth.firmJDieni, ¦ , oflllcearlli tcparawd from ihe waters, il and made tnliclilH, 14 of llic Sunnc, Moonc, Jn.l Statics, 10 olfifh indfoWe, 14 olbclK andcaiicll, i< ofMaiiintlicImajtorCoJ. 1 All., il ja "the beginning i500 CtCflttD tilt fi.mt.n, anB the ... earth. » . 1 ans tlit 5»C.1«l)H)M(Ulltll out to. me , anu bovMiiDDiKhr ncte was upon the face ofthe Btcpe: anB tlic Spirit of 60B moouco upon the face of tljc ibattts. j anB600fa(B,*H«tt)ercbcUg!)t: auotbtrcttas light. 4. anBOoorau.tbcl(gbt,thatits-.as gooB : atlD coo DiuiOcbtt^c Kjgtjt fcoiit tbcOarBenciTc. 5 anB 000 caltcB the unlit , Sap, anotticcacttncffc lie calico /Sight: fauB tbceuenni'BanBthcs.'Pomiugibctcthe firllBap. < Cant) ©on rata, *S.ctthctebea t firmament In ti) c mioll of tDc ibatcrs : anblct it buubc tljc waters from tbe ibatcrs. 7 ano cob maoc the firmament. anB ttuiueo the ibatcrs , whitl) w«t bn> Bet ttie ficmament , from tlic ttattrs, ttlnth ftm aboue thcF.tmaiucnt : anB it ibasfo. S ano 00 0 calico tlic ' firmament t»taucn:anBthe€ueninganBt!)c£0o> ning lbcrctbc fcconB Bap. 9 CSnoeoolaiB/iLcttljcmattrs IniBcctlieljeaucn be gatliereotogcttitt Unto one place , aim It! t()c Bft? lauo ap peare: anB it mas fo. in ano 000 calico the bip lanb, ffartli , ann eric gathering together of tbcttiatcrsrailtbhtt.SicasiaiiBOoO touitlwtiiiva gooO. 11 anB0oB[aio,B.cttl)teartl)b)(ng foojtt)lgranc,thclietBej>eclBingfecB, ind tht fruit trtcpeclbing fcuit after his hinBe, lbhofc feco ii m u fclfc , bponttjc tatthianbttlbasro. 11 aun tljc earth bjougbt fooitl) grade , and herbe pttlbmg feco after his lwtBt,anBthttrccpeclBingfruiUbhofcfccBwasm it ftlfc , after his nuiBciano OoBfavbthatiiwasgooo. ij anb the euemng ano tht SQoi- ningibcrethttlnrBBap. 1+ CaiiBOoOfaiBe.ftctthtrcbcc ' lights in the firmament of tljt heauen, to bnuBc t the Bap from the night : anb let them bee foj Sgncs ano foj fcafons, aiibfo-OapcsatiBpccres. 15 ano let them bee foillghtsmthc firnianicnt of the heauen , to giue ligtjt biiontht earth •.ahbitniasfo. 16 ano OoBmabennogrtat lights: the greater bgl;t t to rait the Bap , anb tht IciTct light to cult tht night: Ik nu.lt tht ftarrts alfo. 17 anB <3ob fet thtm m the firma ment of the heauen, to giue light bpon thetarth: is Mb to " rule outt the bap , anB a outt 9 pdl. tW*./»