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Chap. ii.
External
History.

Two Bibles

in use at

of James I.

$10. THE AUTHORISED VERSION.

There were, as we have seen, during the latter part the accession of Elizabeth's reign two rival English Bibles', the Bishops', which was sanctioned by ecclesiastical authority for public use, and the Genevan, which was the common Bible of the people and even of scholars. If we may judge from the editions published, the circulation of the latter was more than quadruple that of the former, and the convenient forms in which it appeared marked its popular destination. There are only six editions of the Bishops' Bible in quarto and one in octavo; all the others (thirteen) are in folio; and no small edition was printed after that prepared by authority in 1584. Of the Genevan Bible, on the other hand, there are between 1568 and 1611 sixteen editions in octavo, fifty-two in quarto, and eighteen in folio3.

Proposals for a revision of the Bible.

Jan. 16, 1604.

This rivalry was in every way undesirable; and in the conference on ecclesiastical matters which was held at Hampton Court shortly after the accession of James I., the authorised version of the Bible was brought forward as one of the things 'amiss in the Church.' The conference had no official or constitutional character, and was summoned by the king's proclamation, who had not yet himself been recognized as king by Parliament. But though it proved ineffectual in all other points, we owe to it our present Bible. The question was brought for

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ward by Dr. Reynolds, President of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, who quoted several mistranslations rom the authorised Bibles'. 'My Lord of London (Bancroft) well added: That if every man's humour should be followed there would be no end of translating. Whereupon his Highness wished some special pains should be taken in that behalf for one uniform translation-professing that he could never yet see a Bible well translated in English; but the worst of all his Majesty thought the Geneva to be-and this to be done by the best learned in both the Universities; after them to be reviewed by the bishops and the chief learned of the Church; from them to be presented to the Privy Council; and lastly to be ratified by his royal authority; and so this whole Church to be bound unto it and none other. Marry withal he gave this caveat, upon a word cast out by my lord of London, that no 'marginal notes should be added, having found in them 'which are annexed to the Geneva translation, which he 'saw in a Bible given him by an English lady, some ‘notes very partial, untrue, seditious, and savouring too 'much of dangerous and traitorous conceits (e.g. those 'on Ex. i. 19: 2 Chron. xv. 16)2.'

1 Gal. iv. 25; Pss. cv. 28, cvi. 30. The account given in the Preface to the Authorised Version is somewhat different from, though reconcileable with, Barlow's. The very 'historical truth is that upon the im'portunate petitions of the Puritans, 'at his Majesty's coming to this 'crown, the conference at Hampton 'Court having been appointed for 'hearing their complaints: when by 'force of reason they were put from 'all other grounds, they had recourse at the last to this shift, that they could 'not with good conscience subscribe 'to the Communion-book, since it

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Chap. ii.
External
History.

Chap. ii.
External
History.

The king presses forward the scheme.

Nothing further was done at the Conference, and the Ecclesiastical authorities do not appear to have been anxious or even ready to engage in the proposed revision'. Bancroft had expressed what was probably a very general feeling; and in the Convocation which followed shortly afterwards (March-July 1604) it was enjoined that every parish as 'yet unfurnished of the Bible of the largest volume" should provide one within a convenient time, so that it seems unlikely that they even expected that it would be speedily carried out. But about the same time the King had matured his scheme. It is not known in what manner the scholars to be entrusted with the revision were selected. It appears however that some were submitted to the king who approved of the choice, and the list was complete

6

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originally that the translation should
be without any marginal notes' (II.
371). But the passage of Galloway
which he quotes, so far from profess-
ing to give Reynolds' own scheme,
gives the heads which his Majesty
would have reformed at this time.'
'Sundry,' he continues, as they fa-
'voured gave out copies of things
'here concluded; whereupon myself
'took occasion, as I was an ear and
'eye witness, to set them down, and
'presented them to his Majesty, who
'with his own hand mended some
'things, and eked other things which
'I had omitted: which corrected copy
'with his own hand I have, and of
'it have sent you herein the just
'transumpt word by word...' The
conclusion in question is: 'That a
'translation be made of the whole
'Bible, as consonant as can be to the
'original Hebrew and Greek; and
'this to be set out and printed with-
out any marginal notes, and only to
'be used in all Churches of England
' in time of Divine Service' (Cardwell,
Hist. of Conferences, pp. 213, 214).
If Mr Anderson had taken the trou-

ble to read Dr Cardwell, he would have been saved from committing a very serious error, and indulging in a very unworthy comment.

1 Still in the note which was made apparently by Bancroft himself of 'things as shall be reformed,' occurs 'One uniform translation of the Bi'ble to be made, and only to be used in all the churches of England' (Cardwell, Hist. of Conferences, p. 142).

Canon 80. From a comparison with Whitgift's injunctions (p. 138) the reference is probably to the Bishops' Bible. But Dr Reynolds' quotations from the Great Bibles' allow

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by June 30th. The undertaking was no doubt really
congenial to James' character, and Bancroft writing to
Cambridge on that day to hasten on its execution adds,
'I am persuaded his royal mind rejoiceth more in the
'good hope which he hath for the happy success of that
'work, than of his peace concluded with Spain.' Three
weeks afterwards (July 22nd) the king wrote to Bancroft,
who was acting as representative of the vacant see of
Canterbury, announcing that he had 'appointed certain
'learned men, to the number of four and fifty, for the
'translating of the Bible,' and requiring him to take
measures whereby he might be able to recompense the
translators by church preferment. 'Furthermore,' he
adds, 'we require you to move all our bishops to
'inform themselves of all such learned men within their
'several dioceses, as, having especial skill in the Hebrew
and Greek tongues, have taken pains in their private
'studies of the Scriptures for the clearing of any obscuri-
'ties either in the Hebrew or in the Greek, or touching
'any difficulties or mistakings in the former English
'translation, which we have now commanded to be
'thoroughly viewed and amended, and thereupon to
'write unto them, earnestly charging them and signifying
'our pleasure therein that they send such their observa-
'tions either to Mr Lively, our Hebrew reader in Cam-
'bridge, or to Dr Harding, our Hebrew reader in Oxford,
'or to Dr Andrews, dean of Westminster, to be imparted
'to the rest of their several companies; that so our said
'intended translation may have the help and furtherance
'of all our principal learned men within this our king-
dom."

Chap. ii.
External
History.

An immediate pro

Having provided in this manner for the future remuneration of the scholars whose services he had engaged,visers

1 Cardwell, Doc. Annals, 11. 84.

for

proposed.

I

Chap. ii.
External
History.

The revisers chosen.

the king was equally prudent in endeavouring to obtain
the means of defraying their immediate expenses. These
'his majesty,' it is said, 'was very ready of his most
'princely disposition to have borne, but some of my
'lords, as things now go, did hold it inconvenient;' so
'he requested the bishops and chapters to contribute
'toward this work,' with the additional stimulus that
'his majesty would be acquainted with every man's
'liberality.' Bancroft, in communicating this notice to
the different dignitaries to whom it applied, adds, ‘I do
'not think a thousand marks will finish the work,' so
that the amount of the tax might not be left altogether
in uncertainty1. But in spite of the royal request
nothing seems to have been subscribed, and from the
life of one of the translators it appears that they received
nothing but free entertainment in the colleges till some
of them met in London for the final revision of the
work2.

It does not appear in what way the actual selection of the revisers was made, but it is most likely that names were suggested by the universities and approved by the king. There is also some discrepancy as to the number engaged upon the work. The king speaks of fifty-four, and only forty-seven names appear upon the list. It is possible that some were originally appointed who did not in the end take any part in the revision, or that a committee of bishops was chosen as an inde pendent group of revisers; but no satisfactory solution of the difficulty has yet been proposed. The delay,

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