III. so many and godly men and such diversity of CHAP. translations in divers tongues, we undertook this INTERNAL great and wonderful work, which our God accord ing to his divine providence hath directed to a 'most prosperous end.' HISTORY. Some important versions indeed had been pub- New Latin lished in addition to those which have been noticed This was Versions. already as accessible to the first translators. Leo Leo Juda. Juda, who had contributed greatly to the German Bible of Zurich, laboured for many years at a new Latin Version of the Old Testament. left unfinished at his death (1542), but the work was completed by T. Bibliander and C. Pellican. P. Cholin added a translation of the Apocrypha : R. Gualther revised Erasmus' Latin New Testament; and the whole Bible, thus finished, was printed in 1544. The version is vigorous, aiming rather at an intelligible sense, than at a literal rendering of the words of the original. Castalio (Cha- Castalio. teillon) carried this freedom to a far greater length, and in his singularly elegant version (1551) endea- . voured to make the Hebrew writers speak in purely classical Latin. In spite of Beza's vehement assaults Castalio exercised some effect on later Protestant versions; but the New Testament of his great adversary (1556) exercised a far more power T CHAP. ful influence than either of these complete Bibles. III. INTERNAL Reza. Beza made some use of the various readings of Greek Manuscripts which had been collected in a convenient form by Stephens in his Greek Testament of 1550 (ed. regia); but as yet, in spite of the great advances which had been made in scholarship, the true principles of Greek criticism were wholly unknown, and the text which served as the basis of translation was as faulty as before. As Revision of These Latin versions, especially Beza's New the French Version. Testament, contributed important help to the English revisers; but it was of still greater moment that they were associated at Geneva with a group of scholars who were already engaged in the work of correcting the French Version of Olivetan. early as 1545 Calvin cursorily revised this Bible, chiefly, as it is said, in points of style and expression. In 1551 he went over the work again more thoroughly; and again in 1558. The edition of 1551 contained a new version of the Psalter by L. Budé and of the Apocrypha by Beza. But these successive revisions were confessedly provisional, and it was not till 1588 that the version appeared which, bearing the name of the venerable company of pastors at Geneva,' remained for a long time the standard Bible of the French testants1. General ment. Thus the English exiles found themselves surrounded by those who were engaged in a task character of the Genesimilar to their own. They started indeed with a zan Ver sion of the far better foundation than the French revisers, Old Testaand their labours shew no impatient desire for change. In the historical books they preserved in the main the old rendering, altering here and there an antiquated word or a long periphrasis3. In the Hagiographa, the Prophets, and the poetic books of the Apocrypha, the changes were necessarily far more numerous. An analysis of the new readings in a few representative passages will place the general character of the revision in a clear light*. (GREAT BIBLE). 5 And in Gibeon the Lord ap- 1 Kings iii. peared to Solomon in a dream by night, and 1 For these details I am indebted to Le Long, as I have been unable to obtain access to the editions of 1545 and 1551. 2 A revised Italian version of the Bible appeared also at Geneva in 1562. 3 A small sign will shew the scholar's instinct, and this is found in the spelling and accentuation of the Hebrew names which is characteristic of the edition of 1560 as Iaakób, Izhák, 4 The text of the Great Bible CHAP. INTERNAL God said, Ask what thou wilt that I may give it thee. HISTORY. 6 And Solomon said, Thou hast shewed unto thy servant David my father great mercy, when he walked before thee in truth, in righteousness, and in plainness of heart with thee. And thou hast kept for him this great mercy, that thou hast given him a son to sit on his seat, as it is come to pass this day. 7 And now, O Lord my God, it is thou that hast go out and in. 8 And thy servant is in the midst of thy people, which thou hast chosen, and verily the people are so many that they cannot be told nor numbered for multitude. 9 Give therefore unto thy servant an understanding heart to judge the people, that I may discern between good and bad; for who is able to judge this, thy so mighty a people. 10 And this pleased the Lord well that Solomon had desired this thing. 5 and: om. So Pagninus, French 1556. visusque autem Leo Juda. (1) Münster. 5 thou...it (so M.): I shall give. Postula quod dem CHAP. tibi J. (2) 6 in (M. J.) and in P. Fr. (3) -plainness: uprightness rectitudine P. M. J. d'vn cœur droit enuers toy Fr. (4) that thou (ut M. J.) and P. (5) it...pass: appeareth (in ital.) il appert Fr (secundum diem hanc P. ut est dies hæc M. ut hæc dies declarat J.) (6) 7 it...that: thou tu m'as fait regner Fr. (similarly -- P. M. J.) (7) young: a young child. un petit iouuenceau Fr. wot: know. (9) puer parvus P. M. J. (8) 8 and verily...they: even a great people which... populi multi qui non... P. et quidem populus est multus M. J. qui est vn grand peuple qui... Fr. (10) 9 the thy ton peuple Fr. (so P. M. J.) (11) so mighty a: mighty. (12) Of these twelve changes one seems to come from the French (6), two are different readings adopted from Pagninus (1, 3), seven are renderings closer to the Hebrew, chiefly from Pagninus (2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10, 11), and two are simply linguistic changes (9, 12). III. INTERNAL HISTORY. |