AN

HISTORICAL ACCOUNT

OF THE SEVERAL

ENGLISH TRANSLATIONS

O F THE

BIB L E.

NE Thing cenfured by the Church of Rome in our Reformation, is, The committing fo much Heavenly Treafure to fuch rotten Veffels, the trufting fo much excellent Wine to fuch mufty Bottles; I mean, the Verfion of the Scriptures into the ufual Languages of the common People, and the promifcuous Liberty indulged them therein. This they charge as an Innovation of a dangerous Confequence. But the conftant current of Antiquity does affirm the contrary, which plainly fhews, that the Church did neither innovate in this Act of hers, nor deviate therein from the Word of God, or from the Usage of the best and happieft Times of the Church of Chrift.

The Word of God, no doubt, was committed unto Writing, that it might be read by all that were to be directed and guided by it. The Scriptures of the Old Testament were first written in Hebrew, the Vulgar Language of the Jews, and read unto them publickly in their Synagogues every Sabbath Day, Acts xiii. 27. and xv. 21. The New Teftament was writ in Greek, the most known and studied Language of the Eaftern World, for the fame Reafon; and written for this End and Purpose, that Men might believe that Jefus is the Chrift, the Son of God, and that believing they might have Life in his Name, John xx. 31. But being that all the Faithful did not understand these Languages, and that the Light of Holy Scripture might not be likened to a Candle hid under a Bufhel, it was thought good by many godly Men in the Primitive Times, to tranflate the fame into the Languages of the Countries in which they lived, or of which they had been Natives Concerning which Theodoret (who lived in the Beginning of the fifth Century) ad Grac. Infid. Serm. 5. thus fpeaks; We Chriflians are

enabled

enabled to fhew the Power of Apoftolick and Prophetick Doctrines, which bave filled all Countries under Heaven. For that which was formerly uttered in Hebrew, is not only tranflated into the Language of the Græcians, but alfo of the Romans, the Indians, Perfians, Armenians, Scythians, Sarmatians, Egyptians, and, in a Word, into all the Languages that are used by any Nation. For the Sacred Writ being the Foundation of the Christian Religion, upon which they built the whole Syftem of their Morality and Doctrine, and which the Chriftians were obliged to read both in Publick and Private; the feveral Churches of the World could not be long without fuch Tranflations as might be understood by every Body.

Not to mention other Places, this was done here in England, by Adelm or Aldhelm the firft Bishop of Sherborn, who tranflated the Pfalter into the Saxon Tongue, about the Year 706. This Adelm, in his Bock de Virginitate, praifes the Nuns to whom he writ, that studying the Holy Scriptures, they had manifefted their Industry and Towardlinefs in the daily reading of them. And Bede, 1. 3. c. 5. ab Anno 634. tells us how Aidan (a Scotch Bishop, who promoted Chriftianity in the Kingdom of Northumberland, in the Reign of King Ofwald, and fixed his See in Hely Island) took Care that all those that travelled with him, whether Clergy or Laity, fhould fpend a confiderable Part of their Time in reading the Holy Scriptures: And the Saxon Homilies exhort the People with great Earneftnefs, to the frequent Perufal of the Scriptures; and inforce the Advice from the great Benefit of that Exercise. At this Time of Day the Bible was not accounted a dangerous Book; it was not locked up in an unknown Tongue, or kept under Restraint, or granted with Faculties and Difpenfations. In thofe Days there was a Tranilation of the Scriptures extant in the Vulgar Language, otherwife it had been impoffible for the Women to have ftudied them, when the Knowledge of the Latin Tongue was fo rare in thofe Days, that few of the Clergy understood it; and this Adelm was the first of our English Nation who wrote in Latin; having been educated at Rome and in France. He wrote a Letter to Egbert (whom they alfo called Ehfrid, Eadfrid, and Eckfrid) Bishop of Landisfern, extant in Wharton's Auctarium Hift. Dogmat. Ufferij, p. 351; in which he exhorts him, that for the common Benefit and Ufe of all People, the Scriptures might be put into the Vulgar Language, which Butler, in his Book against the Vulgar Tranflation, fays he did. And Archbishop Uber, in his Hiftoria Dogmatica, c. 5. tells us, that the Saxon Tranflation of the Evangelifts done by Egbert, without Diftinction of Chapters, was in the Poffeffion of Mr. Rob. Bowyer. Wharton in his Anglia Sacra, pars 1. 695. relates how this Egbert writ, for the Ufe of St. Cuthbert, whilst he was with him in his Monaftery, a very fair Copy of the Four Evangelifts in Latin; which Ethelwold his Succeffor beautified with Gold and Precious Stones, to which Aldred a Prieft added a Saxon Interlineary Tranflation, to be feen in Cotton's Library. Egbert dyed Anno 1721.

Bede, who flourished about the Beginning of the Eighth Century, fpent his whole Time in Study and Devotion, wrote a great many Tracts his laft is faid to be the Tranflation of St. John's Gospel into

:

English;

English; and Aferius tells us, the laft Sentence was finished, when he was expiring. Buc Cuthbert in his Letter concerning his Death, recorded in his Life, fays he went no farther than thefe Words, But what are thofe among fo many, John vi. 9. Fox tells us, out of the Preface before the ancient Bibles, that Bede tranflated the whole Bible into the Saxon Tongue: and Caius in his Book de Antiq. Cantab. I. 1. relates the fame. Bale fays he tranflated the Gospel of St. John, the Pfalter, and other Books of the Holy Scriptures into Englifb.

Ingulphus in his History, Cent. 1. c. 83. makes mention of St.-Guthlack's Pfalter: He lived at the fame Time with Adelm, was the first Saxon Anchoret; and gave Occafion to the founding the Monaftery of Croyland by Ethelbald King of Mercia, in the Place where he had erected his Cell. Lambert in Refpon. ad 26. Art. Epif. fays, he faw his Pfalter in the Saxon Tongue, among the Records belonging to the Abby of Croyland. And there is in the Publick Library in Cambridge, a Tranf'lation of the Pfalms in Latin and Saxon; and another very old Latin Tranflation, with an Interlineary Saxon Verlion in Sir Rob. Cotton's Library, in the fame Character with the Charter of King Ethelbald, bearing Date Anno 736, as Archbishop Uber tells us, Hift. Dog. p. 104.

King Alfred, in his Letter to Wulffig Bishop of London, prefixed to his Translation of Gregory the Great's Paftoral, obferves that the Bible written in Hebrew, was tranflated into Greek and Latin; and that all Christendom had fome Part of the Infpired Writings turned into their own Language. For this Reafon he 'caufed to be tranflated the Old and New Teftament into the English Tongue. He undertook the Translation of the Book of Pfalms himfelf, but dyed Anno 900. when it was about half finished. This was published with the Latin Interlineary Text, by John Spelman, in Quarto, London 1640. There is also another Saxon Interlineary Tranflation of the Pfalter in the Library at Lambeth, which feems to be little later than the Time of King Alfred. And that we may fee how ftrong that King's Inclinations were to provide for the Security of Religion, and to promote the Happiness of his People; he informs Wulffig that he had a Defign that all the English who had any thing of Circumftances, or Sufficiency, fhould be obliged to educate their Children to read English, before they put them to any Trade; and if they intended to have them preferred to any Degree of Notice and Confideration, they fhould get them inftructed in Latin. Several other Translations of the Pfalms were made afterwards, and of the New Teftament. One of the laft in the Saxon Tongue Archbishop Uber informs us, is in Ben'et College Library; and that another old Saxon Tranflation of the Four Evangelifts was printed at London Anno 1571, wherein the feveral Portions appointed to be read on Sundays and HolyDays, were marked out. Such was the Care of the Church of EngLand then, to inftruct the People committed to her Charge in Matters of Religion; that as often as there was any confiderable Change made in the Vulgar Tongue, there were made new Tranflations of the Scriptures, Offices, and Homilies for the Publick, fo far was fhe from thinking Ignorance to be the Mother of Devotion.

For a Proof of this, Mr. Wharton offers a Saxon English Manufcript

in

in Lambeth Library, wherein are contained fourteen Homilies, feveral. other Treatifes, the Lord's Prayer, the Apostles' Creed, with large Explanations, in a Dialect very different from the old Saxon, but fomewhat near to our prefent English, as it was fpoken after the Norman Invafion. And he looks upon those various Readings collected from four Manufcripts, which Spilman published with Alfred's Pfalter, to be fo many different Tranflations.

Bale, Script. Brit. cent. 2. c. 27. relates how King Athelstan caused the Holy Scriptures to be tranflated out of the Hebrew, into the English Saxon Tongue by certain Jews, who ('tis probable) had been converted to Chriftianity, and quotes Malmesbury for a Witnefs. This Archbifhop Uber places to the Year 930.

Elfric or Elfred Abbot of Malmesbury, and afterwards Anno 995. Archbishop of Canterbury, tranflated the Pentateuch, Jofbua, Judith, Part of the Books of Kings, Hefter, and Maccabees; he dyed 1006. He hath a Preface before the Book of Genefis, in which he answers that common Objection against tranflating the Scriptures, taken from the evil Ufe unlearned and ignorant Perfons may make of them. And although the Latin Tongue was then generally ufed in Divine Offices, yet the Tyranny of the Romish Church had not then fo far prevailed, as to detain the People in a brutish Ignorance; but that the whole Order of Divine Service might be understood by all, the Miffal was published with Latin on one Side, and English (that is the Saxon) on the other, one of which is preferved in Ben'et College Library in Cambridge. The Five Books of Mofes, Joshua, Judges, of Elfric's Tranflation, Primate Ufber tells us, are preferved in Cotton's Library; as there is alfo a Pfalter with feveral Hymns of the Old and New Teftament, with the Apostles' and Athanafian Creed, with an English Interlineary Tranflation. Book was written Anno 1049, as it is noted at the latter End of it.

The

Certainly, whatever the Romanifts may imagine, the Translation of the Scriptures, and their Offices, were no lefs neceffary to the Clergy, than the common People. The Priefts Lips, fay they, fhould keep Knowledge, and the People fhould feek the Law at his Mouth; de pend upon him with an implicit Faith, and a blind Devotion: But what if the Prieft neither understands the Scriptures nor his Prayers? Then, if ever, the Blind leads the Blind. At this Time Learning was at a very low Ebb, as is manifeft from King Alfred's Letter to Bishop Wulffig in Mr. Wharton's Aucterium. Indeed (fays he) Knowledge is fo entirely vanished from the English, that there are very few of the Clergy on this Side of the Humber, that can either tranflate a Piece of Latin, or fo much as underftand their common Prayers, fo as to give the Meaning of them in their Mother Tongue. Nay, they were fo few that he could not find one that could do it on the South of the Thames when he began to reign. And Matthew Paris in the Life of the Conqueror fays, Clerici quoque & Ordinati adeo literatura carebant, ut cateris effent fupori, qui Grammaticam didiciffent. To this Degree of Ignorance they were funk, that the Latin was become an unintelligible Language.

Long before Wickliff's Tranflation fome Hundred Years, (as Tho. James conjectures, Cor. Fa. p. 225.) came forth a Tranflation of the

whole

whole Bible in English, whereof they have three Copies in Oxford, one in the Publick Library, one in Christ Church Library, and the other in Queen's College. This Archbishop Uber places to the Year 1290. Before it is a large Preface, and in it the Tranflator treats of the Authority and Ufe of the Holy Scriptures, reckons the Canonical Books according to the Hebrews; tells us how he had compared several Copies, confulted the Expofitions of the Fathers, and the Glofles of learned Men; recommends the Study of them to all, both Men and Women, to the Learned and Unlearned; and laments the Obstinacy of the Clergy, in oppofing it: He fays, they dote that condemn the tranflating the Scriptures into the Mother Tongue, fince they were written for our Learning, and Chrift commanded that the Gofpel fhould be preached to all Nations; and there had been innumerable Tranflations made in moft of the known Languages. This Tranflation Mr. Wharton in his Auctarium ab Anno 1290 believes to be erroneoufly adfcribed to Wickliff, in all the Manufcripts that he had seen, thofe Infcriptions, he judges, were after added by unwary Readers, who meeting with an anonymous Tranflation, immediately fathered it upon Wickliff, whofe Name was famous amongst the English Interpreters; and rather thinks it belongs to Trevifa. About the Year 1340 Richard Hampole made an English Tranflation of the Pfalins, and commenting upon thofe Words of the Pfalmift, And take not the Word of thy Truth utterly out of my Mouth, Pfal. cxix. 43. declared his Judgment concerning the Neceflity of the Scriptures in the Vulgar Language.

Richard Fitz-Ralph, commonly called Armachamus, is faid to have tranflated the Bible into Irish: He was firft Archdeacon of Litchfield, then made Chancellor of Oxford, and afterwards promoted to the Archbishoprick of Armagh in Ireland, Anno 1347, and died Anno 1360. About the fame Time John Thursby Archbishop of York, a Prelate of great Piety and Learning, published a Manual in English for the Inruction of his Diocefe; it is an Expofition upon the Creed, the Lord's Prayer, and Ten Commandments; wherein he condemns the Prelates and Clergy, who then began to withhold the Ufe of the Scriptures from the People. He died Anno 1373.

John Trevife, Vicar of Berkley in Cornwall, at the Defire of his Patron the Lord Berkley, tranflated the Old and New Teftament into the English Tongue. This Archbishop Uber places to the Year 1360, but Mr. Wharton, with better Reafon, to 1387. This did not bring him under any Perfecution; for notwithstanding he lived almoft Ninety Years, we do not find him difturbed for any Singularities of Opinion, as they were then counted. He died 1397.

God alfo flirred up Wickliff to tranflate the fame again out of the Latin of St. Jerom, into the English of thofe Times, about the Year 1380, the Saxon Tongue being not then commonly understood. He fet a large Preface before it, in which he reflected feverely on the Corruptions of the Romish Clergy, and condemned the worthipping of Saints and Images, denied the Corporal Prefence of Chrift's Body in the Sacrament, and exhorted all People to the Study of the Scriptures. His Bible, with his Preface, was well received by a great many, who were led into these Opinions rather by the Impreflions which common

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