For Anita, Irma, Ms. LaDonna, et al.
The Geneva Bible was a precursor to the King James Bible of 1611. It was produced in Geneva by the exiled Reformers, most notably John Calvin. It was the Bible used by the Puritans that first came to America, and William Shakespeare as well. The King James Bible drew from the Geneva Bible, but had a pronounced Anglican leaning, with respect to the Apocrypha, combined with a distaste for the commentary found in the Geneva Bible.
An example of this commentary is The Argument given at the head of the Apocrypha. This is from a facsimile edition of the original 1560 printing. I have kept the spelling, but converted the letter forms as necessary:
"These bokes that follow in order after the Prophetes unto the Newe testament, are called Apocrypha, that is bokes, which were not received by a comune consent to be red and expounded publikely in the Church, nether yet served to prove any point of Christian religion, save in asmuche as they had the consent of the other Scriptures called Canonical to confirm the same, or rather whereon they were grounded: but as bokes proceding from godlie men, were received to be red for the advancement and furtherance of the knowledge of the historie, & for the instruction of godlie maners: which bokes declare that at all times God had an especial care of his Church and left them not utterly destitute of teachers and meanes to confirme them in the hope of the promised Messiah, and also witnesse that those calamities that God sent to his Church, were according to his providence, who had bothe so threatened by his Prophetes, and so broght it to passe for the destruction of their enemies, and for the tryal of his children."
Posted By: Steve Williams
Tuesday, January 11th 2011 at 3:11PM
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