But, when every allowance of the kind is made, the fact remains that, to ordinary English readers, the translation in question must often have seemed one into an unknown tongue. What else could
* See the passages quoted by Westcott in his article on ‘ The Vulgate’ in Smith’s DB, vol. iii. pp. 1706, 1707.
+ See Moulton, p. 187, where more examples are given.
t See an article in The Month, June 1897, pp. 578, 579. The
writer appears to think that yeporov4cuyres, in Ac 14%, should be translated ‘by imposition of hands,’
have been thought of such specimens as these: ‘I wil not drinke of the generation of the vine’ (Lk 228); ‘the passions of this time are not condigne to the glorie to come’ (Ro 818) ; ‘ For our wrestling is... against Princes and Potestats, against the rectors of the world of this darkenes, against the spirituals of wickedness in the celestials ‘ (Eph 6%); ‘But he exinanited himself’ (Ph 2%); ‘Yet are they turned about with a little sterne, whither the violence of the director wil’ (Ja 3%) ?*
In 1593 the English College returned from Rheims to their old quarters at Douai, and completed their biblical labours by the issue, in 1609 and 1610, of two volumes, containing the OT and Apocrypha. Insize, type, and general execution, they closely re- semble the volume of the NT published nearly thirty years before. The title is: ‘The | Holie Bible | Faithfvlly trans-|lated 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 | corrvptions in some late transla- tions: and | for clearing controversies in Religion.| .... Printed at Doway by Lavrence Kellam, | at the signe of the holie Lambe. | M.pc.Ix.’ The first volume extends to the end of Job. The second volume, bearing a similar title, and the date M.DC.X., comprises from Psalms to 4 Esdras. A preface to ‘the right welbeloved English Reader’ goes over much the same ground as that prefixed to the Rhemes NT, but more cursorily, being only about half the length of the other. The hindrances, which had.delayed the appearance of the work, had all proceeded from ‘one general cause, our poore estate in banishment.’ The arguments for trans- lating from the Vulgate are re-stated. The reten- tion of Latinisms, or original forms of words, is defended. If English Protestants keep ‘Sabbath,’ ‘Ephod,’ ‘ Pentecost,’ ‘ Proselyte,’ and the like, why not ‘ Prepuce,’ ‘ Pasch,’ ‘ Azimes,’ ‘ Breades of Pro- position,’ ‘ Holocaust,’ and others of the same kind?
This uncompromising principle gradually gave way. In 1749-50, and again in 1763-4, editions of the Doway OT and the Rhemes NT, each edition in five vols. 12mo, were published by Richard Challoner, Bishop of Debra, in partibus, with the assistance of William Green, afterwards President of the College at Douai, and Walton, afterwards Vicar A postolic of the northern district of England. + As thus revised, it is substantially the version used at the present day by English-speaking Roman Catholics. In Cardinal Wiseman’s opinion, ‘though Challoner did well in altering many too decided Latinisms, he weakened the language considerably by destroying inversion . . . and by the insertion of particles where not needed.’
The nature and extent of these changes may be judged of by a comparison of a few passages from the older and newer versions, side by side with the RV of 1885 :—
1609-10. 1763-4,
2 K [28] 2119 Adeo- Adeodatustheson datusthesonneofthe of Forrest an em- Forestabroderer... broiderer.. .
1885.
Elhanan the son of Jaare-oregim §...
* See now especially J. G. Carleton, The Part of Rheims in the Making of the English Bible. Oxf. 1902.
+See the art. on ‘Challoner’ by Thompson Cooper in the Dict. of Nat. Biography. Challoner was born at Lewes in 1691, and died in 1781. His parents were Protestant dissenters. But, losing his father in infancy, he was brought up in Roman Catholic families, and sent to Douai in 1704.
t Cotton, Rhemes and Doway, p. 49 n., specifies, as an additional fault, Challoner’s excessive fondness for ‘that’ as equivalent to ‘ who,’ ‘ whom,’ ‘ which.’
$ Oregim, ‘weavers’ (thought by Kennicott to be a _tran- scriber’s insertion from the latter end of the verse), evidently suggested the polymitarius, ‘broderer,’ of the Vulgate. Want of space forbids any attempt ata commentary on these passages.
VERSIONS (ENGLISH)
1609-10.
2 Es [Neh] 917 and gaue the head to returne to their ser- uitude.
Job 2618 and his hand being the mid- wife, the winding serpent is brought forth.
Ps 67 [68] 15.16 The mountane of God a fat mountane. A mountane crudded as cheese, a fatte mountane. Why suppose you crudded mountanes ?
Jer 5089 Therefore shall the dragons dwel with the foolish murderers.
1763-4,
and set the head to return to their bondage.
and his artful hand hath brought forth the winding ser- pent.
_ The mountain of God is a fat moun- tain. A curdled mountain, a fat mountain. Why suspect ye curdled mountains?
Therefore _ shall dragons dwell there with the fig-fauns.
VERSIONS (ENGLISH) 253
1885.
and appointed a captain to return to their bondage (marg.).
His hand hath pierced the swift serpent.