every church, the cost being divided between the cler- gy and the parishioners. This was, therefore, the first Authorized Version. It is scarcely conceivable, how~ ever, that Henry could hav^e read the book which he thus sanctioned, or known that it was substantially identical with what had been publicly stigmatized in his Acts of Parliament (lit svpra). What had before given most offence had been the polemical character of Tj'ndale's annotations, and here were notes bolder and more thorough still. Even the significant "W. 'J'." does not appear to have attracted notice.
3. What has been said of Tj'ndale's version applies, of course, to this. There are, however, signs of a more advanced knowledge of Hebrew. All the tech- nical words connected with the Psalms, Neginoth, Shiggaion, Sheminith, etc., are elaboratelj^ explained. Psa. ii is printed as a dialogue. The names of the He- brew letters are prefixed to the verses of Lamenta- tions. Reference is made to the Chaldee Paraphrase (Job vi), to Rabbi Abraham (Job xix), to Kimchi (Psa. iii). A like range of knowledge is shown in the N. T. Strabo is quoted to show that the magi were not i kings, IMacrobius as testifying to Herod's ferocity (iNIatt. ii), Erasmus's Paraphrase on Matt, xiii, xv. The popular identification of Mary Magdalene with "the woman that was a sinner" is discussed, and re- jected (Luke x). More noticeable even than in Tyn- dale is the boldness and fulness of the exegetical notes scattered throughout the book. Strong and earnest in asserting wliat he loolved upon as the central truths of the Gospel, there was in Rogers a Luther-like freedom in other things which has not appeared again in any authorized translation or popular commentary. He guards his readers against looking on the narrative of Job i as literally true. He recognises a definite his- torical starting-point for Psa. xlv (" The sons of Korah praise Solomon for the beauty, eloquence, power, and nobleness, l>oth of himself and of his wife"), Psa. xxii
(" David declareth Christ's dejection and all,
under figure of himself"), and the Song of Solomon ("Solomon made this balade for himself and his wife, the daughter of Pharaoh, under the shadow of himself, figuring Christ," etc.). The chief duty of the Sab- bath is "to minister the fodder of the Word to simple souls," to be " pitiful over the weariness of such neigh- bors as labored sore all the week long." " When such occasions come as turn our rest to occupation and labor, then ought we to remember that the Sabbath was made for man, and not man for the Sabbath" (Jer. xvii). He sees in the prophets of the N. T. simply "expounders of Hoh' Scripture" (Acts xv). To the man living in faith, "Peter's fishing after the resur- rection, and all deeds of matrimony are pure spirit- ual;" to those who are not, "learning, doctrine, con- templation of iiigh things, preaching, studj' of Scrip- ture, founding of churches and abbeys, are works of the flesh" {Pref. to Romans'). "Neither is outward circumcision or outward baptism worth a pin of them- selves, save that they put us in remembrance to keep the covenant" (1 Cor. vii). " He that desireth honor gaspeth after lucre .... castles, parks, lordships . . . . desireth not a work, much less a good work, and nothing less than a bishop's" (1 Tim. iii). Ezek. xxxiv is said to be "against bishops and curates that despise the flock of Christ." The iiyyiXoQ tKKXiirricKj of Rev. ii and iii appears (as in Tyndale) as " the messenger of the congregation." Strong protests against Pur- gatory are found in notes to Ezek. xviii and 1 Cor. iii, and in the "Table of Principal Matters" it is signifi- cantly stated under the word Purgatorj' that " it is not in the Bilile, but the purgation and remission of our sins is made us by the abundant mercj^ of God." The Preface to the Apocrypha explains the name, and dis- tinctly asserts the inferiority of these books. No notes are added to them, and the translation of them is taken from Coverdale, as if it had not been worth while to give much labor to it.
ENGLISH VERSIONS
214
ENGLISH VERSIONS
4. A few points of detail remain to be noticed. In the order of the books of the N. T. Rogers follows Tyndale, agreeing; with the A. V. as far as the Epistle to Philemon. This is followed by the Epistles of John, then that to the Hebrews, then those of Peter, James, and Jude. Wood-cuts, not very freel_y introduced elsewhere, are prefixed to every chapter in tlie Eeve- lation. The introduction of the " Table" mentioned above gives Rogers a claim to be the patriarch of Con- cordances, the "father" of all such as write in Diction- aries of the Bible. Ileverence for the Hebrew text is shown by his striking out the three verses which the Vulgate has added to Psa. xiv. In a later edition, pubiished at Paris, not by Rogers himself, but bj^ Grafton, under Coverdale's superintendence, in 1539, the obnoxious prologue and prefaces were suppressed, and the notes systematically expurgated and toned down. The book was in advance of the age. Neither booksellers nor bishops were prepared to be responsi- ble for it.
VI. Taverner (1539). — !. The boldness of the pseudo-Matthew had, as has been said, frightened the ecclesiastical world from its propriety. Coverdale's version was, however, too inaccurate to keep its ground. It was necessary to find another editor, and the printers applied to Richard Taverner. But little is known of his life. The fact that, though a laj-man, he had been chosen as one of the canons of the Car- dinal's College at Oxford indicates a reputation for scholarship, and this is confirmed by the character of his translation. It professes, in the title-page, to be ''newly recognised, with great diligence, after the most faithful exemplars." The editor acknowledges 'the labors of others (i. e. Tj'ndale, Covcrdale, and !Matthew, though he does not name them) who have neither ii^idiligently nor unlearnedly travelled," owns that the work is not one that can be done "absolute- ly" (i. e. completel}') by one or two persons, but re- quires "a deeper conferring of man)' learned wittes together, and also a juster time and longer leisure ;" but the thing had to lie done ; he had been asked to do it. He had " used his talent" as he could.