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Bishops’ Bible (launsers), but occurs nowhere else, and was not altered into lancets before 1762. For andirons Ezek. xl. 43 marg. (which is etymologically true) 1638, 1769 and the moderns have endirons; end irons of 1744, 1762 is a bad guess. The Bishops’ margin has trevets. Another word, used but once, is ebeny, Ezek. xxvii. 15, which is so spelt both in Hebrew and Greek: ebony of the moderns is more recent than 1638. Thus, too, turbant, Dan. iii. 21 marg. only, the form adopted by Milton and Dryden, was not changed into turbans before 1762. So imbers, Tobit vi. 16 marg. Since sailer, Rev. xviii. 17, is pronounced by Johnson to be more analogical than sailor, and held the ground till after 1638, we have taken courage to revive it. In Nahum ii. 4 also justle of 1611 is restored, instead of jostle of some moderns. Of words met with but twice, ambassage Luke xiv. 32 is adopted rather than embassage 1 Macc. xiv. 23; scrole, Isai. xxxiv. 4, is preferred to scrowle, Rev. vi. 14; but it is not possible to take either champion, Deut. xi. 30, or champian, Ezek. xxxvii. 2 marg.; either musitian, Ecclus. xxxii. 4, or musition, Rev. xviii. 22; or scholler as in 1 Chr. xxv. 8; Mal. ii. 12. Nor would anker, ballance, threed, suit the modern eye, although they are never met with in what to us appears the only correct form.

The same liberty has been taken in regard to soldier and vinegar, which the standard Bibles, contrary to their derivation, invariably spell souldier and vineger. What is spelt haply in five other places, in 1611 was happily 2 Cor. ix. 4 (πως): though changed in both books of 1629, happily was brought back in 1630, but can hardly hold its ground. The particle of comparison than is uniformly then in the Bible of 1611, as in many books far into the seventeenth century: this fashion, of course, could not be imitated now. Although saphir or saphire or saphyre does not vary in the same Bibles, the original will not dispense with pph. Nor have we retained cabbins, used but once, Jer. xxxvii. 16: though we have ventured upon fauchin of 1611, Judith xiii. 6; xvi. 9. The strange form chawes for jaws Ezek. xxix. 4 suggests a questionable etymology. Traffique (the verb used once, the noun four times) and traffiquers Isai. xxiii. 8 have also been refused1.

Those English words which, whether from custom or difference of origin, vary in their signification according to the modes in which they are severally spelt, are invariably confused in the standard Bible. Travel and travail afford a familiar example of the fact, inasmuch as the fault has not yet been completely removed from modern editions, e.g. Num. xx. 14 where travel of 1629 (Camb.) and recent Bibles, though the Hebrew is הַתְּלָאָה, would just make sense, and has been substituted for travail of 1611. In Wisd. x. 10 also the latest Bibles, after that of 1629, erroneously render μόχθοις by travels, in the room of travails of 1611. In Lam. iii. 5 travel is given for תְלָאָה, as in Num. xx. 14, in all the books from 1611 to the American (1867) which has travail: although many like errors of the original edition have been corrected by its successors. The case between twined and twinned is stated below (Appendix B, p. lxxxviii., note 3). The distinction between morter (Gen. xi. 3) and mortar Num. xi. 8; Prov. xxvii. 22, was first taken in 1638: by spelling both morter, the Bible of 1611 confounds words which have only an accidental resemblance. We should also discriminate carefully between naught (רַע) 2 Kin. ii. 19; Prov. xx. 14, and nought (i.e. nothing) Gen. xxix. 15, &c.: they were both spelt nought previously to 16382. In spite of the analogy of nought, it is probably right to spell aught in such places as Gen. xxxix. 6, as the American revisers have done, but we have here abided by ought with 1611. We have not ventured on the fine distinction between veil, an article of dress, and the Vail of the Sanctuary, but retained in all cases (except in error Wisd. xvii. 3; Ecclus. l. 5 marg.) vail of 1611 in preference to veil of later editions. In Job xiv. 17 the great oversight of 1611 sowest for sewest was left in our Bibles till 1762. The similar error sow for sew in Eccles. iii. 7; Mark ii. 21, remained till 1629; in Ezek. xiii. 18 it survived beyond 1638. Between intreat (to pray) and entreat (i. e. treat) there is a broad difference of sense, properly recognized in 1762: yet in 1611 the former is spelt