Pages xlviii–liv

intreated Job xix. 16, but entreated in the next verse; while in Job xxiv. 21 the second is intreateth. In Jer. xv. 11 text and margin, intreat and entreat actually change places in 1611, and are not put right until 1638. Between enquire and inquire, on the contrary, the choice is purely indifferent; the former is chiefly adopted in 1611 (but inquired Deut. xvii. 4 Oxford reprint; Ps. lxxviii. 34; Ezekiel xx. 31 bis; John iv. 52, &c.; inquiry Prov. xx. 25), the latter is our practice, derived from our model (1858) and the recent Cambridge Bibles. Thus also we take informed with 1611 in Acts xxv. 2, rather than enformed as in 2 Macc. xiv. 1; Acts xxiv. 1; xxv. 15: but enrolled of 1611 in 1 Macc. x. 36 in preference to inrolled of the margins of Luke ii. 1; Heb. xii. 23. In Isai. v. 11 enflame is in 1611, but inflaming in Isai. lvii. 5; modern Bibles reverse this, yet all keep inflamed of 1611 in Hist. of Susanna ver. 8. Many words, the exact orthography of which is quite indifferent, we have laboured to reduce to a uniform method. Thus ankles, the usual modern practice, which we take in all five places, is found in 1611 only in Ps. xviii. 36 marg., but ancles in 2 Sam. xxii. 37 marg.; Ezek. xlvii. 3 text and marg.; Acts iii. 7: in 1629 ancles is set in the first place, ankles in the third and fourth, later Bibles recalling this last correction, but bringing ankles into 2 Sam. xxii. 37 marg. Sometimes the later Bibles issuing from different presses exhibit their characteristic varieties of spelling. Instead of inquire, noticed above as a peculiarity of the Cambridge books, those of Oxford (1857) and London or the Queen’s Printer (1859) read enquire: for axe (which word is thus spelt ten times in 1611) these last, after the example of their predecessors from 1629 (Camb.) downwards, wrongly print ax, against the modern Cambridge editions. In 1 Kin. v. 9; 2 Chr. ii. 16; 1 Esdr. v. 55 we find flotes in 1611, but recent Cambridge Bibles have needlessly changed it into floats. These last are again wrong in soap, which, after 1611, the Oxford and London Bibles spell sope in both places (Jer. ii. 22; Mal. iii. 2). The truer form rasor occurs seven times in 1611 and the Cambridge text, while the books of Oxford and London have razor. In Judg. ix. 53 the Oxford editions, with 1611, adopt scull, but the Cambridge, and 1611 in all other places, prefer skull. The Cambridge books, after 1611, have gray (greyhound Prov. xxx. 31, rightly so spelt in 1629 Camb., 1630, has no connection with it), the Oxford and London grey. With the Cambridge Bible we also spell counseller (not counsellor with those of Oxford and London), as does also that of 1611 except in three places, where it has counsellours (Ezra viii. 25; Prov. xii. 20; xv. 22). Council (variously spelt councill, councel, councell in 1611) is ordinarily distinguished from counsel or counsell, but the latter is put for the former in 1 Esdr. iii. 15 marg. (χρηματιστηρίῳ); Matt. v. 22; Mark xiv. 55, all subsequently set right. Since ours, yours, theirs are possessive cases plural of the personal pronouns, the apostrophe set before s in the editions of 1762 and 1769, as also in the London and Oxford Bibles to this day, is positively incorrect: hence the Cambridge practice, which never admitted the apostrophe, has been followed in this respect.

Again, there are forms not wholly banished from our modern books, though their number is diminished in later times, whose presence tends to lend richness and variety to the style. Such is marish Ezek. xlvii. 11; 1 Macc. ix. 42, 45, for the more familiar marsh: the pathetic astonied, yet standing for the more common-place astonished in Ezra ix. 3, 4; Job xvii. 8; xviii. 20; Jer. xiv. 9; Ezek. iv. 17; Dan. iii. 24; iv. 19; v. 9, and restored to its rightful position in the great passage Isai. lii. 14, whence a false taste has removed it subsequently to 1638. Stablish also has been brought again into twelve places (e.g. Lev. xxv. 30; Deut. xix. 15) instead of established of later books: grin or grinne (Job xviii. 9; Ps. cxl. 5; cxli. 9) has been treated as a legitimate modification of gin or ginne (Job xl. 24 marg.; Isai. viii. 14; Amos iii. 5), though cast out in 1762. Once only, it would appear, a superficial difficulty is attempted to be concealed by a slight change in the spelling. In Gen. l. 23 marg. borne, which in 1611 was equivalent to born, was sufficiently correct to convey no wrong impression. To ensure clearness the final e was dropped in 1629 (Camb.), but restored again in 1762, by which time it would be sure to suggest a false meaning.

Enough has been said of those variations in orthography which are due to accident or the caprice of fashion. Others, more interesting, spring from grammatical inflections common in the older stages of our language, which have been gradually withdrawn from later Bibles, wholly or in part, chiefly by those great modernisers, Dr Paris (1762) and Dr Blayney (1769), and have all been brought back again in the present volume. Yet it is not always easy to distinguish these from forms involving a mere change in spelling, and different persons will judge differently about them at times. Thus we cannot well retain growen 1 Kin. xii. 8, 10, while we alter knowen 1 Kin. xiv. 2, &c. To reject, however, such words as fet by substituting the modern fetched, is a liberty far beyond what an editor of our version ought ever to have assumed: we have restored fet in 2 Sam. ix. 5; xi. 27; 1 Kin. vii. 13; ix. 28; 2 Kin. xi. 4; 2 Chr. xii. 11; Jer. xxvi. 23; xxxvi. 21; Acts xxviii. 13: it is full as legitimate as fetcht of 2 Sam. xiv. 2; 2 Kin. iii. 9; 2 Chr. i. 17, and even of our latest Bibles in Gen. xviii. 7. The editors of 1762 and 1769 bestowed much evil diligence in clearing our English Translation of this participle in -t, Blayney following in the steps of Paris and supplying many of his deficiencies, yet, with characteristic negligence, leaving not a few untouched. Thus burned is substituted by them for burnt in some 93 places (burnt being left untouched in 2 Kin. xvi. 4; xvii. 11, &c.). For lift they put lifted 95 times, once (Dan. iv. 34, where lift is past tense indicative) with some show of reason; sometimes (e.g. Zech. i. 21, where lift up is present) to the detriment of the sense. Similar cases are built Neh. iii. 1 (builded ver. 2, 1611): clapt 2 Kin. xi. 12: clipt Jer. xlviii. 37: cropt Ezek. xvii. 4: crusht Num. xxii. 25: deckt Prov. vii. 16; 2 Esdr. xv. 47; 1 Macc. iv. 57: dipt Lev. ix. 9; 1 Sam. xiv. 27; 2 Kin. viii. 15; Rev. xix. 13 (dipped also in 1611 Gen. xxxvii. 31): girt 1 Sam. ii. 4 (girded ver. 18 in 1611): leapt 1 Kin. xviii. 26 (text, leaped marg.); Wisd. xviii. 15 (leaped 1611 in ch. xix. 9); 1 Macc. xiii. 44; Acts xix. 16: mixt Prov. xxiii. 30; Isai. i. 22; Dan. ii. 41 (sic 1611, not ver. 43, the second time); 2 Esdr. xiii. 11: past 2 Cor. v. 17 (so even moderns in 1 Pet. iv. 3; in Eph. ii. 11 we have passed in 1611, past 1769): pluckt 1 Chr. xi. 23; Ezra ix. 3; Neh. xiii. 25; Job xxix. 17; Prov. ii. 22 marg.; Dan. vii. 4, 8; xi. 4; Amos iv. 11; Zech. iii. 2; 2 Macc. xiv. 46 (plucked 1611 in Gal. iv. 15): puft Col. ii. 18: pusht Ezek. xxxiv. 21: ravisht Prov. v. 19, 20 (ravished 1611 in Zech. xiv. 2): ript 2 Kin. xv. 16; Hos. xiii. 16; Amos i. 13: slipt 1 Sam. xix. 10; Ps. lxxiii. 2; Ecclus. xiii. 22; xiv. 1: stampt 2 Kin. xxiii. 6, 15: start Tobit ii. 4 (started 1762, but it might be present, ἀναπηδήσας ἀνειλόμην): stopt 2 Chr. xxxii. 4 (stopped ver. 30; Zech. vii. 11 in 1611): stript Ex. xxxiii. 6; 1 Sam. xviii. 4; xix. 24; 2 Chr. xx. 25; Job xix. 9; Mic. i. 8: watcht Ps. lix. title: wrapt 1 Sam. xxi. 9; 2 Kin. ii. 8; Job xl. 17; Ezek. xxi. 15; Jonah ii. 5. These archaic preterites contribute to produce a pleasing variety in the style of our version, and are grammatically just as accurate as the modern forms; which is perhaps hardly the case with rent when it is used not as a preterite only, but as a present, as in Lev. xxi. 10 (sic, 1611); 2 Sam. iii. 31; 1 Kin. xi. 31; Eccles. iii. 7; Isai. lxiv. 1 (sic, 1611); Ezek. xiii. 11, 13; xxix. 7; Hos. xiii. 8; Joel ii. 13; Matt. vii. 6; John xix. 24. Other antiquated preterites are begun Num. xxv. 1 (began 1611 in Gen. iv. 26): drunk Gen. xliii. 34 (text not margin); Dan. v. 4: shaked Ecclus. xxix. 18; shined quite as often as shone; sprang Gen. xli. 6 (sprung ver. 23): stale Gen. xxxi. 20; 2 Kin. xi. 2 (stole 2 Sam. xv. 6; 2 Chr. xxii. 11 in 1611): strooke 1 Sam. ii. 14; 2 Chr. xiii. 20 (sic, 1611); 1 Esdr. iv. 30 (stroke 2 Macc. i. 16; Matt. xxvi. 51; Luke xxii. 64; John xviii. 22, also strake 2 Sam. xii. 15; xx. 10: never struck): stunk Ex. vii. 21 (stank ch. viii. 14 in 1611): sung Ezra iii. 11: swore 1 Macc. vii. 35: wan 1 Macc. i. 2; xii. 33 (sic, 1611); 2 Macc. x. 17; xii. 28 (won 2 Macc. xv. 9 in 1611). Among past participles may be noted (wast) begot Ecclus. vii. 28: (his) hid (things) Obad. 6: (have) sit Ecclus. xi. 5. It would have been well to have retained lien (which even modern Bibles keep in Ps. lxviii. 13) for lain in Num. v. 19, 20, as we have in the other places, Judg. xxi. 11; Job iii. 13; John xi. 17. Other verbal forms deserving notice are oweth Lev. xiv. 35; Acts xxi. 11, and ought Matt. xviii. 24, 28; Luke vii. 41, which were not changed into owneth and owed respectively till after 1638: leese (lose 1762) 1 Kin. xviii. 5. The noun flixe (flix 1629) was corrupted into flux in Acts xxviii. 8 as early as 1699.

It is hard to discover any intelligible principle which guided the editors of 1762 and 1769 in their vexatious changes of several particles into their cognate forms. Thus for amongst they print among 81 times, for towards they print toward 121 times, for besides they give beside 44 times1, yet keep the forms they dislike so often that it is plain they have no design to disuse them altogether. Such wanton, or perhaps merely careless, variations are cancelled in this volume. Nor can there be any good ground for…