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| | The Geneva Bible was the first to divide chapters into numbered verses. It includes extensive annotations and was the first study bible. The Geneva Bible was one of the first to use "[[infinite]]", which most modern [[English]] translations still fail to use, as in {{bibleref|Psalms|147|5}} which the Geneva Bible renders as "Great is our Lord, and great is his power: his wisdom is infinite." | | The Geneva Bible was the first to divide chapters into numbered verses. It includes extensive annotations and was the first study bible. The Geneva Bible was one of the first to use "[[infinite]]", which most modern [[English]] translations still fail to use, as in {{bibleref|Psalms|147|5}} which the Geneva Bible renders as "Great is our Lord, and great is his power: his wisdom is infinite." |
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| − | King James outlawed the Geneva Bible,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=XamSCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA247 Edwards the Exegete: Biblical Interpretation and Anglo-Protestant Culture on the Edge of the Enlightenment]</ref> which led to its virtual disappearance.<ref>[http://www.breakingchristiannews.com/articles/display_art.html?ID=10876 Kirk Cameron Endorses Geneva Bible]</ref> The Geneva Bible is now available in a hardcover edition published in 2006 by Tolle Lege Press.<ref name=Bible>Lillback, Peter A., DeMar, Gary D., Federer, William J., ''et al.'' ''1599 Geneva Bible: The Holy Scriptures Contained in the Old and New Testaments.'' White Hall, [[West Virginia|WV]], [[United States of America|USA]]: Tolle Lege Press, 2006. 1400 pp., cloth. ISBN 0975484699. Also available in black (ISBN 0975484613) and calfskin (ISBN 0975484621) leather-bound editions.</ref> | + | King James outlawed the Geneva Bible,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=XamSCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA247 Edwards the Exegete: Biblical Interpretation and Anglo-Protestant Culture on the Edge of the Enlightenment]</ref> which led to its virtual disappearance for nearly 400 years.<ref>[http://www.breakingchristiannews.com/articles/display_art.html?ID=10876 Kirk Cameron Endorses Geneva Bible]</ref> The Geneva Bible is now available in a hardcover edition published in 2006 by Tolle Lege Press.<ref name=Bible>Lillback, Peter A., DeMar, Gary D., Federer, William J., ''et al.'' ''1599 Geneva Bible: The Holy Scriptures Contained in the Old and New Testaments.'' White Hall, [[West Virginia|WV]], [[United States of America|USA]]: Tolle Lege Press, 2006. 1400 pp., cloth. ISBN 0975484699. Also available in black (ISBN 0975484613) and calfskin (ISBN 0975484621) leather-bound editions.</ref> |
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| | == History == | | == History == |
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| | The Geneva Bible is often called the "Breeches Bible" because of its rendition of {{Bible ref|book=Genesis|chap=3|verses=7|version=KJV}}. The Geneva text<ref name=Gen37>''1599 Geneva Bible'', Tolle Lege Press, ''op. cit.'', p. 6</ref> reads as follows:{{Cquote|Then the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig tree leaves together, and made themselves breeches.}} | | The Geneva Bible is often called the "Breeches Bible" because of its rendition of {{Bible ref|book=Genesis|chap=3|verses=7|version=KJV}}. The Geneva text<ref name=Gen37>''1599 Geneva Bible'', Tolle Lege Press, ''op. cit.'', p. 6</ref> reads as follows:{{Cquote|Then the eyes of them both were opened, and they knew that they were naked, and they sewed fig tree leaves together, and made themselves breeches.}} |
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| − | In fact, if any version of the Bible, printed or electronic, does ''not'' translate Genesis 3:7 in the words quoted above, then it is ''not'' a Geneva Bible. | + | In fact, if any version of the Bible, printed or electronic, does ''not'' translate Genesis 3:7 in the words quoted above, then it is ''not'' a Geneva Bible. Today, "breeches" means short trousers, as in formal wear for horseback riding. |
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| | The differences in the actual text between the Geneva and Authorized Versions are minor. Nevertheless, they are critical to distinguishing the Geneva Bible from the Authorized Version or any other version. | | The differences in the actual text between the Geneva and Authorized Versions are minor. Nevertheless, they are critical to distinguishing the Geneva Bible from the Authorized Version or any other version. |
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| | === The Marginal Notes === | | === The Marginal Notes === |
| − | The copious marginal notes are the key feature of the Geneva Bible, and its key difference from the Authorized Version, which has no such notes. As Foster<ref name=Foster/> stated, the Geneva Bible is the first true ''study Bible''. Its translators sought to explain to the common man not only what the Bible said but also what it meant. | + | The copious marginal notes are the key feature of the Geneva Bible, and its key difference from the Authorized Version, which has no such notes in part to avoid risking offense to the King. As Foster<ref name=Foster/> stated, the Geneva Bible is the first true ''study Bible''. Its translators sought to explain to the common man not only what the Bible said but also what it meant. |
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| | These notes are highly revealing of the mindset of the Geneva editors. For that reason they are at least as valuable as a source of insight into Reformation thinking as they are as explanatory text of the Bible itself. | | These notes are highly revealing of the mindset of the Geneva editors. For that reason they are at least as valuable as a source of insight into Reformation thinking as they are as explanatory text of the Bible itself. |