LEA.????.AD1560

Geneva (The famous Breeches) Bible 1560

The Geneva Bible is named after the city Geneva, Switzerland, where a number of exiled Protestants translated their own Bible. The translators were led by William Whittingham, "who took as his basic text not the Great Bible but Tyndale... and revised it 'by the most approved Greek examples and conference of translations in other tongues.'" Before compiling the full Bible in 1560, they published the New Testament and Psalms in 1557 and a revised Psalter in 1559.

The Geneva bible had "a long history, running to at least 140 editions-Bible or Testament-until the last of 1644." It came to be considered "the family Bible of the English people and... was the first Bible printed in Scotland" due to its strong Protestant stance (Ackroyd).

The work acquired the sobriquet “Breeches Bible” because it described Adam and Eve as having made “breeches” to cover their nakedness (Genesis 3:7), instead of “aprons” or “loincloths.” (Brittanica)

This leaf consists of Daniel 4:20-6 Chapter Introduction. Chapter 4 accounts Daniel interprets Nebuchadnezzar’s dream of the great tree, describing the king’s fall and madness—The king learns that the Most High rules and sets the basest of men over earthly kingdoms. Chapter 5 accounts Belshazzar and his revelers drink from the vessels of the temple—A hand writes upon the wall, telling of Belshazzar’s downfall—Daniel interprets the words and reproves the king for pride and idolatry—That night Babylon is conquered. Chapter 6 accounts Darius makes Daniel the first of his presidents—Daniel worships the Lord in defiance of a decree of Darius—He is cast into the den of lions—His faith saves him, and Darius decrees that all people are to revere the God of Daniel.
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Ackroyd, Peter R., C. F Evans, G. W. H. Lampe, and S. L. Greenslade. 1963. The Cambridge History of the Bible. University Press, 1963-70. Vol. 3.

Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Geneva Bible". Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 Sep. 2020, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Geneva-Bible. Accessed 27 April 2022.

1560 A.D.

8.5W x 12.75H in.

16th Century

TBD

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