PREFACE TO THE GENEVAN BIBLE, 1560.

To our Beloved in the Lord,
The Brethren of England,
Scotland, Ireland, &c. Grace, mercie, and peace,
through Christ Jesus.[141]

Besides the manifold and continuall benefits which Almightie God bestowed upon us, both corporall and spirituall, we are especially bound (deare brethren) to giue him thankes without ceasing for his great grace and vnspeakable mercies, in that it hath pleased him to call vs vnto this marueilous light of his Gospell, and mercifully to regarde vs after so horrible backesliding and falling away from Christ to Antichrist, from light to darknesse, from the liuing God to dumme and dead idoles, and that after so cruell murther of God’s saints, as alas, hath bene among vs, wee are not altogether cast off, as were the Israelites, and many others for the like or not so manifest wickednesse, but receiued againe to grace with most evident signes and tokens of God’s especiall loue and fauour. To the intent therefore that wee may not be vnmindfull of these great mercies, but seeke by all meanes (according to our duetie) to bee thankefull for the same, it behoueth vs so to walke in his feare and loue, that all the dayes of our life we may procure the glorie of his holy name.Nowe forasmuch as this thing chiefely is atteined by the knowledge and practising of the worde of God (which is the light to our paths, the keye of the kingdome of heauen, our comfort in affliction, our shielde and sworde against Satan, the schoole of all wisdome, the glasse wherein we beholde Gods face, the testimonie of his fauour, and the onely foode and nourishment of our soules), wee thought that wee coulde bestowe our labours and studie in nothing which coulde be more acceptable to God and comfortable to his Church then in the translating of the holy Scriptures into our natiue tongue: the which thing albeit that diuers heretofore haue endeuoured to atchieue; yet considering the infancie of those times and imperfect knowledge of the tongues in respect of this ripe age and cleere light which God hath now reueiled, y^e translations required greatly to be perused and reformed. Not that we vendicate anything to our selues aboue the least of our brethren (for God knoweth with what feare and trembling we haue bene for the space of two yeeres and more day and night occupied herein), but being earnestly desired and by diuers, whose learning and godlinesse we reuerence, exhorted and also encouraged by the ready willes of such, whose hearts God likewise touched, not to spare any charges for the furtherance of such a benefite and fauour of God towarde his Church (though the time then was most dangerous, and the persecution sharpe and furious), we submitted our selues at length to their godly judgements, and seeing the great opportunitie and occasions, which God presented unto vs in his Church, by reason of so many godlie and learned men: and such diuersities of translations in diuers tongues, we vndertooke this great and wonderfull worke (with all reuerence, as in the presence of God, as intreating the word of God, whereunto we thinke our selues vnsufficient) which now God accepting according to his diuine prouidence and mercie hath directed to a most prosperous ende. And this we may with good conscience protest that we haue in euery point and worde, according to the measure of that knowledge which it pleased Almightie God to giue vs, faithfully rendred the text, and in all hard places most sincerely expounded the same. For God is our witnesse that we haue by all meanes indeuoured to set foorth the puritie of the word and the right sense of the holy Ghost for the edifying of the brethren in faith and charitie.

Nowe as we have chiefely obserued the sence, and laboured allwayes to restore it to all integritie, so haue we most reuerently kept the proprietie of the wordes, considering that the Apostles who spake and wrote to the Gentiles in the Greeke tongue, rather constrained them to the liuely phrase of the Ebrew, then enterprised farre by mollifying their language to speake as the Gentiles did. And for this and other causes wee haue in many places reserued the Ebrew phrases, notwithstanding that they may seeme somewhat hard in their eares that are not well practised and also delite in the sweet sounding phrases of the holy Scriptures. Yet least eyther the simple should be discouraged, or the malicious haue any occasion of just cauilation, seeing some translations reade after one sort, and some after another, whereas all may serue to good purpose and edification, we haue in the margent noted that diuersitie of speech or reading which may also seeme agreeable to the minde of the holy Ghost, and proper for our language with this marke. ?

Againe, whereas the Ebrewe speache seemed hardly to agree with ours we haue noted it in the margent after this sort ‡, vsing that which was more intelligible. And albeit that many of the Ebrewe names be altered from the olde text, and restored to the true writing and first originall, whereof they haue their signification, yet in the vsuall names litle is changed for feare of troubling the simple readers. Moreover, whereas the necessitie of the sentence required any thing to be added (for such is the grace and proprietie of the Ebrew and Greeke tongues that it cannot, but either by circumlocution, or by adding the verbe or some word, be understood of them that are not well practised therein) wee haue put in the text with an other kinde of letter that it may easily be discerned from the common letter.[142] As touching the diuision of the verses wee haue followed the Ebrewe examples, which haue so euen from the beginning distinguished them. Which thing as it is most profitable for memorie, so doeth it agree with the best translations, and is most easie to finde out both by the best Concordances, and also by the quotations which we haue diligently herein perused and set foorth by this *. Besides this the principall matters are noted by this marke ¶. Yea, and the arguments both for the booke and for the chapters with the number of the verse are added, that by all meanes the reader might be holpen. For the which cause also we haue set ouer the head of every page some notable worde or sentence which may greatly further as well for memorie as for the chiefe point of the page.

And considering howe hard a thing it is to vnderstand the holy Scriptures, and what errors, sectes, and heresies growe dayly for lacke of the true knowledge thereof, and howe many are discouraged (as they pretend) because they cannot atteine to the true and simple meaning of the same, we haue also indeuoured both by the diligent reading of the best commentaries, and also by the conference with the godly and learned brethren, to gather briefe annotations upon all the hard places, as well for the vnderstanding of such wordes as are obscure, and for the declaration of the text, as for the application of the same, as may most appertaine to God’s glory and the edification of his Church.

Furthermore, whereas certaine places in the bookes of Moses, of the Kings, and Ezekiel, seemed so darke that by no description they could be made easie to the simple reader, wee have so set them foorth with figures and notes for the full declaration thereof, that they which cannot by judgement, being holpen by the letters a, b, c, &c., atteine thereunto, yet by the perspective and, as it were, by the eye, may sufficiently knowe the true meaning of all such places. Whereunto also wee haue added certaine maps of Cosmographie which necessarily serue for the perfect vnderstanding and memorie of diuers places and countries, partly described and partly by occasion touched both in the olde and newe Testament.

Finally, that nothing might lacke which might be bought by labours, for the increase of knowledge and furtherance of God’s glorie, we have adioyned two most profitable Tables, the one seruing for the interpretation of the Ebrew names, and the other conteining all the chiefe and principall matters of the whole Bible, so that nothing (as wee trust) that any could iustlie desire is omitted. Therefore as brethren that are partakers of the same hope and saluation with us, wee beseeche you that this rich pearle and inestimable treasure may not be offred in vaine, but as sent from God to the people of God, for the increase of his kingdome, the comfort of his Church, and discharge of our conscience, whom it hath pleased him to raise vp for this purpose, so you woulde willingly receive the worde of God, earnestly studie it, and in all your life practise it, that you may nowe appeare in deede to bee the people of God, not walking any more according to this worlde, but in the fruits of the Spirit, that God in vs may bee fully glorified through Christ Jesus our Lorde who liueth and reigneth for euer. Amen. From Geneva, 10th April, 1560.