New-York tribune., 1879-03-29
BIBLE REVISION.
BISHOP COKE ON COLLOQUIAL ENGLISH
THE BAPTIST ENTERPRISE OF 1S56-ExAMPLE'

SIR: 1t has been well said lately by public
journalist that some books possess interest merely
as illustrating the peculiar directions Of thought
which mems minds may take; for as it takes all
sorts of men to make world so it takes all sorts
of books TO show what the world is made Of" This
| persuasion leads to think it worth
while to speak of some attempts to improve
our common English Bible which have
been made in our day, and which have deservedly
! come to naught for while the promised revision Is
confessedly of exceptional merit, we may learn
from what some minds regard as improve
ments how little probability there is that
| any new Bible will satisfy them better than the
| old. One of your correspondents, observe, will be
| contented with nothing less than a subversiOn of
| all grammar and of all evidence, in order
| to get rid of some of the most striking
prophecies of the Messiah. When his read
| ings shall have been adopted by the Re-
visonists 1t will be time enough to dis
cuss them. Meantime, see in current journal
ism, every day, overwhelming proofs that if we
| once lay hands on the grand old heirloom of the
Englsh-speaking world we shall never get
anything satisfactory in it's place. Every theorist
will be medding and like the ancient Corinthians,
each will merit the Apostolic rebuke, "How is it,
| then brethren7 every one of Won hath a
psalm, hath doctrine, hath tongue, hath reve-
aton, hath an interpretation Out of the chaos,
what evolution shall make dry laud appear ; green
pastures and still waters such as we now enOy'
SO long ago as 1856. our Baptist brethren were
engaged III very costly enterprise, from which,
learn, they emerged with dear experience as its only
conspicuous result | understand the project
was abandoned. much to the credit of
all concerned; but alas not without sore
heart-Durnngs and laceratng conflicts among
the good men themselves. Now, if even
within the limits of a single Christian dcnOmina-
tiOn, who all agreed to substitute John the
Immerser for" John the Baptist" and willing to
spend thousands of dollars tbeirrcvison-if even
in such "A favorable sphere this the consequences
were so unsatisfactory what must be expected
when every tongue Is looScd to claim each lts sew
eral qualification from the learned Rev lsiOnists
The exact history of the so-called Baptist Bible"
may not he adequately stated i'll the foregoing para
! graph. have not full information, only that
so far as the unhappy collisions are concerned L
! write from documents now before me. Nobody
would be more pleased than to the unquestion-
able facts of that movement fairly stated in your
columns.
| But now to show what another class of critics
| may be supposed to demand, viz, the adoption OF
| cOlloquial English, such would throw Hoods OF
| light even on the minds of our humble brethren,
the negroes of the old plantations at the
| South, let me call attention to the great
| American work, as 1t was called in It's day,
! of " Leicester Ambrose Sawyer: Boston and Lon
| don, 1853" The pretensions of this gentleman as
competent scholar. az learn from journalist of
that date forth in his prospectus in an I'M
poslug manner, and not only SO, for the proposed
| work was recommended by gentlemen whose claims
| to judge III such Il matter were lndlsputaDlc ana
| in whose conscientious responsibility the public
ought to have conf lencc." Tins learned reyisiOnist
| conceded that King James's Bible, so eXtrava-
gantly enOgized. was an excellent version for the
| times that produced t"; but what were the times
of Milton and Bishop Andrews as COM
pared with the enlightened age which has pro-
duced Mormon Bible and other entirely original
works of equal merritt But let lis turn to our
author and let him speak for himself Az an in
etance of clearing mp difficulties and getting
rid of the "pennies," "farthngs," etc, which
like the dukes of Edom, who were only Shelkhs of
Edom come down to from the insular ideas of
King Jamess transatOrs, author takes down
right American view of the subject, and sticks to
the original. thus:
Are not two spirrows sold for assarion rs mlIi
servants who owed HIM 100 denaui Ce1D. and sezing
him, he choked him, saying Pay me what you owe me-
| st. Matt. XVII, %.
a voice sayiugA CaGnT O. QuafD Ot Nnedl lOf
denarus Q4 cent- and thee chpnGrs of barley fora
! dcnarir+, aud mare not tue OIL etc.-Rry yi.'
| Here we have the Shckh theory fairly carried
out and net only 50, for the m0narchical bias OF
the English translators is faithfully corrected, ac-
| cor,ling t. American ideas, by the Introduction
of Federal money parenthetlcaliy, giving
! the exact cash equivalent, even to the frac-
! hon of a mill! This improvement IS obvious, and
! then the three chTnices (cents 14X3) Is literal
! rendering winch mast dIspel clouds OF ignorance
! from ordinary minds. Clearly nothing Will be
eas cr rs regard, the Federal money conpuiallOih,
than 10 change the types every time Congress legs.
latcs about silver and - the dollar of our fathers
4 fcv more Of he striking improvements suggest Il
Inv savers Version ought to De before the intelIi-
gent public while they are making up tneir minds
! as to the necessity of a new version. "hat lro-
tcstaut can fail to the force of the following
substItut IONS in noted text winch the Epscopal
bias" of King Jamcs's tranSlatora has lelt open 10
| very serious OblcctonH1 mus:
tell Won that you are Peter "a rock, and on rms rock
viii build my assembly, and the gates of Hades. etc
s. Matt xvi, l..
If building an assembly on rock be somewhat
novel idea, Mr. SAWYER would undoubitdly
! rrplV that nevertheless ccctcsid rs rendered
assembly even by King yamcs's TranslatoIs IN The
affair of the town-clerk OF tpheSu2. ferhaps p
assembly, in Mr.. Sawyer's happy rendering, ls by a
weil-knOvn rhetorical figure, meant 10 be ncqulV-
alcnt to assembly room. We hardly dare to suggest
that ii So his better equivalent, III America "ouu
! be saloon" will build my saloon"
But Mr. SAWYER shall be heard once more speak
! ing for himself; let lis observe with what dencscy
%ricv"nsIv oT yexed with devil" 1t is thus:
My daughter i, badly affected with demon St. Matt.
| XIV -.
Az to fine great principle Of Euphusm," how
| ever cannot forbear to quote the name ana eX-
ample of one " Rudolphus Dlckenson," who pre-;
faced his specimens with the remark tnat ne "aled
| n version - the elegance Of winch should ehtltle
If to a place ON centre or toilet table" As an IN
! stance take his pcrfumed reading OF the late oil
the traitor Judas Acts H. lsl as follows ...,
And falling PROSTATE, violent lniSJhai i SPdsl
cnsncd and ali his riscrd we're emitted.
When one recalls the coarse words o1 the common
Bible the Impr, yement must be obvious ,
Let il not be said that these are evidently the de-