Customer Reviews

The Bible in English: Its History and Influence

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Is it possible to recommend a book of almost a 1,000 pages? Can it be worthwhile to buy a book that long? Should anyone really read the whole thing?

Yes, yes, and no. I strongly recommend this book, because it literally contains revolutionary new information about the development of the English language, and about perhaps the greatest period of literary creativity in the history of English--roughly 1550 to 1650. David Daniell, a Shakespeare scholar by training, persuasively demonstrates how William Tyndale's translation of the New Testament from the original Greek into brilliantly vivid English, and half the Old Testament from Hebrew (all he could complete before he was strangled and burned at the stake), triggered a great burst of literary creativity (and political revolution) in England. Note that Tyndale was killed in 1536, a generation before Shakespeare's birth in 1564. During that period, Tyndale's translation was smuggled into England and provided the language, images and ideas for the brilliant generation of literary geniuses in the latter sixteenth century. In short, modern English was invented by the two Williams, Shakespeare and Tyndale. 99.9% of all educated people only understand the importance of Shakespeare--and he was actually the second William.

I've read Christopher de Hamel's "The Book: A History of the Bible", Benson Bobrick's "Wide as the Waters", and Alister McGrath's "In the Beginning: The Story of the King James Version". None of these books tell so clearly the story that Daniell has to tell. Daniell solves the old mystery of how a committee could produce such an excellent result as the KJV: by essentially plagiarising Tyndale. 90% of the KJV is taken from Tyndale's translations of the same passages. Daniell is a gifted reader of English prose and poetry, and he vividly evokes the importance of the many inter-relationships between Tyndale and the other translators of the Bible into English. Daniell has a fine ear and is a graceful and vivid writer about language's meanings and beauties.

The bottom line is that we should all get the 1599 Geneva Bible available in a reprint version. I've always known that the 1611 KJV couldn't have influenced Shakespeare, but after reading "The Bible in English", I became convinced that in order to understand my favourite 16th and 17th century writers, I have to get the Geneva Bible (essentially the Tyndale translation, with notes, upgraded with the best Greek and Hebrew scholarship available in the generation after Tyndale's execution). This is the book that is the hidden root of the best literature in English.

Of course, like all revolutions, this book is unfair to its enemies. The Catholic position is repeatedly parodied by Daniell. This discussion of key figures like Reginald Pole and Stephen Gardiner is two-dimensional, and ignores the powerful impact on the Catholic Church of the scriptures (exemplified in figures like Pole, a convinced Catholic who was immersed in the Bible). Peter Donaldson's book "Machiavelli and the Mystery of State" is a required antidote to Daniell's distortions about Tudor Catholics.

And it seems clear that Daniell has no really interest in events outside the period that clearly fascinates him, from the birth of Tyndale in approx. 1494 to 1611, when the KJV was published, which Daniell convincingly demonstrates was a victory of the good over the best. This is the superb heart of the book, extending from the forward to page 460.

After this period, there are some interesting passages in the book, which emerge startling out of the stereotypes and shallow scholarship, such as his discussion of Bunyan, and his funny little thesis about the relationship between the composer Handel and Alexander Pope. There is a bizarre, long section about Blake which has no place in this book. And the chapters on America are worthless. Daniell seems to get his understanding of contemporary America from TV, and historically his discussions of Jonathan Edwards, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln and their times are innocent of any knowledge of the relevant scholarship. Daniell's views on America and Americans are literally not worth reading.

But in the context of his great theme, I consider these flaws minor, even if they repeatedly mar the last 1/3 of the book. The first 460 pages of this book are magnificent and wonderful. I'd pay ten times the price of this book to learn what is in the first half of the book, and I'm grateful to David Daniell for teaching me what he knows about Tyndale and the Geneva Bible. He has revolutionised my understanding of English literature.

The Bible in English Its History and Influence, David Daniell's comprehensive work, is an exhaustively researched study about the difficult work of translation into the vernacular, for Britain and then America, from the fourth century to the present time. "If God spare my life, ere many years I will cause a boy that driveth the plough shall know more of the scripture than thou dost." Tyndale's famous words to an unknown clergyman were a vanguard of the Protestant Reformation and the reason for the drive to translate the Bible into English. Power to the ploughboy! He was to learn to read and understand scripture for himself; biblical literacy would not only empower his spiritual growth but his intellectual life as well, for once that ploughboy could read his Bible, he could read almost anything else. Literacy and the arts blossomed in the Reformation Era. Daniell painstakingly chronicles the major impact Bible translations have had on English speaking peoples, their culture, literacy, and language. His scholarly work spans the centuries: from a time when the priest only had knowledge of scripture, and the parishioner was patronized with a few traditional Bible stories and hagiography, through the Protestant Reformation when Biblical literacy was so widespread obscure scripture references peppered the popular literature of the day, to the present era when the average university student is unsure if a familiar phrase is from Shakespeare or the Bible.
David Daniell, a noted Shakespeare scholar, is Emeritus Professor of English, University College, London, as well as Honorary Fellow, Hertford and St.Catherine's, Oxford. He brings a cross-disciplinary expertise in sixteenth-century literature, history, and Reformation theology to bear upon his thesis that William Tyndale was the foremost figure in English Bible translation. Tyndale's biographer in a previously published work, Daniell has long championed the reformer as "the man who gave us our English Bible". The Bible in English acknowledges Tyndale's debt to Wyclif, Lollardy, Early and Middle English translations, and the richness of English literature from Caedmon to Chaucer. The major text of the book, however, is devoted to the debt owed to Tyndale by all who came after, beginning with Coverdale ( 1535), and of course by Spencer and Shakespeare. Daniell is most passionate arguing that 90 percent of the King James Version, the so-called "Authorized" Bible, was lifted directly from Tyndale's translation , and that the remaining 10 percentshould have been. He is also persuasive in his position that the Geneva Bible, which used Tyndale's work, en toto, remains a much better translation than the KJV, outpacing even respected contemporary versions for its beauty of language, and integrity of translation. The Geneva Bible was the Bible of the English Reformation and of the Pilgrims to the New World. Therefore, "the great change that came over England from 1526, the ability of every ordinary man, woman, and child to read and hear the whole New Testament in English, accurately rendered, was Tyndale's work, and its importance cannot be over-emphasised". Daniell contends Tyndale wrote English that "above all, and at all times, made sense" as opposed to the ornate and flowery English of the King James Version. He notes "No one ever spoke like that , not even in the sixteenth century".
Although Tyndale's is an earlier work, it often sounds more contemporary than the KJV. For example, in Genesis 31:28, the KJV has Laban say to Jacob, "Thou hast now done foolishly in so doing". Tyndale's translation "Thou wast a fool to do it" is a better translation, according to Daniell, and conveys the meaning in a more surprisingly modern cadence. Familiar phrases like "salt of the earth", "the spirit is willing", and "let not your heart be troubled" are some of the many Tyndale legacies. It is Daniell's position that William Tyndale's translation of the Bible is an immeasurable gift to the English language, and that Tyndale's additions to the language were foundational to the great Elizabethan writers, giving us the adage "without Tyndale, no Shakespeare".
The Bible in English focuses on the development of the English language through numerous Bible translations, rather than on the individual life stories of the translators themselves. The word-by-word translation studies throughout this meticulously researched volume will engage any reader who is intrigued by language and confirm the author's well-deserved reputation as a philologist. On the other hand, the average, recreational reader may be overwhelmed by the detailed gloss descriptions, hair-splitting translation minutia, and other etymological disputes. This is a prodigious work that many readers may not finish. Although Daniell often breaks into a lively, entertaining, and even witty style, he sometimes wears the reader down in scholarship. Nevertheless, the book is so delightfully informative, it is better digested in smaller courses than given up altogether as "too heavy" a meal. For example, the chapter entitled "Towards 1769, And After" seems to return to previously covered material. Skipping it and returning later does no harm. The book readily functions as a reference text, with an extensive index of thirty-two pages, Select Bibliography, Chronological List of Bibles in English, Abbreviations glossary, Notes, and an Appendix "Preface to the First 1611 KJV Edition". Center-of-the-book glossy illustrations include illuminated manuscript pages, iconography, and photographs of sacred art. The chapters can function as stand-alone essays.
For the early American History enthusiast, Chapter 14, "The English Bible in America: From the Beginnings to 1640" cuts a swath through the colonial era. Opening with Raleigh's explorations on the Outer Banks, claiming "Virginia" for his queen, to the Drake explorations on the West Coast, Daniell's research into primary sources authenticates the great importance faith, scripture, and evangelism played in early colonization of the New World. Daniell concludes Bibles were common in colonial American homes, Bibles that were "read and believed, and understood to refer to daily experience". That Bibles in English were among the possessions of the colonists is a virtual certainty according to Daniell, evidenced by the frequent reference to Biblical passages in journals, voyage logs, and reports. Colorful stories and journal entries from lesser known figures like Richard Hakluyt , explorer-chronicler, Thomas Hariot, scientific observer, and John White, illustrator, are most welcome to the Virginia history buff. Hakluyt recounts in his Discourse of Western Planting ( 1583) that the presence of Bibles, Books of (religious) service, and preachers were needed to ensure his ship's voyages honored God, that the seamen were instructed, and that discipline be maintained. These goals were not always met it is true , but Bibles in the vernacular nevertheless came to the colonies as part and parcel of the colonists' way of life and worldview, as evidenced by the impressive array of Daniell's primary source document citations.
The last few chapters of the book deal with newer translations of the Bible and their relative value and affect on British and American communities. The fact that there are too many contemporary versions to list is indicative of the problem of quantity versus quality. Although there have been more than a thousand different Bible translations (and transliterations ) since the close of the Second World War, Daniell finds only a handful to be worthy works, (based on solid scholarship rather than a social or theological "agenda" ). Daniell also finds it puzzling that Americans would be so fond of the King James Version, a monarchical rendering, and finds it amusing they act as if the KJV must be the very translation Jesus read.
The Bible in English concludes by mourning the lost of our "ears". Earlier translations, like Tyndale's and Coverdale's , were written to be heard. That is why they "sing" so beautifully in Handel's "Messiah" and in Bach's "St. Matthew Passion", for example. In our new, very visually oriented, 21st century society, the ability to hear and understand the spoken word is waning. "While the visual dominates, aural attention fades. Not only do television and computer images, by their very speed and impermanence, encourage inattention to themselves, they rob us of our attention to words." For the true lover of language, such as David Daniell, this is a tragedy, and a tragedy starkly illuminated by most of the new "user-friendly" Bible translations. For example, poignant, spiritually charged verses such as "...he went out at the doors and wept bitterly" are rendered, by the Contemporary English Version "Then Peter went out and cried hard". Daniell questions the future of the modern English Bible. Translations of the Reformation era swept the countryside, converted a populace, and energized the language and culture. A visual - media addicted culture is not likely to experience any such reaction to any of the meager offerings in the proliferation of new Bible translations. With the exception of the Revised English Bible, Daniell remarks the new translations must "speak the language of the New York Times". Many versions are targeted to an even lower, middle-school reading level. Mature theological concepts and spiritual nuance are lost, and the language is not enriched. In fact, ironically, Bible translation once made a great impact on English language and culture; today, the culture and language impact Bible translation.
This volume would make an excellent addition to an academic or personal theological library, or a public library, and would greatly enhance an English literature research collection as well.This book makes a wonderful gift, because it is a great resource and a fascinating read.

The size of this book will discourage many people from even picking it up, which is a shame. Christians in the United States purport to love the Bible, but an appallingly small number actually read it, fewer study it, and fewer still know its story. Daniell's fine book tells the compelling story of the translation of the testaments into the English language -- pointing out in detail how this process changes the very meaning of that being translated. His story offers a reality check on the uncritical allegiance many Christians have to scriptural infallibility. Everyone interested in truly understanding how the Bible came to be the number 1 best seller of all time should read this book. Uneven in some places, somewhat patronizing and arrogant in others, Daniell nonetheless provides a valuable introduction to the English Bible.

This is a thick volume, as well it should be. It covers what the author states to be some 3,000 versions of the Bible in English, some 1,500 of which have been produced in the last 100 years or so. From history dating back to Dark Age glosses in Latin Scriptures through the Geneva Bible and the King James Version up to the current English versions, this single-volume history has more information in one place than any other book I've seen on the subject. Amazingly, it's also a joy to read. If you have any interest at all in this subject, you need to buy this book!

The bible in its different English language editions changed the world - from the Tyndale translation (written about by this author in his excellent earlier biography of Tyndale), through to the Geneva Bible read by many of the Puritans and thence to the King James Version that we all know and love today. Our concepts of freedom, our love for our own language and countless expressions that we take for granted are all derived from English language versions of the Bible. Read this splendid book and thank God for the wonderful work that translators have done over the centuries. Christopher Catherwood, author of CHRISTIANS MUSLISM AND ISLAMIC RAGE (Zondervan)...

What I had thought would be a book I "ought to read" became a book I "had to read." Far from the dry, scholarly exposition I expected, Daniell writes in a clear, patient, conversational tone that made this book an excellent read.

In addition to his exhaustive research and clarity, the author is not afraid to stand up for his own personal beliefs (which are nearly always incontrovertible). Each of these little nuggets caused me to take a look at my own faith, which I found reinforced time and time again.

Daniell seems to have two causes - accuracy of translation and worship of the Almighty. When, occasionally, these two concepts come into conflict, it seems that Daniell would rather err on the side of majesty than clarity. I can't say that I totally disagree. In many attempts to make the Bible more accessible, translators (and paraphrasers) have made it less meaningful - have "cheapened" the majesty of God, if you will.

For not only recounting the history of the translation of the Bible into English, but by placing each version in a historical context (the chapter on Handel's "Messiah" is fascinating!), Daniell raised his work from the level of a reference work to that of a history that is well worth reading.

Mr. Daniell's history of the English Bible in English is an excellent read. Keeps your interest through out the book.

This book is worth reading for the subject, but if you are a Christian or an American (or both) the author can be tiresome. He's one of those Euro intellectuals who thinks everybody who reads a King James Version Bible is "stupid" (and he even finds a way to get in the usual, required George W. Bush, 'Texans are dumb' bashing). At the beginning of his chapter on the KJV, as well, he lists four or five points that need to be 'cleared up' before he proceeds, and he then proceeds to write things that are basically at the level of: "English was not the original language of the Bible." He also makes the strange claim that many, again, "stupid" KJV Bible-readers call the King James Version the "St. James Version" because, according to him, they are so dumb they think King James was a saint and that the King James translation was actually translated by King James I himself. Aside from the strangeness of the claim (though I havn't lived in all parts of the U.S. so maybe somebody somewhere refers to the King James Version as the St. James Version, though I've never heard it nor seen it in print) Protestants don't even usually use the word saint in that manner, it being Protestant doctrine that all saved (or regenerate) Christians are saints. Suffice it to say, in these areas (and in his puerile Euro-style America/Bible-believing Christian bashing) the author comes across as more than a little tedious. When you read these parts of this book it makes you doubt that the author is really capable of bringing anything of worth in the other parts of the book. (ps- Upon doing an internet search on 'St. James Version' it seems to be a common typo type mistake made by people who usually are not the most familiar with the Bible in any translation to begin with, including major American newspapers, and it is not, as the author suggests, a way that Texan Bible believers commonly refer to the KJV...)

This book reads like a documentary - so if that's not your cup of tea, it might be a hard read. I'm a good way through it and it's been interesting and informative so far.

Regarding the St. James Version. First of all, that's been a long time running joke - with history of course. Fundamentalist, mostly the KJV only, crowd actually did mistakenly called it that. Even the Simpsons took a stab at it in one of their episodes.

If you do a google search for "St. James Version" -- include the quotes. It's about the 5th link down (may have changed). It'st on the AV1611 site - as in Authorized Version, year 1611 - aka the legendary year of the KJV. Half way down page, you will see "St. James Version".

There's a lot of rumors/stupidity circulating around about the KJV. It's widely agreed that it is outdated. It's historically shown that they authors (not King James himself and NOT Bill Shakespeare) chose to go with elegance rather then accuracy. The KJV was first a political weapon against the much royalty feared Geneva Bible. However, it is still a good translation and there's nothing wrong with it if you can understand the vernacular of the time. Roughly 90%, give or take, is William Tyndale - a master of the the English language. Part of the Old Testament is his and part is Miles Coverdales (sp?).

Anyway, it's a good book, well worth the money. Buy it.

On the third page of his introduction to The New Testament 1526 edition by William Tyndale, David Daniell uses the non-christian term, CE (Common Era) instead of the Christian term, AD (In the year of our Lord). I have no personal knowledge of David Daniell, and am not in any way trying to state that David Daniell is anti-christian. I'm just confused as to why he chose not to use the Christian term.