ENGLISH VERSIONS. r. The earliest Eng lish version in prose of any book of the Bible was made about the time when Edward the Third ascended the throne, by William de Schorham. The MS. is in the British Museum, containing the Psalter in Latin and English. Immediately after, Richard Rolle, chantry priest at Hampole, trans lated and published the same book. Next to the psalter was translated the N.T. ; probably by Wy cliffe. To the several books were prefixed pro logues ; but they betray a different hand from the text. Before the N. T. was completed, a translation of the Old was undertaken by one of Wycliffe's coadjutors, Nicholas de Hereford ; as is stated in a note at the end of a copy in the Bodleian Library. It would seem that the writer was suddenly stopped in the book of Baruch ; so that the translation had to be completed by another, probably Wycliffe. This version has all the canonical, besides the apo cryphal books, except the fourth book of Esdras. It was the first English version of the whole Bible. A second revised translation was suggested, and perhaps commenced by Wycliffe ; but it was not completed and published till after his death. Pre fixed is a general prologue, whose date determines that of the version, and was probably 1388. This prologue was designed as a preface to the O. T. only ; for it may be assumed that the O. T. was put forth by itself before the New was revised. The author of the general prologue, and conse quently of the corrected version, was John Purvey, the leader of the Lollard party after Wycliffe's death. He had the assistance of Nicholas Hereford, John Ashton, John Parker, and Robert Swynderby. The former of these versions was that in which Wycliffe took a leading part ; the N. T., and pro bably some portions of the Old, being wholly his own work. If it be assigned to i38o the date can not be far from the truth ; for it was evidently com pleted in the latter part of his life. The second, or Purvey's, which was a revision of the first, rather than an independent translation, belongs, as we have seen, to about 139o. Both were made from the Latin or Vulgate.
The N. T. part of the latter was first printed by Lewis, in 173r. It was afterwards reprinted by Baber in 1810. Both editors, however, errone ously ascribed it to Wycliffe. It was again pub lished by Messrs. Bagster in the English Hexapla, 1341, from a MS. now in the collection of Lord Ashburnham. The first part of the earlier ver sion ever printed was in Dr. Adam Clarke's Com mentary on the Bible, from a MS. in his own possession. In 1848 the N. T. was printed for the first time by Lea Wilson, from a MS. belong ing to himself. It was reserved for the Rev. Josiah Forshall and Sir Frederick Madden to publish both versions complete ; The Holy Bible, containing the Old and New Testaments, with the Apocryphal books, in the earliest English versions made from the Latin Vulgate by 7ohn Wyelife and his followers; four vols., royal quarto, 1850. (See the preface to this splendid edition, pp. 1-64.) Wycliffe, though a zealous reformer, and a man of learning in his own day, was ignorant of the Hebrew and Greek languages. Hence he was un fitted for the task of translating the Bible. Latin was all but universal in the r4th century ; and the Latin Bible or Vulgate was the only document which constituted the Word of Cod in the estima tion of men. The version, as far as it proceeded from Wycliffe, is remarkable for its fidelity, and the propriety of the words selected. Still it is but the translation of a translation, and therefore more important as illustrative of the state of our language in the 14th century than as contributing to the criticism or interpretation of the Scriptures.
2. Tyndale's Tyndale, having printed at Hamburg an edition of the Gos pel by Matthew and an edition of Mark, committed to the press at Cologne the first edition of his N. T. in 4to, with a prologue and glosses. In con sequence, however, of the exertions of Cochlmus, a violent and crafty enemy to the printing of the Scriptures, the edition was interrupted before it was printed off. A precious fragment of it is now in the library of the Right Hon. Thomas Grenville.