Geneva Bible

Creator

Files

Document Type

Original text

Keywords

Bible, Geneva Bible, Book of Common Prayer, psalter

Brief Description

[Printed in London] The first edition of the Geneva was published in 1560 in Europe by English Reformationists who had fled there from England. This version was the Bible of the Puritans and the Pilgrims. This black letter copy is a quarto printing, with a 19^th century binding. Also bound in the volume are two concordances, a 1609 Psalter, and a 1608 Book of Common Prayer.

Context

The first edition of the Geneva Bible was published in 1560 in Europe, after many of the English reformationists fled to Geneva, Switzerland, because public reading of the Bible had been prohibited in England. John Calvin was a primary mover behind the translation and publication of this important protestant Bible. Although never officially adopted in England, for three generations the Geneva Bible was the most popular of all English versions, 140 editions being published between 1560 and 1640. This version was read by Shakespeare and John Bunyan and was of cardinal importance for its influence on English language, literature, and thought. The Geneva Bible was also the Bible of the Puritans and the Pilgrims, who fled to the religious freedom of the New World.

Language

English

Printer of the Original

Robert Barker

Location

London, England

Publication Date of the Original

1608

Note

This item is also part of the Early English Bible Collection.