The Bible in English: Its History And Influence

by David Daniell

Encompassing centuries of change, this eloquent book reveals how the endeavour of translating the Bible into English has changed religious practice, the arts, society and even the English language itself.

Genres: Religion, History, Christianity

Paperback

First published August 11, 2003

Reviews

[Brandon Hawk · Rating 3 out of 5]

At the outset, I should acknowledge that this review pertains only to the first 28 chapters and the conclusion, as I am mainly interested in the history up to c.1700. What may be said generally is positive: as a history of English biblical translations spanning approximately 1500 years in almost 800 pages, this work is certainly ambitious in its scope and laudable in many of its results. The work also does well to intertwine literary, theological, historical, political, and social concerns as it discusses the rise of printed English bibles and their effects. As Daniell most succinctly puts it: “Something was happening internationally, nationally, locally, to which knowledge of the whole Bible seemed central” (249). His broad scope and wide knowledge allow him to adeptly move between subjects and relate issues across the time periods and materials.

Yet, probably because of the wide time span undertaken in this book, Daniell is unable to do justice to much more than his personal interests, which are evident in the amount of discussion given to the early modern period. Part 1, “Before Printing,” receives only 110 pages of discussion for about 1000 years of literary history, as Daniell falls into the same unfortunate flaw that many scholars of the Bible in English do: little attention paid to the English Bible in the Middle Ages (esp. before Wyclif), and a simplistic flattening of medieval literature. There is, after all, a lush history of the Bible in English during the Old and Middle English periods in homilies, which are hardly acknowledged—Daniell discusses the OE works of Ælfric and Wulfstan, but none of the earlier or later anonymous vernacular homilies of medieval England.* While Old and Middle English biblical glosses and poetry are discussed, Daniell does not do justice to the details.** In contrast, the majority of this study comprises discussion of the periods from 1500-1710 (111-498), which culminates in “The Consolidation of KJV” (chapter 28), with the remaining few hundred pages largely focused on the Bible in America.

This focus on only material after the printing press is not surprising, however, since Daniell makes it clear from the outset that the early modern period is of greatest interest to him, especially for the revolutions of printing and the Reformation. Some of these holes may also be due to Daniell’s limited definition of translating the Bible into English, a definition not given but implicitly focused on efforts to translate whole books or even the entirety of the Old and/or New Testament. Oddly, this notion does not stop Daniell from a whole chapter on fifteenth-century writers, mainly focused on Chaucer and his biblical use, and discussions that deal largely with literary appropriations of the Bible by writers such as Coverdale, Wyatt, Sidney, Spenser, and others. The balance of Daniell’s focus, then, is disappointing, and unexplained. Given this imbalance, the book could more tellingly be titled something to the effect of “The Printed Bible in English”—and the contents thus tailored—in order to avoid the problems of medieval biblical materials.

There is also a certain underlying polemic that needs to be acknowledged about this book, as Daniell implicitly exalts the Bible and his own Protestant views. Again, this trait follows the general trend in literary treatments of the Bible, which either minimize religion from a secularist view or seek to revivify Christianity in academic terms. For Daniell, the Reformation Protestants (and those he sees as their “forerunners”)—Tyndale in particular—are the heroes of the Bible in English. At times, the Protestant underpinnings of Daniell’s work can cause some distraction from his scholarly analyses.

Daniell does clearly display his years of studying the early modern and Protestant Reformation periods, and discusses each biblical translation and its contexts in detail. The only complaint here is that Daniell explains preoccupations of Catholic writers with English translations, but he does not acknowledge that it is not necessarily translation that is heresy but the prospect of the influence of anti-Catholic interpretations upon the laity through these Protestant translations. For example, more detailed analysis of the discussions by More and Erasmus on translation is called for. There are seem to be nuances even in the quotations used by Daniell that are not fully examined.

Overall, this work is one that adds much to the field in its direct examination of biblical translations into English. Daniell spends much time examining the stylistic and scholarly merits of each translation, what it adds to the tradition, and its contextual importance. He also rightly emphasize that Tyndale and the KJV stand as the two bookends holding all of the other translations together: the former as a key influence on all subsequent translations, and the latter as the great culmination of Reformation English translations, and both remaining with us up to the present. Even despite its drawbacks, it is an important contribution to be read and used as a reference—especially for scholars working on the role of religion and the Bible in the transitional periods between the fifteenth and eighteenth centuries.

* Daniell remarks, “There has been as yet no comprehensive catalogue or assessment of all the biblical quotations into Anglo-Saxon. What version of the Old Latin Bible or Jerome was the Latin source in use cannot now usually be determined” (47). This may be true (and necessary studies of the Bible in OE still have yet to be undertaken), but he does not discuss, cite, or include in his bibliography the massive (albeit not comprehensive) catalogue of A. S. Cook, Biblical Quotations in Old English Prose Writers [1st & 2nd ser.] (London, 1898-1903)—which does, for a start, indicate when a translation differs from the Vulgate.

** Especially lacking are any materials from the eleventh and twelfth centuries, due to Daniell’s erroneous view that “After 1066 there is no record of new attempts to translate the Bible into English for two and a half centuries” (56). While this may be due to Daniell’s limited view of what it means to translate the Bible into English, this does not account for a number of eleventh- to twelfth-century homilies and poems including direct English translations of the Vulgate. Middle English biblical works also could have been much more present had he consulted James H. Morey, Book and Verse: A Guide to Middle English Biblical Literature (Chicago, 2000), which appears nowhere (not even in his works cited).

[Marilyn McEntyre · Rating 5 out of 5]

This beautifully written history of the theological controversies, political agendas, private passions, and tectonic shifts in the life of the church that lie behind the various translations of the Bible into English (75 or more still in print) is surprisingly compelling for a book that looks both strenuously scholarly and dauntingly fat. It's worth more than its considerable weight in the ways it invites readers to consider how they and others read the Bible, how they understand the idea of divine inspiration, and what translation entails. One of the best long reading journeys I've taken over the past decade.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

I didn't read this whole book, but I did that on purpose. Recently, I developed an interest in the life and translation work of William Tyndale, and wanted to read the portion of this book that covered from the Tyndale to the KJV. So that's what I did. If you have any interest on how we got the Holy Bible into English, this is the book for you. It will make you feel immensely thankful for the treasure that the Holy Bible in English is.

[Paul Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Bible in English: It's History and Influence by David Daniell is a massive, and comprehensive, book on the history of English Bible translations. At 900 pages, it needs a serious commitment of time to read it from cover-to-cover. The chapters are arranged chronologically, and it has a good index, so it is fairly easy to find specific topics for research.

There were some sections of the book I felt were unnecessary tangents, but most of those tangents were interesting. There were also a number of places that had akward grammar and I had to read them a few times to understand what was being communicated. My biggest complaint about the book was the inclusion of endnotes in the book, rather than footnotes at the bottom of each page. If the author has any intent of the reader actually reading the notes, the reader should not have to flip to the end of the book to read them. These are minor complaints for a book that has a wealth of information.

I've read several books on the history of English Bible translations, but this one went into quite a bit of detail I wasn't aware of, which is what I expected from the size. The book is well written and clearly an enormous amount of research went into it. I'd like to give the book 5 stars for the information it contains, but I often felt exhausted after reading it for a while, so I'm giving it 4 stars.

The Bible in English is an academic book meant for serous researchers. People who are casually interested in the history of English Bible translations would be better served by books like A Visual History of the English Bible: The Tumultuous Tale of the World's Best-selling Book by Donald Brake and A Visual History of the King James Bible: Dramatic Story of the World's Best-Known Translation by Donald Brake and Shelly Beach.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perhaps the definitive history of the English language Bible in our time. At 899 pages it is not for the faint of heart. For detailed, comprehensive, and scholarly current information in a readable format, however, it is difficult to beat. A must have for the serious student of the history of the English language Bible. Could be a useful reference source for the more casual reader.

[Stan Shelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

I wish I could give this book 6 stars. Its length is daunting (800 pages) but if you like history this is awesome. I did not just learn about the Bible, I learned some about the history of the English language, about the English Reformation, about the Textus Receptus, about the Bible in America, about 20th century translations and much more.
A great, great book by a qualified Oxford scholar.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very detailed history of the most influential book in the Western world. I am half way through the book and have just come upon the discussion of the 1611 King James Version. I respect the author's in-depth scholarship but disagree on many of the conclusions that he draws.

[Steve · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent history the translation of the Bible into English. Worth the time to read and ponder.

[David M. · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found the history of Bible conversion to English to be a fascinating journey. Highly recommend.

[Susan Sabo]

I read this for a class--it was excellent and has awakened my curiosity to study more about Medieval history and literature.