The Inaugural Meeting of the Reformation Bible Society

Sequel to Lamp in the Dark: Tares Among the Wheat

BEWRAY; BEWRAYER in the Bible Encyclopedia - ISBE (Bible History Online)

In my Bible reading this morning I read Matthew 26 for the New Testament lesson using the King James Version, 1900 edition.  In Matthew 26:73 KJV the word "bewrayeth" was in the verse.  Apparently it occurs several other times in the KJV if you do a concordance search.  In my own mind I said that the word must mean "betray" as in "betrayeth".  But that is not apparently always the case.  It can also mean "reveal" or "bring to light".  Apparently the KJV translators were relying on the Latin translation for the several occurences of the word "bewray" or "bewrayeth" in the KJV.  The following entry in the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia helps to clarify:

BEWRAY; BEWRAYER

be-ra', be-ra'-er: In its derivation is entirely different from betray (Latin, tradere), and meant originally "to disclose," "reveal" (compare Shakspere, Titus Andronicus, II, iv, 3: "Write down thy mind, bewray thy meaning so"); but has been affected by the former word and is used almost synonymously. It is the translation of three Hebrew words: (1) qara', meaning "to call out" (Prov 27:16), "the ointment of his right hand which bewrayeth itself" (the American Standard Revised Version "his right hand encountereth oil," the American Revised Version, margin "the oil of his right hand betrayeth itself"); (2) naghadh meaning "to front," "to announce" (by word of mouth): Prov 29:24, "heareth cursing and bewrayeth it not" (the American Standard Revised Version "heareth the adjuration and uttereth nothing"); (3) galah, "to denude," figuratively, "to reveal" (Isa 16:3), "bewray not him that wandereth" (the American Standard Revised Version "betray not the fugitive").

In Sirach 27:17 "bewray (the Revised Version (British and American) "reveal") his secrets" is the translation of apokalupto, literally "to uncover"; so also in Sirach 27:21 (the Revised Version (British and American) "revealeth"). Bewrayer of 2 Macc 4:1 ("bewrayer of. the money and of his country," the Revised Version (British and American) "had given information of the money and had betrayed his country") is the translation of endeiktes, literally, "one who shows."

In the New Testament "bewrayeth" is the King James Version of Mt 26:73; "thy speech bewrayeth thee" is the translation of the phrase delon poiein, [δηλον (σε) ποιει] which the American Standard Revised Version renders "maketh thee known."

Arthur J. Kinsella

Click here to see the ISBE entry:  BEWRAY; BEWRAYER in the Bible Encyclopedia - ISBE (Bible History Online)

A Short Review of In the Beginning, by Alister McGrath

Given the lack of Christian education these days in most local congregations, a study of Alister McGrath's book, IN THE BEGINNING: THE STORY OF THE KING JAMES BIBLE AND HOW IT CHANGED A NATION, A LANGUAGE, AND CULTURE, ( New York: Anchor Books, 2002) [New York: Random House, 2001], would be highly recommended. McGrath is an Evangelical scholar of the highest caliber and a minister with the Church of England. Those interested in the Protestant Reformation cannot afford to skip a thorough reading of this book, since it deals with the historical developments that led directly to the English Reformation and subsequently to the spread of the doctrinal commitments of the Reformation to America via the Puritans, Presbyterians and the Methodists. After the American Revolution the Protestant Episcopal church became the American expression of Anglicanism in the new country.

While none of the information given in McGrath's account is new, the way McGrath brings complicated strands of history together in one book is unique and informative. In particular, the effects of the Renaissance upon critical study of the Bible in the original languages gives direct rise to translations of the Bible into the common languages of the people, especially English. McGrath's explanation of Disiderus Erasmus's study of the Latin Vulgate as compared to the Greek New Testament is particularly worthy. As any student of the Reformation knows, Erasmus' work directly influenced Martin Luther and his challenges to Roman Catholic tradition which were based on mistranslations of the original languages into the Latin Vulgate, both old and new editions.

Also, McGrath's account of the methods used in translation from Greek and Hebrew into English by the authorized King James scholars is captivating. He notes accurately that many times for the sake of style the English translators used several different English words to translate the same term from Greek or Hebrew. Also, the reliance of the KJV scholars upon earlier translations such as the Bishop's Bible and the Geneva Bible are brought out in amazing detail and contemporary cultural setting. Additionally, the implications regarding the availability of the manuscripts to the scholars of the KJV edition helps one to understand why certain translation choices were made and how the final edition took the shape it did.

Those who neglect this study of the English Reformation and the translation of the King James Version do so to their own impoverishment. In particular, those who are part of the Protestant tradition should and must read this book. McGrath's style is easily understandable and clear to even to those unfamiliar with the history of the English Bible.