Textus Receptus Bibles
Julia E. Smith Translation 1876
| 1:1 | How sat the city alone being many in people she was as a widow: being many among the nations, being a leader in the provinces, she became for tribute. |
| 1:2 | Weeping, she will weep in the night, and her tears upon her cheeks: no comfort to her from all loving her: all her friends dealt faithlessly with her, they were to her for enemies. |
| 1:3 | Judah was carried away captive from affliction, and from the greatness of her serving: she dwelt in the nations, she found no rest: all pursuing her overtook her between straitnesses. |
| 1:4 | The ways of Zion mourn from none coming to the appointment: all her gates being desolated: her priests groaning, her virgins grieved, and it is bitterness to her. |
| 1:5 | Her adversaries were for head, her enemies were secure; for Jehovah afflicted her for the multitude of her transgressions: her children went into captivity before the face of him pressing. |
| 1:6 | From the daughter of Zion all her decoration went forth: her chiefs were as rams; they found not feed, and they went without strength before him pursuing. |
| 1:7 | Jerusalem remembered the days of her affliction and her wanderings, all her delights which were from the days of old in the falling of her people into the hand of the enemy, and none helping for her: the adversaries saw her; they laughed at her calamities. |
| 1:8 | Jerusalem sinned a sin; for this she was for a removing: all honoring her despised her, for they saw her nakedness: also she sighed, and she will turn away behind. |
| 1:9 | Her uncleanness is in her train; she remembered not her latter state; and she will come down wonderfully: none comforting for her. See, O Jehovah, my affliction: for the enemy magnified. |
| 1:10 | The adversary spread out his hand upon all her delights, for she saw the nations came in to her holy place, which thou didst command they shall not come in to the convocation to thee. |
| 1:11 | All her people sighing, seeking bread; they gave from their delights for food to turn back the soul: see, O Jehovah, and regard; for I was despised. |
| 1:12 | Nothing to you, all ye passing by the way? Behold, and see if there is pain as my pain, which was done to me with which Jehovah afflicted in the day of the burning of his anger. |
| 1:13 | From height he sent fire into my bones, and it brought them down: he spread a net for my feet, he turned me away behind: he gave me desolation, being sad all the day. |
| 1:14 | The yoke of my transgressions was bound by his hand: they will be woven together, they came up upon my neck: he caused my strength to fail, Jehovah gave me into the hands; I shall not be able to rise up. |
| 1:15 | Jehovah contemned all my mighty ones in my midst: he called an appointment upon me to break my chosen ones: Jehovah trod the wine-press to the virgin, the daughter of Judah. |
| 1:16 | For these I weep; mine eye, mine eye will go down with water, for he comforting turning back my soul, removed far off from me: my sons were desolations, for the enemy prevailed. |
| 1:17 | Zion spread forth her hands, none comforting for her: Jehovah commanded for Jacob, his adversaries round about him: Jerusalem was for uncleanness within them. |
| 1:18 | Jehovah he is just: for I embittered his mouth: hear now, all ye peoples, and see my pain: my virgins and my chosen ones went into captivity. |
| 1:19 | I called to those loving me, they deceived me: my priests and my old men expired in the city, for they sought food for them, and they will turn back their souls. |
| 1:20 | See, O Jehovah; for straits to me: my bowels were in a ferment; my heart turned in my midst; for embittering, I embittered: without, the sword bereaved; in the house, as death. |
| 1:21 | Hear, ye, for I groan: none comforting for me: all mine enemies heard my evils: they rejoiced that thou didst: thou broughtest the day thou didst call, and they shall be like me. |
| 1:22 | All their evil shall come before thee; and do evil to them according as thou didst evil to me for all my transgressions: for many my groanings, and any heart being sad. |
Julia E. Smith Translation 1876
The Julia Evelina Smith Parker Translation is considered the first complete translation of the Bible into English by a woman. The Bible was titled The Holy Bible: Containing the Old and New Testaments; Translated Literally from the Original Tongues, and was published in 1876.
Julia Smith, of Glastonbury, Connecticut had a working knowledge of Latin, Greek and Hebrew. Her father had been a Congregationalist minister before he became a lawyer. Having read the Bible in its original languages, she set about creating her own translation, which she completed in 1855, after a number of drafts. The work is a strictly literal rendering, always translating a Greek or Hebrew word with the same word wherever possible. Smith accomplished this work on her own in the span of eight years (1847 to 1855). She had sought out no help in the venture, even writing, "I do not see that anybody can know more about it than I do." Smith's insistence on complete literalness, plus an effort to translate each original word with the same English word, combined with an odd notion of Hebrew tenses (often translating the Hebrew imperfect tense with the English future) results in a translation that is mechanical and often nonsensical. However, such a translation if overly literal might be valuable to consult in checking the meaning of some individual verse. One notable feature of this translation was the prominent use of the Divine Name, Jehovah, throughout the Old Testament of this Bible version.
In 1876, at 84 years of age some 21 years after completing her work, she finally sought publication. The publication costs ($4,000) were personally funded by Julia and her sister Abby Smith. The 1,000 copies printed were offered for $2.50 each, but her household auction in 1884 sold about 50 remaining copies.
The translation fell into obscurity as it was for the most part too literal and lacked any flow. For example, Jer. 22:23 was given as follows: "Thou dwelling in Lebanon, building as nest in the cedars, how being compassionated in pangs coming to thee the pain as in her bringing forth." However, the translation was the only Contemporary English translation out of the original languages available to English readers until the publication of The British Revised Version in 1881-1894.(The New testament was published in 1881, the Old in 1884, and the Apocrypha in 1894.) This makes it an invaluable Bible for its period.