Textus Receptus Bibles
Julia E. Smith Translation 1876
| 28:1 | And having been saved, then they knew that the island is called Melita. |
| 28:2 | And the foreigners bestowed upon us no ordinary kindness: for having lighted a pile of wood, they received us all on account of the impending rain, and for the cold. |
| 28:3 | And Paul having collected together a multitude of dried sticks, and placed upon the pile of wood, a viper, having come forth out of the heat, seized his hand. |
| 28:4 | And when the foreigners saw the wild beast hanging on his hand, they said to one another, This man is altogether a murderer, whom, saved from the sea, vengeance suffered not to live. |
| 28:5 | Who truly then, having shaken off the beast into the fire, suffered nothing evil. |
| 28:6 | And they expected him about to be inflamed, or to fall down dead suddenly: and they waiting for much, and seeing nothing extraordinary coming to him, changing their opinions, they said he was a god. |
| 28:7 | And with them about that place was landed property to the first of the island, by name Publius; who having received us, lodged us with friendship three days. |
| 28:8 | And it was the father of Publius lay, held fast with fever and dysentery: to whom Paul, having come in and prayed, laid hands upon him, and healed him. |
| 28:9 | Then this done, the rest having sicknesses in the island, came near, and were cured: |
| 28:10 | And they honoured us with many honours; and to us getting under weigh, they set things for need. |
| 28:11 | And after three months we were conveyed in a ship, having wintered in the island, of Alexandria, marked, Sons of Jove. |
| 28:12 | And brought down to Syracuse, we tarried yet three days longer. |
| 28:13 | Whence having come round, we arrived at Rhegium: and after one day the south wind having come up, we came the second day to Puteoli: |
| 28:14 | Where having found brethren, we were besought by them to tarry yet seven days longer: and so we came to Rome. |
| 28:15 | And thence the brethren, having heard of us, came out to our meeting as far as Appii forum, and The three taverns: whom Paul having seen, having returned thanks to God, took courage. |
| 28:16 | And when we came to Rome, the centurion delivered the prisoners to the commander of the camp: but to Paul it was permitted to remain by himself with a soldier watching him. |
| 28:17 | And it was after three days Paul called together them being first of the Jews: and they having come together, he said to them, Men, brethren, I having done nothing against the people, or customs of the fathers, I was delivered in bonds from Jerusalem into the hands of the Romans. |
| 28:18 | Who, having examined me, wished to loose, for no cause of death was in me. |
| 28:19 | And the Jews saying against, I was forced to appeal to Caesar; as having nothing to accuse my nation. |
| 28:20 | For this cause therefore I besought to see you, and to speak: for, for the hope of Israel am I surrounded by this chain. |
| 28:21 | And they said to him, We neither received letters concerning thee from Judea, nor any of the brethren having been present announced or spoke any evil of thee. |
| 28:22 | And we desire to hear from thee what thou thinkest: for truly of this sect it is known to us that it is everywhere spoken against. |
| 28:23 | And having appointed him a day, many came to him to the lodging; to whom testifying, he set forth the kingdom of God, and persuading them concerning Jesus, both from the law of Moses, and the prophets, from morn to eve. |
| 28:24 | And some truly were persuaded by things spoken, and some disbelieved. |
| 28:25 | And being at variance with one another, they were let go, Paul having said one word, That well spake the Holy Spirit by Esaias the prophet to our fathers, |
| 28:26 | Saying, Go to this people, and say, By hearing ye shall hear, and not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and ye should not perceive: |
| 28:27 | For the heart of this people was thickened, and with ears heard they heavily, and their eyes they closed; lest they should see with the eyes, and with ears should hear, and with the heart they should understand, and turn back, and I should heal them. |
| 28:28 | Be it known to you therefore, that salvation of God was sent to the nations, and they shall hear. |
| 28:29 | And he having said these things, the Jews departed, having much discussion in themselves. |
| 28:30 | And Paul remained two whole years in his own wages, and received all going to him, |
| 28:31 | Proclaiming the kingdom of God, and teaching things concerning the Lord Jesus Christ, with all freedom of speech, unimpeded. |
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.