Textus Receptus Bibles
Julia E. Smith Translation 1876
| 8:1 | And we make known to you, brethren, the grace of God given in the churches of Macedonia; |
| 8:2 | That in much proof of pressure the abundance of their joy and their poverty according to depth abounded to the abundance of their simplicity. |
| 8:3 | For according to power, I testify, and above power chosen voluntarily; |
| 8:4 | Praying us with much entreaty that we receive the grace and participation of the service for saints. |
| 8:5 | And not as we hoped, but they gave themselves first to the Lord, and to us by the will of God. |
| 8:6 | So that we besought Titus, that as he began before, so also he would complete to us this grace also. |
| 8:7 | But as ye abound in everything, in faith, and in word, and in knowledge, and in all care, and in love from you to us, that also ye abound in this grace. |
| 8:8 | I speak not according to command, but by care of others, trying also the purity of your love. |
| 8:9 | For ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that for you he was in a state of beggary, being rich; that ye in his poverty might be rich. |
| 8:10 | And in this I give an opinion: for this is profitable to you, which no only to do, but to will, ye began before from last year. |
| 8:11 | And now also complete ye the doing; that as a forwardness to will so also to complete, out of what is possessed. |
| 8:12 | For if a forwardness lie before, according as any has, it is acceptable, not as he has not. |
| 8:13 | For not that ease to others, and pressure to you: |
| 8:14 | But of equality, now in this time your abundance for their want, that also their abundance be for your want: that there be equality: |
| 8:15 | As has been written, He to whom much, was not in excess; and he to whom little, was not diminished. |
| 8:16 | And grace to God, having given the same care for you in the heart of Titus. |
| 8:17 | For truly he received the entreaty; and being more earnest, he went forth voluntarily to you. |
| 8:18 | And we sent with him the brother whose approbation in the good news through all the churches; |
| 8:19 | And not only, but also the hand stretched out by the churches for our fellow-traveller with this grace, served by us to the glory of the same Lord, and to your forwardness: |
| 8:20 | Prepared for this, lest any blame us in this abundance served by us: |
| 8:21 | Providing good things beforehand, not only before the Lord, but also before men. |
| 8:22 | And we sent with them our brother, whom we proved in many things being earnest many times, and now much more earnest, with much confidence in you. |
| 8:23 | Whether for Titus, my companion and co-worker to you: or our brethren, the sent of the churches, the glory of Christ. |
| 8:24 | Therefore the manifestations of your love, and of your boasting for us, shew ye to them, and to the face of the churches. |
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.