When John Rogers compiled the 1537 Matthew Bible, he included a wide variety of biblical information, guides, and study helps. One interesting feature in the front pages was two charts that compared two different calculations of the age of the earth.
What is the “mark of the beast” in the book of Revelation? Tyndale’s understanding makes good sense in light of prophecy and history.
For centuries, Daniel 9:27 was believed to be a prophecy about the New Covenant, the covenant that the Lord Jesus wrote in his body and blood. But that has changed in recent years through Dispensational teaching, which says Daniel 9:27 is a prophecy of the covenant of Antichrist.
King James I is known for his statement that he did not like the Geneva Bible, the Bible of English puritans, because the notes revealed “traitorous conceits,” or seditious views. The king’s words were prophetic: his own son Charles was beheaded at the hands of the puritans.
When it came to the New Covenant, John Calvin contradicted Martin Luther on the fundamentals. They cannot both be right. See in their own words what these men said, and judge for yourself.
Genesis 20 tells how Abraham, when he moved into Gerar, told everyone that his wife Sarah was his sister. The king of Gerar took Sarah. But God intervened. Compare the Matthew and Geneva Bible treatment of verse 16.
The Gospels say Zechariah’s prophecy about 30 pieces of silver was fulfilled when Judas accepted them as the price to betray Christ. However, Calvin taught that it was a metaphor about hypocritical and “dirty” ceremonies. This caused much strife in the Church.
When the Geneva Puritans revised the Bible, they made changes that concerned the prophecies of the Messiah. Here is just one surprising example.
On January 30, 1649, the revolutionary Oliver Cromwell, working with his rebel parliament, beheaded King Charles I in England. Cromwell styled himself a “Puritan Moses,” and believed he was guided by the finger of God. He was also known as the “General of the Parliament.”
To my knowledge, this is the only place on the internet where you can read the Puritan dedication to Queen Elizabeth from the 1560 Geneva Bible. This forgotten document gives insight into the teaching of the early Puritans, who considered themselves “God’s mouth,” and prophets called to restore the Church.
