十分钟了解英语历史 钦定版《圣经》

The History of English in Ten Minutes. Chapter four. The King James Bible or light there be.
十分钟了解英语历史。第四章，钦定版《圣经》或消遣读物。

In 1611 ‘the powers that be’ ‘turned the world upside down’ with a ‘labour of love’ – a new translation of the bible. A team of scribes with the ‘wisdom of Solomon’ - ‘went the extra mile’ to make King James’s translation ‘all things to all men’, whether from their ‘heart’s desire’ ‘to fight the good fight’ or just for the ‘filthy lucre’.
1611年，统治者用义务劳动颠覆了世界。即一本《圣经》新版本，一群抄写员用所罗门的智慧，加倍努力，使得詹姆士国王的译本成为所有人的一切。不论是尊崇他们内心的欲望，为了信仰和原则而战，或只是为了不义之财。

This sexy new Bible went ‘from strength to strength’, getting to ‘the root of the matter’ in a language even ‘the salt of the earth’ could understand. ‘The writing wasn’t on the wall’, it was in handy little books and with ‘fire and brimstone’ preachers reading from it in every church, its words and phrases ‘took root’ ‘to the ends of the earth’ – well at least the ends of Britain.
这本性感的新《圣经》不断壮大，用一种触及到问题实质的语言，使社会中坚都能理解。著作并不是刻在墙上，它是灵巧方便的小书，还有非常热心的教士在每一个教堂读着它。它的词语在世界的尽头生根，或者至少在全英国。

The King James Bible is the book that taught us that ‘a leopard can’t change its spots’, that ‘a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush’, that ‘a wolf in sheep’s clothing’ is harder to spot than you would imagine, and how annoying it is to have ‘a fly in your ointment’.
詹姆士国王《圣经》教给我们积习难改，双鸟在林不如一鸟在手。披着羊皮的狼比你想象得更难发现。药膏里面的苍蝇确实让人讨厌。

In fact, just as ‘Jonathan begat Meribbaal; and Meribbaal begat Micah. And Micah begat Pithon’, the King James Bible begat a whole glossary of metaphor and morality that still shapes the way English is spoken today. Amen.
实际上就如Jonathan生下Meribbaal，Meribbaal生下Micah，Micah又生下Pithon，詹姆士国王《圣经》创造整套的词组和品行，如今这些还在影响现在的英语，阿门。