The Treacle Bible, The Vinegar Bible and The Murderers Bible | Dreaming Beneath the Spires

There are old Bibles that are famous for their misprints. When Bibles were expensive, only one printing of the Bible was widespread at any given time, and its mistakes became celebrated.

In 1823 when the Old Testament appeared with the verse “And Rebekah arose with her camels” instead of damsels with was known as the Camel’s Bible.

In 1804, the Lions Bible had sons coming forth from lions instead of loins.

In the Standing Fishes Bible, the fisherman must have looked on in such surprise when “the fish stood on the shore all the way from Engedi to Eneglaim.”

There are dozens of these: the Treacle Bible, the Bear Bible, the Bug Bible. In the Sin-On Bible, John 5:14 exhorted the believers not to “sin no more,” but to “sin on more.”

(Barbara Kingsolver: The Poisonwood Bible)

The Vinegar Bible 1717

The parable of the vinegar (instead of vineyard) in the headline about Luke 20

The Printers Bible 1702

Printers (instead of Princes) have persecuted me.
Psalm 119.161

The Place-Makers Bible 1562

Blessed are the place-makers (instead of the peace-makers). Matthew 5.9

The Bug Bible 1551

Thou shalt not be afraid for the bugges (bogies) by night (instead of terror). Psalm 91.5

The Treacle Bible 1568

Is there no treacle (instead of balm) in Gilead? Jeremiah 7.22

The Unrighteous Bible

Know ye not that the unrighteous shall inherit (instead of not inherit) the kingdom or God. 1 Corinthians 6.9

The Wicked Bible 1631

Do commit adultery (instead of do not). Exodus 20.14. The printer was fined £300 for omitting the word not. All copies were ordered to be destroyed by Charles 1.

The Murderers Bible 1801

There are murderers (instead of murmerers). Jude 16
Let the children first be killed (instead of filled).