Selling the Word of God

This is a new book. Condition: Brand New.

The Bible is the most published text in history and the story of its publication in the English language is extraordinary. This book traces its evolution from the first printed English New Testament of 1525 to the much celebrated King James Bible of 1611. By this date, readers could already choose from over a dozen English versions, each of them printed in vastly different ways. Behind each edition are stories of rivalries, mistakes, bankruptcies and bestsellers. Far from being fixed, stable publications, Bibles were consistently undergoing change and development in the early modern period.

Creativity and enterprise were at the heart of the English Bible market, something that the usual focus on Bible translators has often overshadowed. Illustrated with early editions, this book considers how printers created new markets for Bibles, how they advertised them, and how they commissioned innovative forms of illustration and decoration to attract buyers. How, it asks, did the English Bible become a bestseller?

Book details and technical specifications

Format: Hardback
ISBN13: 9781851246625
Published: September 2026

Number of pages: 304
Width: 156 mm
Height: 234 mm
Depth: not specified

Publisher: Bodleian Library