6B Puritan Bible. London, 1679

Notes

The Puritan Bible is a King James Version (KJV) with Geneva notes. It is a hybrid devotional text popular in 17th-century England and colonial America. While the KJV (1611) became the official English Bible for the Church of England, many Puritans preferred the Geneva Bible (1560) for its extensive marginal notes and commentary, which offered moral, theological, and practical guidance and sometimes included interpretations critical of episcopal authority and monarchy. To satisfy both doctrinal and devotional needs, printers produced King James Bibles with Geneva-style notes, blending the authorized KJV text with explanatory annotations useful for private study and Puritan preaching. These editions were particularly valued in Puritan households and congregations, reinforcing individual engagement with Scripture while maintaining the clarity and authority of the KJV, and they played a key role in shaping the religious life of English-speaking Protestants in both England and early New England.

Description

Brown leather binding. Five raised bands on spine. Upper board separating brim binding but still fully intact. Chipping to extremeties and head and foot of spine. Foxing on inside pages. Good condition.