Português / Portuguese Bible History (3) 
**List: Portuguese Ministry
the Bible ( la Bíblia )
Portuguese...
PORTUGUESE. "I.--GEOGRAPHICAL EXTENT AND STATISTICS. [...]
II.--CHARACTERISTICS OF THE LANGUAGE. [...]
III.--VERSIONS OF THE SCRIPTURES IN THIS LANGUAGE. It was not till after the close of the seventeenth century, that any attempt was made to produce
a Portuguese version of the Scriptures. About that period a translation was made, under the auspices
of the Dutch government, for the benefit of the Portuguese and their descendants in Java, Ceylon,
and other eastern colonies. The translator was John Ferreira d’Almeida, a native of Lisbon, who is
supposed to have gone out to the East in the first instance as a Roman Catholic my., and to
have been afterwards converted to Protestantism. He is thought to have commenced his version at
Ceylon, but the place and time of his death are quite uncertain. He translated the whole of the New
Testament, and carried the translation of the Old Testament as far as the end of the Prophecies of
Ezekiel. The New Testament, after having been revised by Heynen and De Voeght, was printed at
Amsterdam, in 1681, by order of the Dutch East India Company. A second, or revised, edition was
printed at Batavia, in 1693, by order of the same body, and at their press. The Gospel of St.
Matthew was again printed at Amsterdam, in 1711, and the entire New Testament in the course of
the following year.
The portion of the Old Testament translated by Almeida was revised after his death by Ziegenbalg,
Grundler, Schultze, and other mies., at Tranquebar. The following list (given by Adler) shows
the order in which the work was completed.1719. The Pentateuch, as translated by Almeida, printed at Tranquebar.
1732. The Twelve Minor Prophets, translated by the Tranquebar mies., printed at
the same place.
1738. The books of Joshua, Judges, Ruth, Samuel, Kings, Chronicles, Esdras, Nehemiah, and
Esther, printed at Tranquebar, as translated by Almeida, but revised and compared with
the original text by the mies.
1744. The books of Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastcs, and Canticles, published from Almeida’s
text, revised and compared with the sacred original, by the mies. at Tranquebar.
1751. The Four Major Prophets published; the first three of which were translated by Almeida,
and the fourth (Daniel) by C. T. Walther, my. at Tranquebar: the whole revised
by the mies.These editions were all in quarto. A second edition of the entire Old Testament, in 2 vols. 16mo.,
seems to have been brought out at Batavia, in 1748. In this edition a version was given of the books
left untranslated by Almeida, by Jacob op den Akker, one of the Dutch ministers at Batavia.Between the years 1721 and 1757, two revised editions of the Pentateuch and of the Psalms, two
revised editions of the New Testament, and one of the Four Gospels, were printed at Tranquebar and
Batavia. Another edition of the Old Testament was printed at Batavia, 1783-1804; and no further
editions appear to have been given of this version until it was published by the British and Foreign
Bible Society.
A Catholic Portuguese version of the entire Scriptures, from the Vulgate, was published in 23 vols.
12mo., with annotations, at Lisbon, 1781-1783, by Don Antonio Pereira de Figueiredo, a Portuguese
ecclesiastic. This translator possessed great learning, and his writings were so numerous as to fill a
catalogue of seventy-six pages. He was brought up among the Jesuits, but afterwards became one of
their strongest opponents. He engaged with much ardour in state affairs, and for a time laid aside his
religious habit; but he resumed it a few hours before his death. Though adhering to the Church of
Rome, he was a bold opposer of the claims of papal authority; and his translation, so far from being
a servile imitation of the Vulgate, differs from it in several passages, and follows the Greek. An edition,
containing his latest corrections, was commenced at Lisbon in 1794, but was not completed at press till
1819. In this edition the corrections are so numerous, that it may almost be regarded as a new version.
A third translation of the Scriptures into Portuguese has been accomplished by the Rev. Thomas
Boys, D.D. This version has been brought out at the expense of the Trinitarian Bible Society.
Dr. Boys commenced his important labours by making a critical revision of Almeida’s version. On
account of the difficulty of meeting with adequate literary aid in England, he spent some time at
Lisbon, where he obtained the assistance of two learned Portuguese scholars; and he appears to have
completed the revision of the New Testament, and to have published small editions of the Gospels of
St. Matthew and St. Mark, and of the Psalms. In 1837, however, the Society came to the deter-
mination of publishing a new Portuguese translation from the Greek and Hebrew texts, and Dr. Boys
was appointed to carry this purpose into execution. He was directed to use Almeida’s version as a
basis, subject to a careful comparison with the Hebrew text; and to make such alterations in style,
orthography, and language, as to render the work intelligible to the Portuguese of the present day. The
New Testament, faithfully translated in accordance with these directions, was completed at press in
1843, and the Old Testament in 1847; the printing was carried on in London, as the same neatness
and accuracy could not be insured at Lisbon.
When the British and Foreign Bible Society undertook the publication of the Portuguese Scrip-
tures, for the benefit of the prisoners of war then in England, and for the Portuguese islands and
colonies, the version selected, after long and anxious deliberation, was that of Almeida. The reason
assigned for this preference was, that it was then the only Protestant version. The Society’s editions
did not, however, meet with the grateful reception that had been anticipated. Almeida’s version has
never been much esteemed in Portugal, partly, perhaps, because made by a converted Protestant, and
completed by other Protestants at a distance from the parent state; but chiefly because it is an anti-
quated version, many of the words being obsolete, and the style not idiomatic. The complaints against
this version, which were in consequence laid before the Society, led to the publication, in 1818, of an
edition of 5000 New Testaments, printed from Pereira’s version. An edition of 5000 entire Bibles,
and 5000 additional New Testaments, followed in 1821, Mr. Cavalho correcting the press. Another
edition of the New Testament, and some separate books, from Pereira’s version, was printed in 1823.
But when it was determined that the Apocryphal Books should no longer be printed, the version of
Pereira was again subjected to examination. It was divested of all apocryphal matter; and many
exceptionable renderings, and such notes as had escaped detection in the former editions, were corrected;
and another revised edition of the whole Bible was given, in 1828, under the care of Messrs. da Costa
and Green. The following is the number of copies of the Scriptures, in whole and in part, printed by
the British and Foreign Bible Society up to December, 1859:--
Bibles, 26,160; Testaments, 70,180; Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, and Isaiah, 5,000; St. Luke
and Acts, 1,000."--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition) Samuel Bagster [Info only:
BFBS unequal yoke w/ RCC dominated countries.]"A Portuguese New Testament, in 18mo.; and also a Portuguese and English Testament, in
parallel columns, 12mo., were printed by the American Bible Society in 1857; the version used being
a translation made in London, from the Greek (it is not stated by whom), and conducted through the
press under the supervision of the Rev. A. de Mattos, of Jacksonville, Illinois. These issues are
intended to supply the wants of the numerous Portuguese immigrants in the United States, and also
the increasing demands made from Brazil."--The Bible of Every Land. (1860, Second Edition) Samuel Bagster [Info only]PORTUGUESE. ALMEIDA’S VERSION.--1860 S. Bagster [Info only: n.d. John 1:1-14 correct (unigenito = "only begotten").]
PORTUGUESE. PEREIRA’S VERSION.--1860 S. Bagster [Info only: n.d. John 1:1-14 CT (Filho Unigenito = only begotten Son).]
PORTUGUESE. BOY’S VERSION.--1860 S. Bagster [Info only: n.d. John 1:1-14 correct (Unigenito = "only begotten").]
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