Printer CANCELLED for the the Wicked Bible

Businesses and artists today suffered the pressure and dread of committing a mistake and fear of getting CANCELED. The saying goes, “One mistake and people will forget all your good deeds.” In the 17th century, one printer suffered the fate of getting Canceled by royalty, but centuries later, the rich appreciated the mistake and paid millions. This is the story of Robert Barker and the Wicked Bible.

Robert Barker and the King James Bible

London,1611 - Robert Barker prided himself for having a prestigious job and lucrative business of being the Royal Printer. The position of Royal Printer meant Barker owned a monopoly in the publication of state sanctioned works. Barker succeeded his father who served as printer under Queen Elizabeth. He, in turn, served Queen Elizabeth’s successor King James I and he just received a task to publish multiple copies of a landmark translation of the Bible.

7 years ago, King James ordered a new translation of the Bible – history’s most published book. Amidst of Protestant Reformation, translation of the holy book from Latin to different languages came to vogue. For England, several attempts have been made to translate the text to English. But the result came out either inconsistent with the original meaning or too liberal for the clergy of the Church of England otherwise known as the Anglican Church. King James I, looking to create a spiritual legacy, decided to sanction a new authorized and proper translation of the Bible.

King James I

In 1604, 54 Oxford and Cambridge scholars divided into 6 committees to translated different parts of the Bible. 3 Committees worked on the Old Testament. 2 Committees assigned to the New Testament. 1 Committee translated the Apocrypha. It took them 7 years to finish job and the result came to be known as the King James Version (KJV); the English version of the Bible favored until the early 20th century.

With the translation and final product complete, the task of printing copies for publication fell to Robert Barker and Martin Lucas.

Getting Canceled

The initial batch became a success and led to a second batch. The first batch in 1611 became widely available as various churches and nobles received a copy. In 1631, Barker received an order for another batch of the Bible.

Barker distributed the new batch of the Bible, but close inspection of this batch revealed a tiny but terrible mistake. Exodus 20:14 state the 7th Commandment, “Thou shall not commit adultery.” The 1631 edition of the Bible, unfortunately

stated, “Thou shalt commit adultery.” Barker fell into panic and the authorities incensed.

The last thing the Church and the government feared for adulterers using the incorrect version of the bible to justify committing sin. What came to be called today as a massive recall followed the discovery of the mistake. Authorities burned the copies of the so-called Wicked Bible. For their part in the fiasco, Barker’s reputation plummeted. His past successes and his father’s achievements all went to the drain. He basically faced being Canceled hard. He disgracefully resigned from the title of Royal Printer and suffered paying a huge fine of £200, a sum equal back then to 3-year worth salary of the craftsman and today more than £12,000. His companion Martin Lucas also paid a fine of £100. By 1935, he found himself in debtor’s prison, dying there in 1643.

Modern Day Appreciation

Few copies of the Wicked Bible escaped the massive recall and book burning. Ironically, centuries later, the mistake that Barker and the government saw as a sin became a joke. What bankrupted Baker became highly valued by today’s wealthy. The latest transaction for purchase of the Wicked Bible reached USD 89,500 or about GBP 72,500 (2023).

The tragic story of Robert Barker reveals that today’s pressure for mistakes, especially for business and artists, existed long before Cancel Culture and social media existed. There 2 paths after a mistake: (1) Learn and grow; (2) defeated and all previous success go down forgotten. Unfortunately, Barker’s life demonstrated the latter.

Bibliography:

Ackroyd, P. et. al. The Cambridge History of the Bible. Cambridge University Press, 1994. 

Rhodes, R.The Complete Guide to Bible Translations: How They Were Developed Understanding Their Differences Finding the Right One for You. Oregon: Harvest House Publisher, 2009. 

Stone, L. The Story of the Bible: The Fascinating History of its Writing, Translation & Effect on Civilization. Tennessee: Thomas Nelson, 2010.