The Holy Bible: Darby Translation (DBY)

The Holy Scriptures: A New Translation from the Original Languages by J. N. Darby

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Overview. The Darby Translation is a highly literal English Bible associated with John Nelson Darby (1800–1882) and the early Plymouth Brethren movement. Darby first issued an English New Testament (1867; rev. 1872; posthumous rev. 1884). After his death, associates completed an Old Testament drawing on Darby’s own French and German work, and the first complete English DBY was published in 1890 (G. Morrish).

Rights: Public Domain (U.S.). Suitable for study, quotation, and reuse.

Translation Character & Features

  • Formal equivalence: extremely literal rendering from Hebrew and Greek aimed at study use rather than public reading.
  • Divine name: renders the Tetragrammaton as “Jehovah” in the Old Testament.
  • Text-critical awareness: notes and marginalia reflect 19th-century critical editions and manuscript discussions.

Concise Timeline

  • 1867 — First English NT (Darby).
  • 1872 — Revised English NT.
  • 1884 — Further NT revision issued after Darby’s death (1882).
  • 1890 — First complete English DBY (Darby’s 3rd-ed. NT + OT prepared by colleagues); publisher: G. Morrish.

Annotated Bibliography

Darby, John Nelson. The Holy Scriptures: A New Translation from the Original Languages. London: G. Morrish, 1890. First complete English DBY; foundational text for later reprints and electronic editions.

“Darby Bible (DBY).” Version notes and history, Bible Gateway. Concise overview of DBY’s origins, purpose (study/private use), and public-domain status in the U.S.

Marlowe, Michael. “John Nelson Darby’s Version.” Bible-Researcher.com. Scholarly summary of DBY’s translation method (very literal) and its extensive critical notes, with historical context.

“Introductory Notice to the 1961 Edition.” CCEL reprint of the DBY text. Explains that the 1961 text reprints the 1890 complete edition (with minor typographic adjustments), confirming continuity of the base wording.

“Darby Bible.” Encyclopedic overview. Useful for quick date-checking: NT (1867; rev. 1872; post-1882 rev. 1884), and complete Bible (1890); also notes the “Jehovah” rendering.

Suggested credit line: “Darby Translation (DBY), first complete English edition 1890. Public Domain (USA). Presented by Living Word Bibles.”