Shakespeare and the Bible
The Bible in Elizabethan England
Para1Early modern English culture was shaped around the Bible, with Christianity strongly
emphasized in the daily lives of the people. The Church of England, a Protesant version
of Christianity, started in 1533, after Henry VIII separated England from the Church
of Rome. Officially, attendance at Church of England services was mandatory, and those
who didn’t attend church regularly risked fines. These restrictions created a degree
of religious uniformity in which people came to know the Bible in a Protestant context.
Para2Shakespeare and other authors of the period attended Church of England services, learning
the passages from the official English translation of the Bible, called the Bishops’
Bible, and hearing sermons and homilies that everyone else was also being taught.
Previous to the founding of the Church of England, church rituals and readings occured
in Latin rather than English. Being steeped in the same biblical language and stories
enabled authors to add meaning to their works through biblical allusions that their
audience would very likely understand.
What Bible Did Shakespeare Use?
Para3The Geneva Bible, first printed in 1560, was widely used during Shakespeare’s time
because of its small, portable size. From the wording used in Shakespeare’s biblical
allusions, scholars have determined that Shakespeare relied mainly on language from
the Geneva Bible for much of his writing. Despite the Geneva Bible’s popularity for
personal use, the Bishop’s Bible, first printed in 1568, was the bible people heard
in church every week. The King James Bible, formally called the Authorised Version was published near the end of Shakespeare’s life and writing career, in 1611. The
King James Bible would not have been available for Shakespeare to use when writing
his the vast majority of his plays.
References to the Bible
Para4Playwrights of the period knew their audiences would share a common context of biblical
stories, people, and places. They frequently reference the Bible, sometimes obviously,
sometimes more subtly. The following are some of the many references made to the Bible
in Shakespeare’s works:
In As You Like It, Orlando asks,
Shall I keep your hogs and eat husks with them? What prodigal portion have I spent that I should come to such penury?(1.1.28–29) referencing the parable of the prodigal son (Luke 15:16).
Loves Labors Lost (4.3.125) and (4.3.360–362) alludes to Romans 13:9–10;
You found his mote; the king your mote did see; But I a beam do find in each of thee.
In The Merchant of Venice, Shylock references Daniel (4.1.219–220) as well as Abram and Jacob (1.3.52–55).
The Winter’s Tale, the line
Therefore my heart danceth for joy(1.2.110–111) is an allusion to Psalm 28.
In Henry IV, Part 1, Falstaff says,
ragged as Lazarus in the painted cloth(4.2.25), referring to Lazarus who was crucified alongside Christ, and in Henry IV, Part 2 says,
I’m poor as Job(1.2.129).
The Merry Wives of Windsor combines Psalm 137 with a love song (3.1.23–25).
Richard II alludes to Golgotha, the place of Christ’s crucifixion (4.1.149) and also features
John of Gaunt’s comparison of England to the Garden of Eden (2.1.42–44).
The Comedy of Errors has a line about Noah’s flood (3.2.91–92).
The title of the play Measure for Measure is a reference to Matthew 7:2 or Mark 4:24.
Why Did Shakespeare Allude to the Bible So Often?
Para5Despite the many examples of biblical allusions in his works, Shakespeare referenced
the Bible less frequently than many writers of his time. Shakespeare was not an overtly
religious playwright compared to some of his peers. But biblical language was central
to early modern English culture, so allusions to biblical stories and words were a
kind of shorthand to add meaning and depth to his words and characters, while also
appealing to the religious perspectives of the time.
Did Shakespeare Translate the King James Bible?
Para6Some speculation exists that Shakespeare was part of the group of scholars commissioned
to create the 1611 translation of the Bible we know as the King James Bible. However,
there is no direct evidence that he was part of the project. Amongst the many records
and lists of people who participated in the translation, Shakespeare was not one of
them. In addition to that, his language limitations in Greek and Hebrew would have
excluded him from translation efforts.
Para7Interestingly, when the Bible translation was completed, Shakespeare was 46, and in
Psalm 46, 46 words down, is the word
shakeand from the bottom of the verse, 46 words up, is the word,
spear.This may be an entertaining coincidence, but it remains fodder for theorists rather than scholars.
Continuing Cultural Relevance
Para8With the predominance of Christianity in the western world, the Bible remains an important
part of literature and culture. Even after hundreds of years and monumental changes
in everyday life, Shakespeare’s biblical allusions continue to connect people to his
writing and give depth to the messages and purposes of his plays.
Key Print Sources
Hamlin, Hannibal. The Bible in Shakespeare. Oxford University Press, 2013.
Hassel, Chris R. Shakespeare’s Religious Language: A Dictionary. Continuum, 2007.
Kastan, David Scott. A Will to Believe: Shakespeare and Religion. Oxford University Press, 2014.
Shaheen, Naseeb. Biblical References in Shakespeare’s Plays. University of Delaware Press, 2011.
Key Online Sources
Beauregard, David N.
Shakespeare and the Bible.Religion and the Arts vol. 5, no. 3, Sep. 2001, pp. 317–330.
Best, Michael.
Shakespeare and the Bible.Shakespeare’s Life and Times. Internet Shakespeare Editions. University of Victoria, 4 Jan. 2011. https://internetshakespeare.uvic.ca/Library/SLT/ideas/religion/bible+1.html.
Kastan, David Scott, and Neva Grant.
Shakespeare and Religion: There Are More Things in Heaven and Earth, Than Are Dreamt of In Your Philosophy.Shakespeare Unlimited. Folger Shakespeare Library, 1 June 2016. https://www.folger.edu/podcasts/shakespeare-unlimited/religion/.
Prosopography
Kate McPherson
Kate McPherson is Professor of English and Honors Program Director at Utah Valley
University (Orem, UT, USA). In 2015, she began working to redevelop Shakespeare’s Life and Times, created by Michael Best, into the Early Modern England Encyclopedia. Her other publications include commentary on Pericles and The Comedy of Errors for the New Oxford Shakespeare (2016); the co-edited volumes Stages of Engagement: Drama and Religion in Post-Reformation England with James Mardock (Duquesne University Press, 2014) and Shakespeare Expressed: Page, Stage, and Classroom in Shakespeare and His Contemporaries, with Kathryn M. Moncrief and Sarah Enloe (Fairleigh Dickinson University Press,
2013). With Kathryn M. Moncrief, Kate has also two edited collections, Performing Pedagogy in Early Modern England: Gender, Instruction, and Performance (Ashgate, 2011) and Performing Maternity in Early Modern England (Ashgate 2008). She has also published numerous articles on early modern maternity
in scholarly journals. Kate participated in the 2008 National Endowment for the Humanities
Institute,
Shakespeare’s Blackfriars: The Study, the Stage, the Classroom,at the American Shakespeare Center. She also served as Play Seminar Director, a public humanities position, for the Utah Shakespeare Festival in 2017 and 2018.
Leah Hamby
Leah Hamby is the primary encoder for the Early Modern England Encyclopedia. Aside from encoding, she also works as an editor for the project and contributed
several articles of her own. She has been working on the EMEE since February 2023. As of February 2026, she is soon to graduate with honours from
Utah Valley University with a major in history and a minor in creative writing. Her
other work with the LEMDO program includes remediating William Kemp’s Kemp’s Nine Day’s Wonder for the Digital Renaissance Editions.
Michael Best
Michael Best is Professor Emeritus at the University of Victoria, BC. He founded the
Internet Shakespeare Editions in 1996, and was Coordinating Editor until 2017, contributing two editions to the
ISE: King John and King Lear (the latter also available in print from Broadview Press). In print, he has published editions of works of Elizabethan magic and huswifery,
a collection of letters from the Australian goldfields, and Shakespeare on the Art of Love (2008). He contributed regular columns for the Shakespeare Newsletter on
Electronic Shakespeares,and has written many articles and chapters for both print and online books and journals, principally on questions raised by the new medium in the editing and publication of texts. He has delivered papers and plenary lectures on electronic media and the Internet Shakespeare Editions at conferences in Canada, the USA, the UK, Spain, Australia, and Japan.
Navarra Houldin
Training and Documentation Lead 2025–present. LEMDO project manager 2022–2025. Textual
remediator 2021–present. Navarra Houldin (they/them) completed their BA with a major
in history and minor in Spanish at the University of Victoria in 2022. Their primary
research was on gender and sexuality in early modern Europe and Latin America. They
are continuing their education through an MA program in Gender and Social Justice
Studies at the University of Alberta where they will specialize in Digital Humanities.
Tausha Hewlett
Tausha Helwett was a student at Utah Valley University.
Orgography
LEMDO Team (LEMD1)
The LEMDO Team is based at the University of Victoria and normally comprises the project
director, the lead developer, project manager, junior developers(s), remediators,
encoders, and remediating editors.
University of Victoria (UVIC1)
https://www.uvic.ca/Metadata
| Authority title | Shakespeare and the Bible |
| Type of text | Critical |
| Publisher | University of Victoria on the Linked Early Modern Drama Online Platform |
| Series | Early Modern England Encyclopedia |
| Source |
By Tausha Hewlett, inspired by Michael Best’s Shakespeare’s Life and Times, Internet Shakespeare Editions
|
| Editorial declaration | This document uses Canadian English spelling |
| Edition | Released with Early Modern England Encyclopedia 1.0a |
| Sponsor(s) |
Early Modern England EncyclopediaAnthology Leads: Kate McPherson and Kate Moncrief.
|
| Encoding description | Encoded in TEI P5 according to the LEMDO Customization and Encoding Guidelines |
| Document status | published, peer-reviewed |
| Funder(s) |
Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada
Mitacs Globablink Research Internship |
| License/availability |
Intellectual copyright in this entry is held by Kate McPherson on behalf of the contributors. Copyright on the TEI-XML markup is held by the University of Victoria on behalf of the LEMDO Team. The content and TEI-XML markup in this file are licensed under a CC BY-NC_ND 4.0 license. This file is freely downloadable without permission under the following conditions:
(1) credit must be given to the authors, EMEE, and LEMDO in any subsequent use of
the files and /or data; (2) this availability statement must remain in the file; (3)
the content cannot be adapted or repurposed (except for quotations for the purposes
of academic review and citation); and (4) commercial uses are not permitted without
the knowledge and consent of the authors, EMEE, and LEMDO. Neither the content nor
the code in this file is licensed for training large language models (LLMs), ingestion
into an LLM, or any use in any artificial intelligence applications; such uses are
considered to be commercial uses and are strictly prohibited.
|