Samuel Ward (1572–1643) was an English academic and a master at the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

. He served as one of the delegates from the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

to the

Synod of Dort The Synod of Dort (also known as the Synod of Dordt or the Synod of Dordrecht) was an international Synod held in Dordrecht in 1618–1619, by the Dutch Reformed Church, to settle a divisive controversy caused by the rise of Arminianism. The fi ...

Life

He was born at Bishop Middleham, County Durham. He was a scholar of

Christ's College, Cambridge Christ's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. The college includes the Master, the Fellows of the College, and about 450 undergraduate and 170 graduate students. The college was founded by William Byngham in 1437 as ...

, where in 1592 he was admitted B.A. In 1595 he was elected to a fellowship at Emmanuel, and in the following year proceeded M.A. In 1599 he was chosen a Fellow of the new Sidney Sussex College. William Perkins entrusted to him for publication his treatise, ''Problema de Romanae Fidei ementito Catholicismo''; Ward published it with a preface addressed to James I, to whom he was shortly afterwards appointed chaplain. Ward was one of the scholars involved with the translation and preparation of the

King James version of the Bible The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of ...

. He served in the "Second Cambridge Company" charged with translating the ''

Apocrypha Apocrypha are works, usually written, of unknown authorship or of doubtful origin. The word ''apocryphal'' (ἀπόκρυφος) was first applied to writings which were kept secret because they were the vehicles of esoteric knowledge considered ...

''. During this time he made the acquaintance of

James Ussher James Ussher (or Usher; 4 January 1581 – 21 March 1656) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland between 1625 and 1656. He was a prolific scholar and church leader, who today is most famous for his iden ...

, whom he assisted in patristic researches. In 1610, Sidney elected him to the mastership of the college and he was created D.D., having been admitted B.D. in 1603. He was now recognised as a moderate with

Calvinist Calvinism (also called the Reformed Tradition, Reformed Protestantism, Reformed Christianity, or simply Reformed) is a major branch of Protestantism that follows the theological tradition and forms of Christian practice set down by John Ca ...

views, strongly attached to the Church of England;

Thomas Fuller Thomas Fuller (baptised 19 June 1608 – 16 August 1661) was an English churchman and historian. He is now remembered for his writings, particularly his ''Worthies of England'', published in 1662, after his death. He was a prolific author, and ...

, who was his pupil at Sidney Sussex College, found him consistent. In 1615 Ward was made prebendary of

Wells Cathedral Wells Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in Wells, Somerset, England, dedicated to St Andrew the Apostle. It is the seat of the Bishop of Bath and Wells, whose cathedra it holds as mother church of the Diocese of Bath and Wells. Built as a ...

, and also archdeacon of Taunton. On 21 February 1618 he was appointed prebendary of York, and in the following year was one of the English delegates to the

synod of Dort The Synod of Dort (also known as the Synod of Dordt or the Synod of Dordrecht) was an international Synod held in Dordrecht in 1618–1619, by the Dutch Reformed Church, to settle a divisive controversy caused by the rise of Arminianism. The fi ...

. Letters addressed to him there from

Thomas Wallis "Whipping Tom" or "Harby" was the nickname given to two sexual attackers in London and the nearby village of Hackney. Both would attack women walking alone and beat their buttocks. While there is some evidence that an earlier attacker in aro ...

, Gerard Herbert, Joseph Hall, and Arthur Lake survive. Simon Episcopius found him the most learned member of the synod. In 1623 he was appointed Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity in the university. He was one of the licensers of George Carleton's book against Richard Montagu's 'Appeale'; it was later suppressed by

William Laud William Laud (; 7 October 1573 – 10 January 1645) was a bishop in the Church of England. Appointed Archbishop of Canterbury by Charles I in 1633, Laud was a key advocate of Charles I's religious reforms, he was arrested by Parliament in 16 ...

; and he appears to have himself taken part in the attack on Montagu, whose chaplain he had at one time been. He concurred in the censure of a sermon preached at Great St. Mary's by one Adams in 1627, advocating the practice of confession (Canterburies Doom, pp. 159–92); and when

Isaac Dorislaus Isaac Dorislaus (1595 in Alkmaar, Holland – 2 May 1649 at The Hague, Holland) was a Dutch Calvinist historian and lawyer who was an important official in Oliver Cromwell's period of rule. He came to England as a historian. His lectures were s ...

was appointed lecturer on history at Cambridge, he welcomed him. He appears also to have written in reply to the anti-Calvinistic treatise ''God's Love to Mankind'' by Henry Mason and

Samuel Hoard Samuel Hoard (1599–1658) was an English clergyman and controversialist in the Arminian interest. He is credited with the first worked-out attack on Calvinistic doctrine by an English churchman. Life He was born in London in 1599, and became ei ...

. His college chapel remained unconsecrated. When the

First English Civil War The First English Civil War took place in England and Wales from 1642 to 1646, and forms part of the 1639 to 1653 Wars of the Three Kingdoms. They include the Bishops' Wars, the Irish Confederate Wars, the Second English Civil War, the A ...

broke out his sense of duty, as involved in his sworn allegiance to the crown, would not allow him to take the

Solemn League and Covenant The Solemn League and Covenant was an agreement between the Scottish Covenanters and the leaders of the English Parliamentarians in 1643 during the First English Civil War, a theatre of conflict in the Wars of the Three Kingdoms. On 17 August ...

, and in consequence he became obnoxious to the presbyterian majority. In 1643, along with many others, he was imprisoned in St. John's College until, his health giving way, he was permitted to retire to his own college. He was attended during his last days by Seth Ward. On 30 August 1643, while attending the chapel service, he was seized with illness, an attack which terminated fatally on the 7th of the following September. His obsequies were formally celebrated on 30 November, when a funeral oration was pronounced in Great St. Mary's by Henry Molle, the public orator, and a sermon preached by Ward's friend and admirer, Ralph Brownrig. He was interred in the college chapel. Other pupils were Edward Montagu, 2nd Earl of Manchester and Richard Holdsworth, and he supported both Abraham Wheelocke and

Simon Birkbeck Simon Birckbek or Birkbeck (1584–1656) was an English clergyman and controversialist. Life He was born at Hornby, Westmoreland. At the age of sixteen he became a student at The Queen's College, Oxford, where from a tabarder he became a Fellow ...

. Other friends included

John Williams John Towner Williams (born February 8, 1932)Nylund, Rob (15 November 2022)Classic Connection review '' WBOI'' ("For the second time this year, the Fort Wayne Philharmonic honored American composer, conductor, and arranger John Williams, who w ...

John Davenant John Davenant (20 May 1572, in London – 20 April 1641, in Salisbury) was an English academic and bishop of Salisbury from 1621. He also served as one of the English delegates to the Synod of Dort. Life He was educated at Queens' College, ...

, Thomas James, and Sir Simonds D'Ewes.

King James Bible manuscript

In 2015, Professor Jeffrey Alan Miller of

Montclair State University Montclair State University (MSU) is a public research university in Montclair, New Jersey, with parts of the campus extending into Little Falls. As of fall 2018, Montclair State was, by enrollment, the second largest public university in New ...

announced the discovery of an early draft manuscript of a portion of the

King James Bible The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of K ...

, specifically 1 Esdras and Wisdom 3-4, among Ward's papers in the archives of

Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Sidney Sussex College (referred to informally as "Sidney") is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge in England. The College was founded in 1596 under the terms of the will of Frances Sidney, Countess of Sussex (1531–1589), wif ...

. Written in Ward's own handwriting and dating from 1604 to 1608, the manuscript shows Ward crafting portions of the

, with translation notes in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. The manuscript sheds light on the translation process used for the King James Bible, notably that many portions were at least initially translated independently and not collaboratively as was originally thought. Prior to Miller, the existence of Ward's draft of 1 Esdras had been previously noted in the early nineteenth century by the librarian and scholar Henry Todd (priest), in his biography of

Brian Walton (bishop) Brian Walton (160029 November 1661) was an England, English Anglican priest, Anglicanism#Anglican divines, divine and scholar. He is mostly remembered for . Life Walton was born at Seymour, in the district of Cleveland, Yorkshire. His early ...

. Todd writes, in the course of his survey of British Biblical scholarship in the period before Walton: "Dr ''Samuel Ward'', the Lady Margaret's Professor of Divinity at Cambridge, was the constant correspondent of Archbishop Usher upon subjects of biblical and oriental criticism. Among his curious Adversaria in the library of Sidney College, of which he was Master, there remain the proof of his attention in translating the first book of Esdras, which probably was the sole part of the Apocrypha assigned to him; and a collation of ancient Versions upon the beginning of Genesis." Todd, however, never specified the exact notebook in question that contained Ward's draft of 1 Esdras. He also overlooked the existence in the same notebook of the draft of Wisdom 3-4.
complete digital version of the manuscript
is available on Cambridge Digital Library.

Works

His works are: *''Gratia discriminans: Concio ad Clerum habita Cantabrigiae, 12 January 1625'', London 1626. *''Magnetis reductorium Theologicum Tropologicum, in quo ejus novus, verus et supremus usus indicatur'', London, 1637; the same translated by Harbottle Grimston, London, 1640. According to

Cotton Mather Cotton Mather (; February 12, 1663 – February 13, 1728) was a New England Puritan clergyman and a prolific writer. Educated at Harvard College, in 1685 he joined his father Increase as minister of the Congregationalist Old North Meetin ...

, this was actually written by Samuel Ward of Ipswich. *''De Baptismatis Infantilis vi et efficacia Disceptatio'', London, 1653. *''Opera nonnulla: Declamationes Theologicae, Tractatus de justificatione, Praelectiones de peccato originali. Edita a Setho Wardo''. 2 pts., London, 1658. *''Letter to W. Harvey, M.D.'', relating to a petrified skull, in ''Specimens of the Hand writing of Harvey'', edited by George Edward Paget, Cambridge 1849.
'The Diary Of Samuel Ward: A Translator Of The 1611 King James Bible'
edited by

John Wilson Cowart John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

and M. M. Knappen, contains surviving pages of his diary running from 11 May 1595 to 1 July 1632.

References

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Samuel 1572 births 1643 deaths Archdeacons of Taunton Westminster Divines English Calvinist and Reformed Christians Translators of the King James Version Participants in the Synod of Dort Fellows of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge Masters of Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge 16th-century English people 17th-century English people 16th-century translators 17th-century translators 16th-century Protestants 17th-century Protestants Alumni of Christ's College, Cambridge Fellows of Emmanuel College, Cambridge Vice-Chancellors of the University of Cambridge Anglican biblical scholars British biblical scholars Lady Margaret's Professors of Divinity 17th-century biblical scholars 17th-century Christian biblical scholars People from Bishop Middleham 17th-century Anglican theologians 16th-century Anglican theologians