Measure for Measure and the Bible of James 1.

A singular coincidence creates a significant connection between the Bible of James I and William Shakespeare. Actually, the composition of plays such as Othello, King Lear, Macbeth, Antony and Cleopatra, Coriolanus, Pericles , The Tempest or Measure for Measure coincided with the first draft of the Bible of James I (1603-1625), the so-called Authorized Version. Among them there is Measure for Measure, one of the most Christian of Shakespeare’s plays, rich in biblical echoes, images, allusions and quotations and provided with strong religious overtones, as well as a title with a religious flavor which comes from the Gospel: “Judge not that ye be not judged. For with what judgment ye judge, ye shall be judged: and with what measure ye meet, it shall be measured to you again” (Matth, 7: 1-2) . The present paper purposes to investigate the relationship between Measure for Measure and the Bible of James I. It covers three main points concerning respectively Shakespeare’s knowledge in the biblical field, the impact of the religious theme on the dynamics of the play and on the construction of the characters, and the main biblical references in the text.