Isaac Newton Reads the King James Version: The Marginal Notes and Reading Marks of a Natural Philosopher

What is it about?

The Library of Trinity College, Cambridge, holds in its collections a remarkable copy of the Bible, namely, Isaac Newton’s personal copy of the King James Version, which exhibits numerous marginal notes in his hand as well as hundreds of reader’s marks pointing to passages of particular interest to him. Beyond providing unpublished material for the study of Newton’s religious beliefs, this Bible offers a unique vantage point for understanding some of the theological sources that inform his natural philosophy, notably some passages of the General Scholium to the second edition of the Principia. After showing how the places Newton marked or annotated in his Bible bear witness to his investigations into theology, chronology, alchemy, and natural philosophy, I suggest how some other passages he marked offer glimpses of his devotional practices and reveal distinct tensions in his personality.

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