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The Guardian - AU
The Guardian - AU
World
Eva Corlett in Wellington

Rare ‘Wicked’ bible that encourages adultery discovered in New Zealand

A copy of the extremely rare 1631 Wicked Bible
A copy of the extremely rare 1631 Wicked Bible, which tells readers ‘thou shalt commit adultery’ has been found in New Zealand. Photograph: Sarah Askey © University of Canterbury

An extremely rare bible famous for an unfortunate error that encourages adultery has been discovered in New Zealand.

The 1631 “Wicked” Bible, as it has become known, omits the word “not” from its seventh commandment, informing readers “thou shalt commit adultery”. One thousand copies of the text, which also came to be known as the Adulterous or Sinners’ Bible, were printed, with the error only discovered a year later.

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