Wellbeloved–Smith–Porter Old Covenant

The Wellbeloved–Smith–Porter Old Covenant, named for the three scholars associated with it, is a substantial independent rendering of the Old Testament produced within English Unitarian circles, a tradition that took a marked interest in fresh biblical translation and in the critical study of the original texts. Its scope is the Old Testament alone, translated from the Hebrew and based on the Hebrew Bible, and it follows a critical or scholarly philosophy rather than revising an existing English version; it is accordingly classed as a fresh translation. Appearing during the era of independent English versions that preceded the major revision projects of the later nineteenth century, it has often been overlooked. Its relative obscurity is commonly attributed to the circumstances of its publication: it was issued in parts, and it was never accompanied by a matching new translation of the New Testament.