Pierre Bayle and Biblical Criticism

The Huguenot refugee Pierre Bayle (1647–1706) quickly gained fame in the Republic of Letters as an omnivorous reader and prolific writer. He also touched upon the interpretation of biblical texts, but his interest in the subject developed only gradually. This chapter distinguishes four periods. In the first stage, Bayle studied the Bible thoroughly, but without any knowledge of biblical criticism. Nonetheless he thought that ‘a clever man’ could profit from it in order to arrive at a better understanding of the Bible. In his second phase, a genuine interest in biblical criticism was fuelled by Richard Simon’s attacks on the reliability of the text. In the third phase, Bayle ventured to acclaim Simon’s highly controversial works for their precise and balanced judgements on many delicate religious issues. Finally, in the Dictionaire historique et critique Bayle engaged in the practice of biblical criticism himself.