1699 Rare French Latin Bible - L’Exode et Le Lévitique, Exodus and Leviticus
Author: Louis-Isaac Lemaistre de Sacy.
Title: L’Exode et Le Lévitique. Traduits en François, avec une explication tirée des Saints Pères et des Auteurs Ecclésiastiques.
Publisher: Paris, Guillaume Desprez, 1699.
Language: Text in French and Latin.
Size: 8 x 5 inches.
Pages: xlvii-833 pages
Binding: Attractive and very good period full speckled calf leather binding, spine with raised bands, richly gilt compartments, and red morocco title label (hinges fine, overall slightly scuffed - as shown) under a protective removable mylar cover.
Content: Very good content (bright, tight and clean, rare light foxing or staining - as shown, the title page bears an old purple ink stamp - as shown).
Illustrations: Complete with decorative woodcut title vignette, chapter headpieces, and historiated initials.
The book: This 1699 Paris edition of L’Exode et Le Lévitique forms part of the acclaimed French translation of the Bible by Louis-Isaac Lemaistre de Sacy, a cornerstone of 17th-century Catholic biblical scholarship. Notable for its clear and elegant French, it was widely read and admired for its fidelity to the Latin Vulgate and its scholarly annotations drawn from the writings of Church Fathers. Printed under royal privilege, this edition would have served clergy, scholars, and educated lay readers seeking authoritative interpretations. The volume’s handsome binding and meticulous printing reflect its status as a work of devotion and learning.
The author: Louis-Isaac Lemaistre de Sacy (1613–1684) was a leading figure of the Jansenist movement, known for his monumental French translation of the Bible, often called the “Bible de Port-Royal.” Imprisoned in the Bastille for his religious convictions, he nevertheless produced one of the most enduring French versions of the Scriptures, blending erudition with accessible prose. His work left a profound mark on French religious culture, shaping how Scripture was read and understood in the centuries that followed.