# William Kethe

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{{Short description|Bible translator (died 1594)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2022}}

'''William Kethe''' (also '''Keithe''') (died 6 June 1594) was a [European](/source/Europe) churchman and [Protestant Bible](/source/Protestant_Bible) translator, especially of the Psalms.<ref>[https://www.umcdiscipleship.org/resources/history-of-hymns-all-people-that-on-earth-do-dwell United Methodist Church Discipleship website, ''History of Hymns'']</ref>

==Life==
Kethe is thought to have been born in [Scotland](/source/Scotland), although this has never been confirmed. His name was first recorded as being one of the [Protestants](/source/Protestantism) among the [Marian exiles](/source/Marian_exiles) in [Frankfurt](/source/Frankfurt_am_main) in 1555 and [Geneva](/source/Geneva) in 1557, suggesting he left with those who took [John Knox](/source/John_Knox)'s side in the [troubles at Frankfurt](/source/troubles_at_Frankfurt).<ref name=HWW>[https://play.hymnswithoutwords.com/people/william-kethe-d-1594/   Hymns Without Words website, profile page]</ref>

Kethe helped translate the [Geneva Bible](/source/Geneva_Bible) in 1560 and contributed twenty-five [psalm](/source/psalm)s to the 1561 [Anglo-Genevan Psalter](/source/Metrical_psalter).<ref>[https://hymnology.hymnsam.co.uk/w/william-kethe Hymnology website, profile page]</ref> Only ten of these were retained in the 1562 English Psalter, while the [1564 Scottish Psalter](/source/1564_Scottish_Psalter) retained all 25. Most of his Psalms were translations from French sources.{{citation needed|date=October 2012}} His version of Psalm 100, [The Old Hundredth](/source/Old_100th), is universally known by its first line ("All People That on Earth Do Dwell").<ref name=HWW /><ref>[https://www.praise.org.uk/hymn/all-people-that-on-earth-do-dwell/ Praise website, copy of lyrics]</ref>

During the reign of [Elizabeth I](/source/Elizabeth_I), Kethe served as [Rector](/source/Rector_(ecclesiastical)) to the parish of [Child Okeford](/source/Child_Okeford) in [Dorset](/source/Dorset), (1561-1593). After retiring he remained in the village but he died within a year. Whilst serving as vicar, he had also had two spells as a military [chaplain](/source/chaplain) under [Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick](/source/Ambrose_Dudley%2C_3rd_Earl_of_Warwick) at [Le Havre](/source/Le_Havre) in 1563 and 1569.<ref name=H>[https://hymnary.org/person/Kethe_William Hymnary website, profile page]</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}
*{{cite DNB|wstitle=Kethe, William}}

==External links==
* {{Librivox author |id=8391}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Kethe, William}}
Category:Year of birth missing
Category:1594 deaths
Category:16th-century English Anglican priests
Category:16th-century Scottish Episcopalian priests
Category:Clergy from Dorset
Category:Marian exiles
Category:Translators of the Bible into English
Category:English translators
Category:16th-century translators
Category:English military chaplains

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Adapted from the Wikipedia article [William Kethe](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Kethe) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Kethe?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.