My Gran used to tell me that “Granny Macfarlane’s grandfather wrote Brown’s Bible.” At the time, the comment meant little to me. I had never heard of a Brown’s Bible and, unfortunately, I never asked exactly what she meant.
It wasn’t until many years later and, after Gran’s death, that I noticed the words embossed on the spine of the Gray family Bible : Brown’s Self-Interpreting Bible.
I discovered that this was a famous edition of the King James Bible first published in the eighteenth century by the Scottish minister, John Brown of Haddington. His work included extensive notes, explanations, cross-references and commentary, helping readers to understand the Scriptures. It became enormously popular throughout Scotland, and for generations many Scottish households simply knew it as Brown’s Bible.
It’s impossible to know where Gran’s story originated or how it could have evolved through retelling but I can’t help but feel,there must be some link somewhere.
What I do know is that, on my Macfarlane side, I have traced the family back to Hugh Macfarlane and his wife Elizabeth Brown, whose parents were Duncan Brown and Margaret McLaren. So far I have found no evidence linking Elizabeth or her father Duncan to John Brown of Haddington, but neither have I been able to explain why my Gran was so convinced there was a connection.
For now, it remains one of those family mysteries that I hope one day a forgotten document, a chance discovery, or another branch of the family may finally help to unravel.
Craigachan 