The book’s title alludes to Gregory the Great’s famous metaphor in his Moralia
in Job: The Bible is like a stream, broad and deep, shallow enough
for the lamb to go wading, but deep enough for the elephant to swim.
Gregory’s intention was to show that the Bible contains several levels
of instruction, so that it is fully accessible to both the lettered and
the unlettered.




This powerful metaphor has been applied and re-applied in various
Christian traditions, and has been given expression in many and various
ways. In this book, it is understood as a reference to the diverse
biblical genres, vernacular and scholarly, as well as literary and
pictorial, illustrating the wide reception of the Bible throughout
history, both among the educated and uneducated. The articles included
in this volume deal with diverse aspects of the history of the Church
and theology, literary history, art history, and book history, but above
all give testimony to the broad reception of the Bible in the Middle
Ages and the Early Modern Era.