The King James Version Bible

KING JAMES VERSION

The Version commissioned by King James of England first came from the printing press in 1611 AD. It contained all the Apocrypha as well as the Old and New Testaments. It reflects the language spoken in Britain in the previous century, since it is a revision of the work of Tyndale circa 1525 AD. Because we use the same words, but with new and very different meanings, it is difficult to realize that as early as 1770, Benjamin Franklin said that people had ceased to read the Bible [the KJV] because they could not understand it. While the words were the same, the meanings were so different in places.

Dan Hedges wrote in Ministries Today, J/A 1999. "The paraphrases that are popular and not-so-popular also have their place. Who can question the value of how The Living Bible translation got an entire generation of frustrated King James nonreaders into daily devotional reading? The new paraphrases help us meet this need." Even if you violently disagree with what he said, this is a present challenge. Just now The Book NLT is being aggressively promoted by Walmart and others, and will continue to face us. The standard is the original Bible in the Ancient languages. What does it say???

The original KJV was printed in the Old English typeface. The alphabet was different. "i" and "j" were different forms of the same letter, as were "u" and "v". The Name of God was given as "Iehouah." Current editions of the KJV have been revised and the spelling changed. [Some editions have English spelling and some American spelling.]

Here is an example of the language difference. "I decided to go on a journey to the Camp Ground. I packed my utensils and my tabernacle into my car, taking along my dog. Arriving there, I set the dog free, and set about unpacking my gear. First, I unpacked my tabernacle and set it up. I was planning to stay the night and would need a spot for slumber. Then I gathered sticks and soon had a fire going. I filled the pot with water and set it over the fire. I shaved herbs into the pot: carrots, potatoes, some corns of barley, cumin, garlic, and finally a lump of kine flesh. I seethed it and in time had a mess of pottage. At this point I shrilled for the dog, and he came bounding from the distance. After doing the necessary things, we enjoyed our feast."

Campbell championed a new version, "The Living Oracles," by James McKnight, Phillip Doddridge, and George Campbell, which had been revised by himself. He published this new version in 1826. It reflected the English spoken by the American people of Scotch-Irish ancestry in Campbell's day. This is the Version which Campbell used to spark the "restoration" movement in our USA. It was used almost exclusively until the time of the Civil War.

Here is the "Lord's Prayer" [Luke 11:2-4] as it appears in some different "versions."

KJV of 1611. This is the original spelling. "Our Father which art in heauen, Hallowed be thy Name, Thy kingdome come, Thy will be done as in heauen, so in earth. Giue vs day by day our dayly bread. And forgiue vs our sinnes: for we also forgiue euery one that is indebted to vs. And lead us not into temptation, but deliuer vs from euill."

Campbell's Living Oracles. "Father, thy name be hallowed; thy Reign come; give us each day our daily bread; and forgive us our sins, for even we forgive all who offend us; and lead us not into temptation." [Note: the corrected Greek Text omits "deliver us from the evil one," and that Campbell followed this corrected Greek text."]

American Standard Version 1901. "Father, Hallowed by thy name. Thy kingdom come. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins; for we ourselves also forgive every one that is indebted to us. And bring us not into temptation." [Note the ASV follows the NU Greek text.]

New KJV 1983. "Our Father in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done On earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, But deliver us from the evil one."

CEV Basic English. "Father, help us to honor your name. Come and set up your kingdom. Give us each day the food we need. Forgive our sins, as we forgive everyone who has done wrong to us. And keep us from being tempted."

J. W. McGarvey said, at the Missouri Christian Lectures, 1883: "The Canterbury revision of the New Testament should now totally supplant the King James Version, not only because it is a great improvement as a version, but because it is the only representative in English of the corrected Greek text. A man is not safe in venturing upon the exegesis of a single passage by the aid of the old version until he shall have compared it with the new; and rather than be continually making these comparisons, it is better to at once adopt the new into exclusive use."

We know the Canterbury revision as the American Standard Version of 1901. Johnson's Notes has the [English] Canterbury revision in the margin. The Gospel Advocate Commentaries use the American Standard Version as their basic text.

Black English, has recently been in the news, and some would make it become a separate language. The ABS recently published Luke in Gullah (Sea Island Creole). Here is the Lord's Prayer in that language [a variant of English]. "We Papa een heaben, leh ebrybody hona you nyame cause you da holy. We pray dat soon you gwine rule oba all ob we. Wasoneba ting you da want, leh um be een dis wol, same like e be dey en heaben. Gee we de food wa we need dis day yah an ebry day. Fagibe we fa de bad ting we da do. Cause we da fagibe dem people wa do bad ta we. Leh we don't habe haad test wen Satan try we. Keep we from ebil."

Another variant of "Black English" comes from New Guinea, and is called "Neo-Melanisian." Here is the Lord's Prayer. "Papa, nem bilong yu em i mas i stap holi. Kingdom bilong yu em i mas i kam. Kaikai bilong mipela inap long de, em yu givim mipela long olgeta de. Lusim sin bilong mipela. Mipela tu i lusim sin bilong olgeta man i bin mekim rong long mipela. Yu no bringim mipela long samting bilong traim mipela."

Campbell cited the instructions of King James to his translators as the reason certain words are not translated, but transliterated. He wrote of these instructions in his "Christian Baptist" paper. These may also be found in McClintock & Strong's Cyclopedia.

For the better ordering of the proceedings of the translators, his Majesty recommended the following rules to them, to be very carefully observed: -

1. The ordinary Bible, read in the church, commonly called the Bishop's Bible, to be followed, and as little altered as the original will permit.

2. The names of the prophets and the holy writers, with the other names in the text, to be retained, as near as may be, according as they are vulgarly [commonly] used.

3. The old ecclesiastical words to be kept; as the word church, not to be translated congregation, etc.

4. When any word hath divers significations, that to be kept which has been most commonly used by the most eminent, being agreeable to the propriety of the place, and the analogy of faith.

[Campbell includes the instructions through #14.]

Campbell comments: "It is evident from third of the King's instructions to the translators, that he forbade them to translate the old ecclesiastical words; and in rule fourth he commands, that when any word hath divers significations, they should retain that in their translation which has been most commonly used by the most eminent fathers, being agreeable to the propriety of the place and the analogy of faith."

"Let it be particularly noticed, that among those words called consecrated ecclesiastical words, and which were forbidden by the king to be translated into English, are the words baptism and baptize.... and gives the word church not to be translated congregation with an & as a specimen of these words....When Tyndal[e] issued his translation of the Bible, because he had in it disregarded the words which the clergy esteemed sacred, they condemned it. He had, for instance, changed charity into love; church into congregation; priest into senior; grace into favor; confession into knowledge; penance into repentance; and a contrite heart into a troubled heart....For instance, the word church, he said, was, by the popish clergy, appropriated to themselves; [whereas, of right it was common to all the whole congregation of them that believe in Christ." [from Campbell's The Christian Baptist, Vol. 1, 1824]

There was a Church of the Jews in the wilderness [Acts 7:38] which was the congregation of the saved containing every Jewish person. The Church of the Lord is likewise one spiritual-congregation containing every saved person who is in Jesus Christ - One Body, One Kingdom, One Temple built of Living Stones. And so Campbell understood [cf. The Lunenburg Letter]. Note 1 Corinthians 12:12-13.