Tag Archives: greek

The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 9: Paraphrases and Biased Renderings

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 9: Paraphrases and Biased Renderings

In the last post we looked at textual errors in the KJV over the years.  This post is a kind of “part 2” in which we examine paraphrases.

In many ways, the KJV is a very accurate translation, especially considering the limited knowledge of ancient language and access to manuscripts the translators had.  But it is not free from paraphrase.  It is not a fully literal translation, though many people are under the assumption that it is.  For example, the KJV renders Gen. 25:8 as “Abraham gave up the ghost,” whereas every other translation more literally renders it “Abraham breathed his last“.  Paraphrases like this one may  harmless, but they do remind us that nobody can rightfully claim the KJV is a literal translation.  Every translation—and I mean every translation—has passages that are paraphrased.  Jack Lewis affirms that “no translator would argue for a completely literal translation, but the degree of paraphrase is always under dispute” (1).
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 8: Textual Errors and Inconsistencies

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 8: Textual Errors and Inconsistencies?

In our last post we saw that there have been multiple versions of the KJV over time.  Now let us look at textual errors that have come about, and still persist in the KJV.

Despite what common King James enthusiasts argue, the King James contains a number of mistranslations and errors.  “Printing errors plagued all of the early editions”, says Lewis (1).  This is important to note, because many extreme KJV-only advocates suppose that because the KJV is special, it contains no errors, or that because it contains no errors, it is special.  They never really explain this circular reasoning.  A lot of the differences can be identified by looking these passages up in an online source like Biblesuite.  These mishaps can be a stumbling block if we read under the impression that the KJV is a textually flawless delivery of God’s word unmatched by any other version.  Here are some examples of these errors in the KJV, (some of which may or may not be correct in the edition you have on your shelf) that cast serious doubt on this “perfect translation” myth:
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 7: Which KJV Are We Talking About?

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 7: Which KJV Are We Talking About?

“Few people seem conscious of the fact that a currently circulating King James Bible differs in significant details (though not in general content) from the one issued in 1611; they assume that the King James is a fixed phenomenon like ‘the faith which was once for all delivered unto the saints’ (Jude 3; ASV).”

-Jack Lewis (1)
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 6: Any Other Translation is Just So…Vulgar?

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 6: Any Other Translation is Just So….Vulgar?

“The unskilled reader needs to understand clearly what he is reading.  In this area the KJV has definite shortcomings.”
-Jack P. Lewis (1)
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 5: Linguistic Prejudice

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 5: Linguistic Prejudice, or “Ritzy Writ? Or Beautiful Word?”

William Tyndale, of the renowned Tyndale Bible, was once challenged by a papal cleric on his belief that the common man should have true access to God’s word, not just priests.  Ironically, many of the clergy did not know much Bible, though they knew papal law like the backs of their bejeweled hands.  To the clergy he said, “If God spares my life, before many years pass I will make it possible for the boy who drives the plow to know more of the Scriptures than you do.”
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 4: Jacobean English (not thine English)

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 4: Jacobean English, or “Have It Thine Way”

“Some sentences in the KJV will not be understood without the help of a commentary.  Champions of the use of the KJV forget that they have been conditioned to its oddities by a lifetime of study.  The new reader and the uneducated reader have not had that conditioning.”
-Jack P. Lewis (1)

In our last post we discussed the language issues in translating the King James to English.  The King James Bible is known and used throughout the world, even in foreign-language speaking countries. However, we must understand that the day will come when Jacobian English, the language of the King James Version, will be unreadable to an audience that speaks a language that changes so quickly.
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 2: A Brief History of a Politically Charged Translation

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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part 2: A Brief History of a Politically-Charged Translation

In our first post we introduced varieties KJV enthusiasm, and initial reasons why the KJV-only movement is divisive and counter-intuitive.

And now a brief history of the King James Bible.  The KJV actually wasn’t the first English Bible, nor was it the first produced by the Church of England.  English Bibles that came before it were Cloverdale’s (1535), Tyndale’s (1536), Matthew’s (1537), Taverner’s (1539), the Great Bible (1539), the Geneva (1560), the Bishop’s (1568), and the Rhiems-Douay (1582).

Translation Process
One of the main reasons the KJV came about was to produce a translation that would unify everyone, that would “corner the market” and prevent confusion between translations, two in particular.  The Geneva was the preferred translation among the  public (and the one Shakespeare quoted), while the Bishop’s Bible was used by clergy.
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The KJV: Is it THE Bible? Part I: A Plea to KJV Advocates

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The King James Bible: Is it THE Bible?
Part 1:
A Plea to Advocates that the King James Translation of the Bible is the Only Inspired Translation, to Advocates that the King James Translation of the Bible is the Only Translation To Be Read “In the Pulpit”, and to Advocates that the King James Translation of the Bible is Merely the Best Translation to Use

Folks, we know the Bible is God’s good word. And in God’s good word we are told to avoid stupid arguments over things like endless genealogies and ‘old tales’, things like that. One of these stupid arguments is over what is “THE right Bible translation”.

I must begin by affirming that the “King James” Bible is a beautiful rendition of scripture that has been the delivery of God’s word to generations and generations around the world.  My intention here is not to slam the KJV, decry the KJV, forbid the KJV, or mock the KJV.  God’s word is holy, but we must distinguish between his word and the tradition of rendering his word.  We must not mistake one for the other.  Yes, the KJV has left a profound impact on the English language and religious culture around the world, a translation which resides in the homes of peoples the world over, a translation through which many received scripture.
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Abstaining from the “Appearance” of Evil

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Christians may hear from time to time the admonishment to “abstain from all appearances of evil“.

What you hear is a quotation of a passage from Paul’s first letter to Thessalonica (1 Thess. 5:22).  Only, we usually hear a misquote of sorts, or rather a misuse of a quote.

“Abstain from all appearances of evil” is the most commonly used quotation of the passage, from the King James Bible.  Many people shoot off this quote as if it were some sort of proof to Christians that they should not do something because it “looks bad” to others.
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