24A01a King James Only
(written by Dr. Kip Wehrman 12/26/2023)
Hello my friends. Thanks for joining me today for an @ the PUNLA coffee table.
Before I get started, I once believed the King James Only philosophy. But I do not anymore. What I am going to present is just a few of the reasons I do not hold this position anymore. The Bible I used for the cover slide is a parallel Bible. King James, Amplified, New International Version, and New American Standard.
I believe, as do most Bible Scholars, that the King James Bible is a beautiful translation. I find that I like to use it for Psalms and some of the Old Testament prophets. It is a beautiful and poetic translation. But the reality is the English used is not the English that people speak today. In fact, no one speaks this form of English anymore. Some call this middle English, and it is simply not spoken or written anymore.
Now I have heard the same claims about the modern translations that many of you shared with me. They are corrupted, they are influenced by Catholic clergy, or even that modern culture has influenced the translations. And some of these claims are partially true. Each modern translation has an agenda with tilts the translation word usage. And without a doubt there are Bible translations which are heretical, but this is widely understood. But the English translations prior to the King James also had these issues. An example is the Geneva Bible which was translated with the purpose of highlighting the teaching of John Calvin.
Truth is the King James 1611 Bible was the culmination of many efforts to provide a widely disseminated English Bible. But there were also political motives at work even in the King James which is why the King James version was revised several times.
Also, the idea that the King James is word for word exactly what the Apostle used and wrote is simply false. King James is an old form of English and the Bible was written in Hebrew and Greek which can not be translated word for word into English or any other language for that matter.
Simply put the King James is not the oldest or best translation. Most Bible scholars consider the King James to be a poor translation of the Greek and Hebrew. It is often said that King James sacrificed accuracy for beauty.
The King James commission claimed to have translated the Holy word of God directly from the original languages of Greek and Hebrew. This claim is patently false. Let me explain why this is simple fact and not opinion.
I will use three scriptures to demonstrate this. Psalm 29:6, Isaiah 14:12, and Isaiah 45:7
Did you know that the KJ Bible talks about unicorns as if they are real? Psalm 29:6 (KJV) He maketh them also to skip like a calf; Lebanon and Sirion like a young unicorn. You heard it correctly unicorn, look it up. The Hebrew word is “reem” which means wild ox. Every modern English Bible translates this correctly even the NKJV. How did unicorn get into the King James Bible? Well unicorn is from the Latin word “unicornis”. So, the King James translators kept the Latin used in the Vulgate instead of translating from Hebrew to the appropriate English words wild ox. This is one of the many Latin words in our English bibles which did not come from the Hebrew or Greek or English, but the Latin Vulgate.
Another is Isaiah 14:12 (KJV) “How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! I have been taught that this is talking about the fall of Satan from heaven and Lucifer is the real name of Satan. This is simply not true. Lucifer is Latin, not English or Hebrew or even Greek. The Hebrew reads “heilel” which is shining one. This is typically translated into English as shining star or day star. Lucifer is a Latin word for light bringer or morning star. This Latin word is used to refer to the planet Venus in Latin. Lucifer is Latin, not English, not Greek and definitely not Hebrew.
These are just two examples of the many many words in the King James Bible that are actually Latin. These are not even the typical English translations from Hebrew or Greek. These are Latin words from the Catholic Latin Vulgate in a Bible translation that claimed it translated word for word from the original languages. This claim is simply not true.
Another is Isaiah 45:7 (KJV) I form the light, and create darkness: I make peace, and create evil: I the LORD do all these things. The King James Bible says God is saying He is the creator of evil. Come on. If you believe that, then we need to discuss what evil is. Evil is the absence of good. Without good there is no evil. So, God who is the source of goodness cannot by definition create evil. Evil is a blemish on creation not the creation itself. We can talk about this in more detail later but this is a terrible translation. The Hebrew word is “ra” which is best translated adversity or calamity in English. Yes, “ra” has been translated evil but the definition of evil predicates that “ra” is not evil, might be bad but not all bad things are evil. Terrible translation. None of the modern translations use evil, not even the NKJV. It is usually translated calamity or disaster.
Other things the king James Bible translates poorly or wrongly are hades and death and the grave. We could spend hours discussing why this is important and why the King James translations give rise to misconceptions and even errand interpretations. But we can save that for future discussions.
In addition to a substantial number of Latin words in the King James Bible. You will also find several new testament accounts that appear to be from Luther’s German New Testament instead of an original Greek to English translation. I don’t find anything wrong with this but it certainly means that the translation was not directly from the original languages.
The claim that King James started from the original languages is not purely accurate. The claim the King James is the best translation is simply not held by Bible scholars who actually do the textual criticism on the Greek and Hebrew manuscripts.
The King James is without a doubt a beautiful translation. I still read it often. But it is not the best translation or the most accurate with regard to the original language manuscripts.
The King James is not good if English is not your first language.
The King James in not a good Bible for new believers.
So, what is the best translation. Simply, the bible you read. I read on a regular basis from many translations including the KJV, NKJV, NIV, NLT, NET, AMP, GNT, ESV, ICB, and others. I study and review lexicons which show the original language on a regular basis.
Additionally, Judy and Joy have read many of the available Tagalog versions. We don’t like Ang Biblia very much because it is like a Tagalog version of the King James with outdated language usage. But there are many good modern translations. Judy’s favorite is Ang Salita ng Dios which is also called the Tagalog Contemporary Bible.
As pastors and teachers, we want our people to read and study and understand the Bible. If you want your people to do this, then the modern translations like the TCB are their best opportunity. If you want English versions, then I would recommend any of the modern English versions. Just not the King James for beginners.
Keep it simple, so they can understand the basics, then teach them the complexities of translations later.
Let’s Pray.
Let me leave you with this. King James only theology is simply not a good philosophy. It reminds me of the Catholics reading in Latin, when no one understood Latin. King James makes absolutely no sense if English is not your first language. Hearing God’s word in your native tongue is a gift from God. This is why Christians work hard to translate the Bible into so many languages. According to Wycliffe translators the Bible has been translated into more that five thousand languages. This effort has been done to make understanding the Bible easier. Please do not be caught by this fringe philosophy which is neither beneficial nor accurate. Thank you for joining me today @ the PUNLA CoffeeTable. If you liked the message, please share a link with a friend. You can contact me at kip@punla.org if you have comments or questions. So, until next time @ the PUNLA CoffeeTable. God ble
