Pastor Ken Ponders Our King James Bible Heritage
We North American Christians take for granted our easy access to a variety of Bible translations. This was not always the case. In 2011, there will be celebrations of the 400th anniversary of the project we now know as the King James Bible. The following summarizes that historic process:
“The King James Bible was a compromise where two translations of the Bible were in competition. William Tyndale was the primary translator of the English Bible while his work was continued by Miles Coverdale and John Rogers. A revision of these translations in 1539 was called the Great Bible. In the meantime, Church of England Puritan exiles brought back their own translation, the Geneva Bible.
Queen Elizabeth I of England was a staunch advocate of the right of divine rule. Elizabeth ordered her Bishops to do a revision the Great Bible to be completed in 1568.This revision known as the Bishops' Bible received the royal sanction as the official bible of the English Church.
However, this new edition failed to achieve popular acceptance. The Bishops' Bible was inferior to the Geneva Bible both in scholarship and linguistic eloquence. This difference in excellence was reflected by its lack of popularity. When James VI of Scotland became the King of England as James I, the Puritan Party in the English Church saw an opportunity to win the favor of the new monarch. They asked for a conference to be held with the king to discuss this situation. It took place in 1604 at Hampton Court Palace in London. James granted that a new translation of the English Bible be undertaken to settle the differences between the Geneva and the Bishops' Bibles. In 1611, this project was completed and came to be known as the King James Version. Many of the scholars who worked on the translation were among the finest in Europe. The omission of marginal notes allowed the reader to concentrate on the biblical text itself. The translators gave special attention to Renaissance English rhetorical and poetic norms thereby assuring that the Bible read well when used in church services and personal Bible study.
It is an irony of history that the popularity of the King James Bible was due to political and economic reasons as much as to the quality of the translation. However, there is one further irony that exists. Another name given to the King James Bible is the Authorized Version or "A.V." However, there is no record that any official authorization was ever given to the King James Version. Nevertheless, the English-speaking people embraced the King James Version.
After four hundred years, the King James Version still reads with a diction and stateliness that has not been equaled. While the King James contains some obsolete words, when read aloud by a skilled reader, its beauty of expression is unequaled. The beauty of language was due to the work of William Tyndale”
(from “The King James Bible: A Brief History” by Herbert Samworth at www.solagroup.org)
The King James Bible revolutionized the English-speaking world. It began the process to standardize English spelling and grammar. This happened as well with Martin Luther’s translation of the Bible from Latin to German and John Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion translation from Latin to French. The King James Bible subsequently enabled generations of believers to memorize texts with greater ease due to its poetic style. As a result, biblical truth became all the more foundational for the natural sciences, the arts, commerce, law and politics as well as in philosophy.
The King James Bible has been succeeded by many subsequent revisions, translations and paraphrases. In 2011, may we honor the intentions and labors of the translators of the King James Bible and its tradition. We will accomplish this as we recommit ourselves to daily Bible reading and prayerful meditation in whatever translation we choose to use!