I have previously written about choosing a Bible translation but I've been seeing a lot on certain sites lately advocating the King James Bible only position. This is the view that only the King James Version of the Bible is correct, and (usually) that it is literally the inspired word of God. Those of you familiar with my work know I use the New Living Translation for my own day to day reading, and the English Standard Version for study. Obviously I don't agree with the KJV Only view.
Essentially the notion is that God has preserved his word in the Majority Text (the texts translated into English that became the KJV). They point out that in other Bibles (usually the NIV is the target!) there are missing verses, or verses are translated in a different way to the KJV.
I have a couple of problems with the KJV Only view which I will pose as questions.
- Given that the KJV was published in 1611, which version of the Bible was right in 1610?
- The KJV has been revised several times, is only the 1611 edition inspired?
- Do you believe that the translators of the KJV were inspired by God? If so, why not other translators?
- What Bible should a German speaker use?
- If you point out that a verse is missing or translated differently, you are setting the KJV as the standard. How different would that be if I used the NLT as the standard and accused the KJV of adding or mistranslating verses?
Perhaps from this you can see why I disagree with the KJV Only. Perhaps the best thing to suggest in terms of which Bible translation you should use is the old adage - the one you will read!
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