The Bible and the KJV

Perhaps no single subject or book has achieved as much in the public’s imagination as that of the Bible. In this respect, the New Testament is no exception. As a result, a wide range of books and DVDs on Christian life have been released in recent years, aimed at addressing such perennial questions as: “Does the Bible Really Say That?”

Few, if any, of these books address the question of how the Book of Revelation can be relevant to the teachings of the KJV. But this is exactly what author Joseph Ritspe explains in The Bible and the KJV. Ritspe not only questions the Bible’s relation to the KJV; he also points out that the KJV translation of Luke is much different from the way the Bible has been translated into English. Moreover, Ritspe argues that the main text in the KJV, namely, John’s Gospel, is inaccurate and should therefore be dropped altogether.

Based on the three-volume Theological Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, the Book of Revelation: The New Testament Translation Explained makes the strong case that the King James Version is not an accurate rendering of the original Greek manuscripts. Likewise, the KJV is not an accurate rendering of the original Greek manuscripts of the Holy Scriptures. Moreover, the KJV translation of John is more easily understandable than the original manuscripts, thus giving it an advantage over the Bible.

It is apparent that both individuals and institutions need to examine their own understanding of scripture. If the Bible is truly God’s Word, then the Bible must not be the product of human ingenuity, but rather the work of the Holy Spirit.

Since so many individuals and institutions are devoting to uphold the truth of the Holy Scriptures, it is time for the KJV to drop the King James translation of the Bible. The New American Standard Bible’s New World Translation is a better translation for the world today. Its best translation is the New Testament Translation of the NIV, which has many desirable variations from the KJV.

Most people do not realize that there are two kinds of translation, namely, internal and external. When a reader will look at the KJV translation of the Bible, one is unable to discern what the original text was; the reader is unable to understand what was intended by the Holy Spirit. The “cure” is for the KJV to drop the King James text, because the text simply does not mean what it is claimed to mean.

Furthermore, the Bible is not designed to be translated accurately into other languages. There are many instances where the KJV is written in a foreign language. For example, in Acts chapter 22, the Greek word translated as “as” in the KJV indicates that it means, “and,” but when translated as “that” in the KJV, it indicates “however.”

Therefore, the KJV is not a translation into another language. However, many individuals, institutions, and many Bible translations claim that the Bible is. If we really believe that the Bible is true, then we ought to look at the Bible translations produced by the various translation groups and find that each of these translations contains problems, such as the KJV having an incorrect translation of the Greek word, “that.”