Monday, May 02, 2011
400th Anniversary
As the Virginia Hugenot reported, May 2, 2011, is the 400th anniversary of the first printing of the King James or "Authorized" Version of the Bible. Whether or not you agree with my assessment that it is still the best widely-available English translation of the Bible or not, this is cause for celebration. Notwithstanding the motives the King who authorized its translation, the King James Version has proved to be a treasure for the last four centuries, and will doubtless continue to be in the next one.
4 comments:
Comment Guidelines:
1. Thanks for posting a comment. Without you, this blog would not be interactive.
2. Please be polite. That doesn't mean you have to use kid gloves, but please try not to flame others, even if they are heretics, infidels, or worse.
3. If you insult me, I'm more likely to delete your comment than if you butter me up. After all, I'm human. I prefer praise to insults. If you prefer insults, there's something wrong with you.
4. Please be concise. The comment box is not your blog. Your blog is your blog. If you have a really long comment, post it on your blog and post a short summary of it here.
5. Please don't just spam. It's one thing to be concise, it's another thing to simply use the comment box to advertise.
6. Please note, by commenting here, you are relinquishing your (C) in your comments to me.
7. Remember that you will give an account on judgment day for your words, including those typed in comment boxes. Try to write so you will not be ashamed if it is read back before the entire world.
8. Stay on topic. If your comment has nothing to do with the post, email it to me (my email can be obtained through my blogger profile), or simply don't post it.
9. Don't post as "Anonymous." If you are going to post anonymously, at least use some kind of recognizable "handle," so we can tell you apart from all the other anonymous folks. (This is moot at the moment, since recent abuse has forced me to turn off "anonymous" commenting.)
10. Do unto others as you would have them do unto you; and abstain from doing to others what you would not wish upon yourself.
I was listening to NPR a couple of weeks ago and they highlighted the AV's anniversary. The AV introduced expressions to the English language forever shaping it...today,it's the other way around.
ReplyDeleteI often wonder if the onslaught of Bible versions is an inherent distrust in the power of the Word or if it might driven more by money...probably both, but I don’t know which motivator is stronger.
Do you have an opinion on the NKJV or the NASB? These are my preferred versions, though I'm not averse to the AV. I've read that the NASB is an attempt at translating more word-for-word, and I just assumed the NKJV was the KJV minus thees and thous.
The biggest difference between the NKJV and the NASB is the underlying Greek text. The underlying Greek text of the NKJV is more similar to that of the KJV, whereas the NASB uses essentially the modern critical text.
ReplyDeleteJust thought I'd let you know...based on what you said, I decided to order an AV (with metrical Psalms) from the Trinitarian Bible Society.
ReplyDeleteI had never heard of this group, but they are very friendly (I've spoken with them and exchanged a couple of emails)...to top it off, their Bibles are of a better quality, more affordable and NOT printed in China like some of these 400 year anniversary editions I looked into.
Sounds very nice! I hope you enjoy it!
ReplyDelete