King James Version

Overview

The King James Version is one of the English Bible translations, produced at the command of King James I of England and published in 1611. In Britain it is commonly called the "Authorized Version." The name refers to the translation itself and is not a term found in the biblical text.

Translation and Publication

At the Hampton Court Conference of 1604, the Puritan party proposed a new translation, and James I accepted the proposal. About fifty scholars, divided into several companies, carried out the work, and the translation was published in 1611. It took the existing English Bishops' Bible as its base. The original-language texts used were the Masoretic Text for the Old Testament and, for the New Testament, the Greek Textus Receptus ("received text," meaning the widely accepted text), edited in the sixteenth century. The first edition also included the Apocrypha. Spelling and printing errors were corrected on a number of later occasions, and the text in common use today is generally understood to rest on an edition standardized in the late eighteenth century.

Influence

For nearly three hundred years the King James Version was the de facto standard Bible of English-speaking Protestantism. It also left a deep mark on English prose style and idiom. Beginning in the late nineteenth century, a succession of revised and modern translations appeared that drew on older manuscripts.

Interpretation and Debate

Modern translations generally follow a "critical text" established by comparing many manuscripts. As a result, they differ from the King James Version in a number of passages. Notable examples include:

• The Trinitarian wording of 1 John 5:7–8
• The longer ending of Mark 16:9–20
• John 7:53–8:11

These passages appear in the main text of the King James Version. Modern translations often omit them or set them off with brackets or marginal notes.

Views on this question differ:

• King James Onlyism: This position is found among some Independent Baptist churches in the United States and within the fundamentalist movement, among others. Its adherents hold that God has preserved His word through the Textus Receptus and the King James Version, and they reject modern translations. They cite passages such as Psalm 12:6–7 in support.
• Most denominations and biblical scholars: They respect the King James Version as a historically valuable translation, while also regarding as legitimate modern translations that incorporate the findings of manuscript research.

This debate is also connected to the question of whether biblical inerrancy applies to the original autographs or to a particular translation. For further discussion, see Bible translation controversy.

In the Korean Church

Most Korean Protestant churches use Korean-language translations such as the New Korean Revised Version in worship. In Korea the King James Version is used mainly in English-language services and English Bible studies. Korean translations of the King James Version have also been published in Korea and are used in some churches. However, the claim that the King James Version is the only correct translation has met with ongoing criticism and controversy within the Korean church.