Why
The King James Bible?
Many
people question why it is so important to read the King James Bible,
I will tell you that I have read several of the new versions of the
Bible and I do not care what people say about them being easier to
understand, they are not. They are confusing and some are so way off
the subject it is no wonder why people can not believe that the Bible
is truly God's Word and that it was written by a man. Of course,
these false bibles are written by man, but the True Bible, the one
and only True Word of God is the King James Bible and I will gladly
defend it, even if it means dying to defend it. "Remember
them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto you the word
of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their
conversation. Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for
ever. Be not carried about with divers and strange doctrines. For it
is a good thing that the heart be established with grace; not with
meats, which have not profited them that have been occupied therein."
- Hebrews 13:7-9.
Jesus is the living Word of God and God
never changes! "In
the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word
was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made
by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made...And
the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his
glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of
grace and truth."
- John 1:1-3, 14. Why then are we so ready to accept changes to
God's Word in the form of different Bible versions? The
Authorized King James text has faithfully served the body of Christ
for almost hundreds of years. During this time, and during its
translation, Satan has viciously and relentlessly attacked it. The
Authorized 1611 King James Bible was translated in the most beautiful
period of English literature, it is ridiculous to water it down to
the silly so-called "translations" which we have available
on the market today.
Even the world knows it--the
Authorized King James Version has been listed on Norton Anthology's
list of "the world's best literature" for decades. I know
that God has the power to preserve His word and that He would not
leave us out in the dark with an "imperfect" translation.
In the authorized King James Version God assembled, and moved with
His Spirit, a team of some of the world's best scholars to translate
His word into the world's most popular language, English. Today, the
King James Version is available in more languages than any other
version, it is important to have a true Bible in your native tongue
because you think and understand it best in your own language.
We
must remember also, that the Bible is a spiritual book and is
understandable to those who are led by the Holy Spirit. It is not
possible for the natural man to understand it, “But
the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for
they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they
are spiritually discerned."
-I Corinthians 2:14, hence paraphrasing or simplifying it will do no
good. The Bible is not supposed to read like a fairy tale, Peter
said, "For
we have not followed cunningly devised fables, when we made known
unto you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but were
eyewitnesses of his majesty."
- II Peter 1:16.
The Pure Preserved Word of God
The
word pure is defined as being free from anything contaminating, in
other words, it is genuine and free from error. The word preserved is
defined as something to keep alive, meaning to keep it in existence.
God promises that His Word is pure, meaning that it is genuine and
free from error. He also promises that it is preserved, meaning that
no matter how many people try to take it out of existence they can
not. "The words of the LORD are pure
words: as silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times.
Thou shalt keep them, O LORD, thou shalt preserve them from this
generation for ever." - Psalm 12:6,7.
God's word
has been preserved for all time. It has been preserved for every
generation. We know that God's word has not been hidden or lost to
man, since it was first spoken and recorded in God's written
revelation. We can be assured that we have not had to depend on the
latest discoveries of the oldest manuscripts, or on the efforts of
fallible man to uncover God's words. God has preserved his words to
all generations, without fail! These words state very clearly that
God's preserved word must be available to us today, because God
promised to preserve it for us. There must be an infallible book
somewhere."For the LORD is good; his mercy
is everlasting; and his truth endureth to all generations."
- Psalm 100:5. The King James Bible is the preserved and infallible
words of God. It does not merely contain the word of God: it IS the
word of God.
God places supreme importance upon His Written
Word and warns anyone who tries to altar it in any way of the
consequences they face. "For I testify
unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book,
If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the
plagues that are written in this book:And if any man shall take away
from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his
part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the
things which are written in this book." - Revelation
22:18,19.
Translators
Were God-Ordained
The main subject of the Bible
is the kingdom which God intends to give to His Son, the Lord Jesus
Christ, Who will be crowned "KING OF
KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS," according to Revelation 19:16.
Ecclesiastes 8:4 says, "Where the word of
a king is, there is power: and who may say unto him, What doest
thou?" Unlike the modern versions, the King James Version
was translated under a king. In fact, the king's name was James,
which is the English word for Jacob, whom God renamed Israel, because
he had power with God and with men (Gen. 32:28).
The new
versions have been translated in America, which is not a monarchy
(governed by one), but a democracy (governed by many). God's form of
government is a theocratic monarchy, not a democracy. Therefore, it
makes perfect sense that His word would be translated for the English
speaking people under a monarchy with an English king.
The
complete translator's notes of the Authorized King James scholars are
not included in today's publishing's. This is unfortunate because
these notes say a lot about these men, they were humble, loved the
word of God, loved the King, were berated by the Catholic religion,
and they desired a translation for the common man who was kept in
darkness. Some of the translators where killed for their faith. This
book was created literally from blood, sweat, and tears.
Unlike
many of today's translators, the authorized King Jame Version
translators let us know which words they had to add in translating in
order to give the full meaning of the original text (these are the
words in italics in the James James Version). Other translators have
added words too, but they don't tell you what they've added. These
men went through the extra trouble of identifying which words they
added. That's real scholarship and integrity.
The
King James Version Has No Copyright
The original
crown copyright of 1611 does not forbid anyone today from reprinting
the Authorized Version. It was only copyrighted then for the purpose
of allowing the printer to finance the publication. For nearly four
hundred years now millions of copies of King James Versions have been
printed without requesting permission from anyone. Over eight-hundred
million copies of the Authorized Version have been printed without
anyone paying royalties. This cannot be said of any of the new
translations.
The new versions are the work of men, but the King James Version is a divine work of the Holy Spirit. The term "Authorized" has traditionally been applied to the King James Version alone, for this is the one Book which the Holy Spirit has blessed and used for so long. The fact that it bears no copyright allows printing ministries throughout the world to print millions of copies each year for the mission field.
Why Read The King James Only
1.
God has preserved His Word for us, when two different Bibles say two
different things, it poses a major problem. If they are
different, at least one of them is incorrect. I simply do not want my
Bible to be a source of confusion.
2. Almost all English
Bibles which have come into being in the past 125 years are based on
the Westcott-Hort texts. The Westcott-Hort texts are frankly false
texts in that they have been tampered with. Scrivener, a contemporary
of Westcott and Hort, produced a Textus-Receptus New Testament Greek
text in which he documents that Westcott and Hort changed the New
Testament text 9,970 times. They amended! They emended! They deleted!
They added things! They literally pilfered the Greek text. Therefore,
no matter how sincere or how skilled the translators are, if you have
them working with a bad text, you will come out with a bad English
version.
3. In almost all cases when someone produces a new
English text, his motivation for doing so is either bias or bucks!
That is, he either has a doctrinal agenda he is trying to accommodate
or he is trying to make a dollar. In some instances, it has been bias
and bucks!
4. If you do not have a Bible that is your standard
text, the consequences are going to be costly. Where there is not a
standard text, the preacher and the people are never quite sure of
anything. If they are sure, they do not know why they are. The
problem is, they do not have a Bible to which they can turn with
confidence and certainty. In the absence of an authoritative Bible,
the people will not become strong Christians. They will drift and
shift because necessity for an authoritative text that is, in fact,
the Bible!
Where
to Get A King James Bible
King
James Bibles are available in every book store. If you do not have a
King James version of the Bible in your language write to the
American Bible Society at P.O. Box 5601, Grand Central Station, New
York, New York 10164, U.S.A. They have a complete listing of all the
languages in which the King James Version of the Bible is available.
If you find the King James Version is not available in your
language or have difficulty in obtaining a Bible, write to the United
Bible Societies, Bible House, P.O. Box 755, Stuttgart l, Germany.
They maintain a list of "Scriptures of the World" which
identifies all the languages in the world in which at least one book
of the Bible has been published. Write to Cambridge University Press,
New York, New York, U.S.A. for further information.
