THE KING JAMES VERSION OF THE BIBLE: A LESSON IN STUDY

(CONFUSION OF WORDS)

3 August 2008 by Carl A. Patton

PART 3: THE KING JAMES VERSION OF THE BIBLE

Greetings Brethren,

Peace be unto you. To the Church and believing Christians everywhere and those that believe in the Bible as the Supreme authority of God’s Laws. For the record and the sign post many people that confess to be Christians are now during these trying times looking to man, materialism and God knows what as additional authorities on how to get to Heaven. Glory be to God our Father and to His Son our Savior Christ Jesus blessed by the Holy Spirit.

James I came to the throne of England in 1603. Being the secular head of the Anglican Church, James was opposed to the various rivals of Anglicanism in England at that time. In January, 1604 the King called a meeting at Hampton Court to discuss religious toleration. During this conference mention was made of the need for a new translation of the Bible. Soon after this conference King James moved to authorize a new version of the Bible. The top Biblical scholars in England were called to do this work. They were free to use any of the preceding translations which they found satisfactory. Their completed work was reviewed by the Bishop, the Privy Council and finally by the King himself. In 1611 the first edition of the King James Version of the Bible was printed and distributed.

Most Bible scholars agree that this work resulted in a sacred and literary masterpiece against all subsequent translations were measured. For the record the King James Version of the Bible was never officially authorized by the King but won its place in Christendom on its own merits.

Modern Versions

Nearly 300 years passed before any serious thought was given to making a revision of the King James Version. The reason for the new look at the Bible was prompted by some who thought the discovery of new manuscripts giving additional insight in the history, geography, religions and culture of Bible lands was important. However all of this had been noted in the secular history books and in the Bible. For the record God has not allowed anything to be left out of the King James Version for example that would hamper our salvation.

The major translations following the Tyndale-King James tradition was the Revised Versions published in England in 1881. In 1901 in the United States the American Standard Version appeared. There are several more recent translations that we will note. The New English Bible published by Oxford and Cambridge University Presses, The New Testament in 1961, the Old Testament in 1970.

Meanwhile the KJV comes under great debate and scrutiny by various Churches, preachers and teachers. Thus some people that do not have a lust for the Word do not understand the essence of the word translation. They are lost to the importance of reading first from the KJV and then any other study Bible.

Therefore we will present the following example of Bible study to show just how one can become confused by solely reading and allegedly studying from other versions of the Bible. Thus we will cite a scripture from the KJV, explain the scripture and then cite it from several other sources.

KJV: Leviticus 19: 28: “Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the Lord.”

During this time some heathen cultures mutilated their bodies. Sometimes they gashed their bodies as an act of penitence to an idol god. However the law here against printing marks on the flesh also applies to tattooing and piercing. Also see I Corinthians 6: 19 where the same principle is taught regarding printing and marking the body and the use of make-up that makes one look unnatural.

The following are scripture references from various translations:

New International Version

Leviticus 19: 28: Do not cut your bodies from the dead or cut tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord.

The Promise Contemporary English Version

Leviticus 19: 27-28: I forbid you to shave any part of your head or beard or to cut and tattoo yourself as a way of worshipping the dead.

The Jerusalem Bible

Leviticus 19: 28: You are not to gash your bodies when someone dies, and you are not to tattoo yourselves. I am Yahweh.

Now for the sake of studying our primary verse. What is the problem? In the KJV we do not see the word tattoo as it did not exist at that time. However the scripture refers to what is later described as tattooing. However the scripture regarding markings and cuttings take into account piercing and utter mutilation of the body.

Therefore one can get confused for example if they only read from one of the cited versions. First of all they would miss the overall impact of the scripture and limit the meaning of Leviticus 19: 28 to tattooing. We rest our case.

Cont. Part 4: A Note On How To Study the Bible and Verse

Love Peace and Paradise, Brother Carl A. Patton a willing servant of Almighty God writing for the FreedomJournal 14 August 2008 in the year of our Lord and Savior Christ Jesus.

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carlapatton@comcast.net