Why is the KJV so revered among certain Christian sects?

Question

It has translation errors galore, I'm told, so--please explain.

Answer 1

The KJV is not revered for its accuracy (although fans pretend so), but for what it represents, an ancient English translation of the first Bible manuscript in Western Europe NOT under the control of Rome. Rage against "papism" is the current primary foundation of KJV-onlyism.

Answer 2

True religion can be proved by 3 things. 1- Lord in the heart 2- Scripture 3- A bona-fide spiritual master coming in the line of spiritual masters originated from God Himself. ( if not so, how can one teach if he was not taught in the first place? ) An atheist has a heart as well as a Christian. It is the sincere desire to know that leads one to knowing in the most gentle way when the time is right. However Chrishtians claim something and fight for it even if it is not as complete as it could be, but Athiests don't. Which do you think is better? I will go with Christians.

Answer 3

I honestly have no idea why people like it. Every reason I have heard has either been because the language is beautiful, which doesn't mean it's accurate, or various other reasons that simply aren't true. People often say it's the most accurate because it was the first english translation, which is of course not a valid reason, nor is it true. It was the 7th English version. And when I point this stuff out to people, even when I cite scholarly works, they just like to call me a liar.



Also - "camel" was not a mistranslation. It is accurately translated as "camel", it's just that camel was a popular slang for a rather large kind of rope back then. (used for boats I think)



David - since you think it suspicious that we would be so worried - of course we're worried! It is spreading error among Christians! Why are you so worried about Catholics? Don't be intentionally thick.

Answer 4

People are always resistant to change, especially when it comes to things of faith. I figure that if God could protect the integrity of His word for thousands of years, He did not lose that ability over the last 150 years or so. I use a KJV for the most part because it is what I grew up with but I also like to compare certain verses with other versions because I find I can gain a greater understanding by doing so.



edit: The thing that baffles me are attitudes like David's. He claims that the bible is the ultimate authority and yet there is nothing in the bible which gives the KJV translation authority. It is simply his opinion along with the opinion of those like him.

Answer 5

HAHAHAHA.. so far the answers are historically in accurate.



First Christian King -- Ahh.. Constantine was the First Christian King... Emperor actually.. but the title Emperor and King are largely a war over semantics.

So the KJV was NOT significant because it was the first by a Christian King.



PLUS. why would THAT make it significant? The king was not a perfect guy nor the one translating it.. he had other guys do it.



2) Tthat it was the first from the Greek and Hebrew texts -- ::FAIL:: The Latin Vulgate was, and before that, unofficial books which existed before the bible was even canonized, like Codex Vaticanus and others.

However, discounting the Latin Vulgate and the Earlier Textus Receptus, and various Codexes ..... The KJV is not even the first ENGLISH bible.

The Tynedale and Coverdale easily beat it to the Punch.



The Catholic Church's own Douay-Rheims bible beat the KJV to the punch and was professionally translated by people who natively spoke Greek and Latin, verses the KJ translators who spoke English as their native language.

The Douay-Rheims translators had access to ALL the materials that the Catholic church had at its desposal. - Most importantly the Latin Vulgate.



The Douay Rheims is both older and has few mistakes.. though still not perfect.



3) KJV is unaltered ::FAIL:: Earlier versions hat the entire Canonized bible in it. including the Deuterocanonicals which the Protestants re-labeled "Apocrypha" in the 1600s and removed from all Protestant Bibles. So the original KJVs had the 7 books of the apcrypha because it adhered to the Catholic canon... the ONLY official canon that existed for nearly 1200 years. It was then later "revised" meaning those 7 books were removed...because they were "too Catholic" meaning the Protestants wanted their bibles to be different then the Catholic bibles.



"The Apostle" one of the posters on the R&S section once even said that his very old version of the KJV has the 7 deuterocanonical books in it.



So the KJV is not even the most unaltered version. It fails in that category as well.



::EDIT:::

Skepsis hits the nail on the head. Anti-Catholicism is the easily one the main reasons it is so popular and why so many THINK it is more accurate or the FIRST .



Protestants have a very long history of conveniently rewriting history to fit them. Over the years the KJV has gotten this mythos of being the 1st or the most accurate.



Even if they Catholic church can show the Douay-Rheims to be both older AND by more professional translators and from more official sources.. Non-Catholics will simply dismiss it because it is "Catholic" and therefore in their mind "corrupted by man" as one poster even answered.



But simple anti-papism is the TRUE reason, I'm afraid. Which is kind of ironic.. because IF the reason is truly simply that other bibles are "too Catholic" then that means that Protestants in fact, let their choice of Scripture be shaped by "traditions of man" -- which seems eerily similar to what they are trying to avoid. - How ironic hahahhahahaa



:::EDIT:::



"Farsight" and "Citizen of the Cosmos" ALSO have good points. People like it because it has "thees" and "thous" in it. It seems poetic and OLD.

It is the #1 sighted bible by Atheists who are using the old english to make their arguments seem based in scripture.



Sadly, I've caught several people getting stripped up in the old-english phrasing and thinking that the bible says something completely opposite. That same "poetic" and "old" way of saying things.. also trips people up.



When I show them a NAS or NIV version of the same texts.. suddenly it makes more sense to them.





I use the Douay Rheims.. but I keep an NIV handy to clarify things if I think I'm confusing myself.

I use the DR bible because it comes from the Latin Vulgate

Answer 6

Actually, it's a very accurate translation, which is one reason so many sects like it (the problem rather is that the translators didn't have all the manuscripts available to modern translators; but they arguably had the best manuscripts) Every translation has political implications, and the KJV supports certain kinds of church polities. Also it's the most beautiful and poetic translation. A lot of the most radical aspects of the Bible get filtered out of later translations for reasons of political correctness or accessibility.



BTW, a lot of what are said to be translation errors are not really such. For example you relate the camel through the eye of the needle parable as a mistranslation, while many well-respected bible translators disagree.

Answer 7

Having once been a member of the King James Only belief system I can think of two reasons.



1. They need their idol



2. They hate change

Answer 8

Because it fit's their lifestyle and helps them justify the things they do, so as to alleviate guilt. However, King James was not given authority by GOD to change the original Bible was he?



This is actually a rhetorical question, because I already know the answer. King James changed the Bible to make himself not be in violation of the original teachings... found in the CATHOLIC Bible...

Answer 9

Actually the reason is because it it the most accurate of translation into the English Language, from the original Hebrew & Greek Writings.



The KJV of The Bible has been proven to have only omitted 65 words from the original Text, whereas the others have been proven to have omitted 2000+ words. That is a gross discrepancy, and could lead to a lot of misunderstanding of The Word of GOD. This is why it is preferred when teaching, but many Pastors will use it in conjunction with other bibles to try and help others who feel uncomfortable with the KJV. The reason for The KJV omitting any words at all, was because there was no English equivalent for the Hebrew and/or Greek Manuscript.



Sort of like the old saying.. If it ain't broke, don't fix it. You will always leave something out!



May GOD Bless you in your Search and Study of HIS Divine Word!

Answer 10

Longevity and familiarity. It has been the "authorized" version for centuries, and its prose was a standard for English writing.



The KJV's "errors" are not so great that a serious student cannot still find the Bible's truth, even using that version.

Answer 11

http://www.av1611.org/kjv/knowkjv.html

Answer 12

Because it was the first translation of the Hebrew & Greek texts.

Answer 13

Do not repeat what you cannot prove, you just look silly.

The KJV was after the Geneva bible which was after the Great Bible, which was after the Taverner,s which was after 6 earlier bibles. The reason why the KJV is so revered is because it was done by the first Christian king..

Answer 14

It's because others have doctrine of man injected into scripture.

Answer 15

Probably because it sounds all cool and aristocratic.

Answer 16

it has no errors...much effort went into its translation than any other translation...

Answer 17

Is the King James version of the bible the absolute word of God? Are there any mistakes in it?



The King James Version of the Holy Scripture is simply the direct English Translation of the Holy Scriptures performed by scholars versed the Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic languages (of which we English speaking people have profited from).



I find the King James Version useful for word study (utilizing Strong's Exhaustive Concordance, Hebrew/Greek Dictionarys/Lexicons, Vines Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words, and Word Study Bibles (King James Version).



When I perform a word study, I research the etymology of the word in the original languages and utilize the meaning of the word in the context of the text to expand my understanding of what is written (outside of the English language). This helps me grasp the nuances that are not obvious on the page, and discover treasures hidden right underneath the words.



I pray while I study, asking God questions about what I read in the text as well as looking up the definitions of the words. It is a literal conversation that goes something like this:



Isaiah 55.8, 9



"For my thoughts [are] not your thoughts, neither [are] your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For [as] the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts."



After reading this text, I would ask:



"Dad, what are Your thoughts and ways that are not my thoughts and ways? And since Your thoughts and ways are far more advanced than my thoughts and ways, is it possible that You-Yourself could become my thoughts and ways so that I would naturally think Your thoughts and ways?; instead of always asking myself the question, "What would Jesus do?"



This is how we interact; the Holy Scriptures being the common frame of reference from which to have a discussion as we "study together" and expound on whatever He reveals in His response - using His answers to ask MORE questions about whatever He speaks.



God is infinite in knowledge, and we don't tap into that knowledge directly. It is He who is the author of the Holy Scriptures and since the the Holy Scriptures are an expression of God's thoughts, and that God's thoughts are not our thoughts and His ways are not our ways, separate from God making His "written thoughts" make sense, we would never understand God's "hidden wisdom" obscured within scripture.



1 Corinthians - Chapter 2



"And I, brethren, when I came to you, came not with excellency of speech or of wisdom, declaring unto you the testimony of God. For I determined not to know any thing among you, save Jesus Christ, and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness, and in fear, and in much trembling. And my speech and my preaching [was] not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God.



Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought: But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, [even] the hidden [wisdom], which God ordained before the world unto our glory: Which none of the princes of this world knew: for had they known [it], they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.



But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him. But God hath revealed [them] unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God.



For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual.



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. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ."



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Are there mistranslations in the King James? If there are, could there be mistranslations in other parts of the King James that we don´t know about? I the King James perfectly correct? If not, which version of the Bible is perfect?



I am of the belief that the most important thing is whether or not God is behind the translation, because man can "translate" the bible into any language and there be errors, but like Peter said:



2 Peter 1.19-21



"We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts: Knowing this first, that no prophecy of the scripture is of any private interpretation. For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake [as they were] moved by the Holy Ghost."



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That being said, were the translators of the King James Version "holy men of God... [as they were] moved by the Holy Ghost"?



I am of the belief that when God does something Himself, He does it once. When God causes the Holy Scriptures to be translated to English, I believe that the King James Version was that translation; because the spirit in the translation hidden within the words and the way they are written, doesn't exist in other translations; and no other English translation has as extensive a study reference library as the King James; and no other English translation's credibility has been as viciously attacked as the King James.



Why? Because it is God's "Authorized Version" that has been the instrument of salvation to countless millions), that has stood the test of time (for over 395 years), that Satan has continuously tried to discredit through many of those who he manipulated to create "new translations" so that those who read these "phony scriptures" not "holy scriptures", do not discover the hidden wisdom that God translated from the Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic, to English through the men authorized by King James.



God's Word has been attacked by Satan since Eden when God said,



"Of every tree of the garden thou mayest freely eat:"



And Satan twisted that statement by saying:



"Yea, hath God said, Ye shall NOT eat of every tree of the garden?"



By simply adding the word "NOT" TO God's word, Satan changed the meaning OF God's word.



Now if you take the word "NOT" out, you get God's "ORIGINAL" word.



"Yea, hath God said, Ye shall eat of every tree of the garden?"



See the difference?



And this is how Satan has "twisted" God's word by changing the scriptures through "new unauthorized translations" that either add words, change words, or eliminate words, originally translated in English by those men who were "authorized" by God as they were "moved by the Holy Ghost".