The situation as it stands in 2023 is that there are veritable host of modern translations based on the Westcott and Hort Texts which are in turn based on the New Testament texts Vaticanus and Sinaiticus. All these translations vary in the structure and content of the bible narrative so that while they are similar, they are all quite different. Some omit portions of scripture protesting that they do not appear in more reliable (Westcott and Hort) texts. This being the situation concerning all the modern translations. When you add the paraphrase versions like the Message or Good News Bible. From a logical perspective how can anyone seriously consider these bibles with so much differing text to be the inerrant Word of God?
The question that I would ask is “Is similar the standard of accuracy that is acceptable for bible translation?” What of the omitted scriptures like John 5: 3-4 “of blind, halt, withered, waiting for the moving of the water. For an angel went down at a certain season into the pool and troubled the water: whosoever then first after the troubling of the water stepped in was made whole of whatsoever disease he had.” Translations after 1884 feature this omission and many others. So, the King James Version has many words and verses that modern translations do not have because they are translated from more accurate texts or are they corrupted texts. Texts that contain a deliberate attack on the deity of Christ and events that support the gospel?
So, should we be throwing out all the new translations in favour of the King James Bible. I think that we should be careful about telling people that their version of the bible is an inaccurate version. A person’s faith can interwoven with the bible that they love. We do not want to break anyone’s faith because of bible version that they read.
Although it may seem an unusual stance to hold about this subject. I believe that in accordance with Hebrews chapter 8 verses 8-12, that in Christ Jesus we are in the New Covenant where the Holy Spirit writes the law into our hearts and puts it into our minds. On this basis I believe that when we hear or read the truth it resonates with the Law of God which is already written on our hearts and put in our minds. So as much as I dislike the idea of inaccuracy in modern bible translations, I do not think it will do much harm as they do contain much biblical truth. If we walk the Spirit filled life we cannot go wrong regardless of the translation we use.
Further to this line of thought, if we lay hold on the promises of God and consider that great scripture Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” We can know without doubt that as believers that we have God’s Law inscribed on our hearts and put into our minds. We cannot see this or feel it but through faith we know it to be true. Also, faith is a gift of God so we will never be lacking faith (Ephesians 2: 8-9).
A promise concerning the Word of God, is that when God sends it out it never returns to him without having achieved that which He sent it to do (Isaiah 55:11). I very much doubt that His word is of any version of bible except His own truth, the Word of God, and so it is with the truth of God’s Law that the Spirit has written on our hearts and put into our minds. The Word of God is therefore beyond the meddling hands of men. In this way God has kept the Word safe for those who love Him throughout the centuries and millennia that it has been in the Earthly domain.
So, what about the conflict between the KJV – Received Text people and the folk who prefer the more contemporary versions based on Vaticanus and Sinaiticus texts. Below are three links to Textus-Receptus.com which show the differences between the more popular modern translations and the KJV. There are quite a few verse omissions and numerous word omissions as well as word substitutions. Which amount, to an attack on the deity of Christ and weaken the overall tone of the narrative. Now, the modern translators would say that this makes the bible more accurate, because the Nu Text is derived from texts that are claimed to predate the Received Text.
The issue here is that the Vaticanus text was discovered in the early 13th Century and was said to date from the 4th Century. It was then lost only to reappear in a rubbish bin in the 19th Century. It was then that “Codex Vaticanus was first reproduced in engraved semi-facsimile as Bibliorum sacrorum graecus codex Vaticanus auspice Pio IX. Pontifice Maximo collatis studiis Caroli Vercellone Sodalis Barnabitae et Josephi Cozza Monachi Basiliani editus (Rome, 1868).” See links below.
The Sinaiticus text was found by Constantin von Tischendorf in 1844 at Saint Catherine's Monastery near Mount Sinai in what is today the South Sinai Governorate of Egypt. It was also said to date from the 4th Century. Again, it was suspiciously fortuitous that the text turned up in excellent condition despite its claimed age and that it differed from the Received Text in such a way as to assist the Vatican in rewriting the bible as it desired. Then with the assistance of Messer's Westcott and Hort they were able to gain control of the entire Translation Community and launch a raft of new versions that were written as Rome proscribed.
What to do? Oh, what to do? Well, that is up to you. Many will for whatever reason ignore this article and stay content with the version of the bible they are using. I cannot argue with that for the simple reason that even with a few errors these bibles provide better access to the Word of God than has been the case for the previous 20 centuries. I would then end here by suggesting that the reader check the websites below and check the omissions and substitutions listed on them. I note that the Amplified Bible and the Modern English Version contain most of the omitted verses and are similar in contextual meaning to the King James Version but in a contemporary language format. Relinquo vobis.
Reference List
Codex Sinaiticus https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Codex_Sinaiticus 13/08/2023
List of Omitted Verses http://textus-receptus.com/wiki/List_of_Omitted_Bible_Verses 11/08/2023
The Codex Sinaiticus https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=485 13/08/2023
The Codex Vaticanus https://www.historyofinformation.com/detail.php?id=163 13/08/2023
What about the New American Standard https://www.sermonindex.net/modules/newbb/viewtopic.php?topic_id=7181&forum=35 16/08/2023
Would you take a magic marker to your Bible and cross out words from passages? https://av1611.com/kjbp/charts/themagicmarker.html 11/08/2-23
Various Contradictions and Omissions in Bible Translations https://av1611.com/kjbp/charts/various.html 11/08/2023
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