WHAT'S SO SPECIAL ABOUT THE KING JAMES VERSION?

That the King James Version is still being published 380 years after it first arrived in history is amazing. Since its introduction, there have been dozens of new "Bibles" put on the market to replace it, but none have succeeded. This alone is strong evidence that it is the version God has placed His stamp of approval on. One time a person of prominence asked a Christian for one reason why he should believe the Bible is the word of God. The believer responded with two words: "The Jew." His reasoning was since the Jewish people have been severely persecuted for most of their history, and many other nations have targeted them for complete annihilation, the fact they still exist with the same religion, culture, and language they began with proves the Bible to be true. This can be said of no other ancient nation. The Bible predicted in several places that the Jews would never be completely wiped from the face of the earth, and it also predicted their return to their land (Jeremiah 30:11, Ezekiel 34:13, 36:24, etc). Unlike the Philistines, Moabites, Amorites, and many other cultures which were once neighbors with Israel, the Jew remains unto this day.

The same can be said about the King James Version. Much like the Jew it has undergone persecution, slander, attempted corruption and annihilation, constant criticism, and the like since the day it was first proposed. That it has endured through the centuries unscathed has much to say about the authority behind it. The Revised Version, which came out in 1885, was published primarily to replace it as the English Bible. To my knowledge, no publisher prints it today! The American Standard Version (1901) is an "Americanized" version of the RV, and it has nearly passed into obscurity also. Why has the King James Version endured while others published to replace it fall by the wayside? What is so special about it? In this chapter we will examine some reasons why we consider it the "King" of Bibles.

It is fascinating that English language experts, who make no claim to Christianity, have in some respects a higher regard for the King James Version than many saved Bible scholars! Though these men may not consider the Authorized Version the pure word of God (they may not believe God's word ever existed), they do consider it a "masterpiece" of supreme influence. And who in his right mind would attempt to correct, revise, or in any way tamper with such a masterpiece? One that millions past and present believe to be the very word of God? No one but a professional Bible corrector (Genesis 3). In universities, seminaries, and Bible colleges all over the world there are "scholars" and teachers who systematically tear apart the King James Version and revise it (many of the new versions claim to be a revision of it), claiming to be correcting its (supposed) errors. They would never think of changing or revising the masterpieces of Shakespeare, Bacon, Jonson, or other masters of literature of the period, but they butcher the King James Version under the guise that it does not accurately translate the "original Greek," or that it is based on corrupt manuscripts. As we have pointed out before, there is no "original Greek" in existence, and the manuscripts they charge as "corrupt" represent the majority and are covered with the blood of countless believers. Clearly the Bible corrector's excuses for "improving the King James Version" are nothing but more opinionated HOT AIR!

At this point you may be thinking: "Am I to believe the King James Version is the pure, preserved word of God just because of its richness, vitality, and literary excellence?" No, not entirely, but the fact it was translated when the English language was at its climax is a very strong indication that God was behind it. Who knew that in the early seventeenth century the English language would peak? Who knew that after this period it would become weaker and less able to convey the meaning of Greek and Hebrew words? Why no one but God! Let's take this a step farther. Who knew in 1611 that English would later become the predominate language of the world when in that year less than TWO PERCENT of the world's population spoke it? Again, no one but God (Acts 15:18). The translators themselves did not realize that God was using them to prepare a standard Bible in the "universal language" of the future. Now, English is spoken by one-fifth of the earth's population—over one BILLION people!

In fact, English is not only the standard for absolute truth (KJV), but also the standard for absolute timeabsolute location (longitude and latitude), and absolute temperature (Kelvin system). So the final authority for time, temperature, location, and TRUTH is ENGLISH! The little island country of England has, by God's favor and grace, supplied man with standards to show him his standing in relation to other people, to the world, and most importantly, with God. (Greenwich, England; the prime meridian),

Nowhere in the scriptures does God make any statement or implication that there must be a perfect Bible in every language. He has promised to preserve His word for every generation as we have seen, but He has not promised to preserve it in every existing language. Let's look at the language of the original autographs for a moment. Nearly all of the Old Testament was written in Hebrew, however, no nation spoke Hebrew except the Israelites. God was not obligated to give His word in Egyptian, Syrian, Chaldian, or any other language. His word was available to the people in these nations also, but they had to go to the Jews to get it. To the Jews were committed the oracles of God (see chapter 2), and there were provisions in the law to allow strangers (foreigners) to convert to Judaism. Look at Ruth the Moabite for example. She was David's great-grandmother, an ancestor of Jesus Christ.

The same can be said about the New Testament language, Greek. Though it was a more widespread language than Hebrew, there were still millions of people who could not understand it when the New Testament was written. Again, God was not then, or now, obligated to give His word in every existing language, and those who argue He must are ignorant of history and of the scriptures.

God, who will not be intimidated by modern "scholarship," decided to combine His word into one universaldiplomacy, finance, and airlines, as well as of absolute time, temperature, and position. By his grace, God has made His word more available, readable and understandable by putting it in English; much more than it ever was in the "original languages." language to make it more accessible to all men. He knew how English would circle the globe under the British empire and American influence. He knew how in the twentieth century English would be the second language for millions. He knew how it would become the world language of

Another thing we should note here is the King James Version was translated before the great movements of unbelief swept the world. German rationalism, French skepticism, and English deism were not yet in force to affect the mentality of the translators. These philosophies have since then done more harm to the cause of Christ than will be known this side of Heaven. They have turned the majority of educated people into practical atheists. That nearly all the Bible translators since 1611 have been infected by these viruses can be seen by the doubt ("Yea hath God said") they spread by saying there is no infallible Bible on earth. This is one reason why God had His word put in the future universal language in 1611. The King James Version translators had a much more Biblical outlook on God and His word than the translators of today, and this will become apparent in the next section.

Before we move on, let's look at something Dr. William Lyon Phelps, Professor of English Literature in Yale University said as found in the book, Which Bible, edited by David Otis Fuller: 

Many Christians today are lead to believe that the scholarship behind the new translations is superior to that of the King James Version. Nothing could be farther from the truth. The Authorized Version translators were of unparalleled ability, and one would be hard pressed to find a group of translators today of any size who could even equal the ability of FIVE of the men King James selected. It is said of one of them: "his memory and reading were near to a miracle" (John Reynolds). Another was called "mighty in the scriptures" as Apollos was (Thomas Holland). Another was disinherited by his father for leaving the Roman Catholic Church and becoming a Protestant (Laurence Chaderton). One began to read Hebrew at the age of five and attended college at fourteen (John Boys). He sometimes studied in the library from 4 a.m. until 8 p.m. Even while suffering from smallpox he would not neglect his studies. Another (Lancelot Andrewes) had advanced knowledge of Latin, Greek, Hebrew, Chaldee, Syriac, Arabic, plus fifteen modern languages. He accomplished all of this while "a great part of five hours every day he spent in prayer." This only begins to mention the great ability, accomplishments, and devotion of these men.

Great ability and education can be a curse, however, without meekness and humility, and the translators had these virtues also. They were not men who were "puffed up" and who flaunted their education, but men who were governed by a pious and humble spirit. This can readily be seen in the dedicatory of the Authorized Version written by Miles Smith: 

Furthermore, in 1611 there were none of the "modern conveniences" such as radio, television, and telephones, to steal the translators time (not to mention corrupt their minds). They were able to meditate and study upon the word without many of the distractions believers endure today. They used their time to carefully examine every variation between the Greek texts and to consider every possible translation for each word. All is clear, God knew what He was doing when He chose the time for His word to be perfected in English and the men to do it.

Furthermore, Dr. Smith states that the intention of the translators was to make a good translation better so the English-speaking people could have "one principle" copy of the scriptures. Also, in a previous quotation from the preface we saw that they wanted to help the common man out of "ignorance and darkness" by making the Bible more accessible and understandable. The aforementioned book, The Story Of English, also mentions this on page 113 from a secular viewpoint: