Today, 2nd May 2011, marks the 400th
anniversary of the publication of the King James Bible, also popularly known as
the Authorised Version. Over the past couple of months you may have seen a
variety of television programmes exploring the historic context of this
translation and celebrating its deliberately memorable prose. Indeed, it’s
amazing that when I have occasionally used the King James Bible in services at
Queen’s Court (the care whom at which I am chaplain), many of the residents, even some of those suffering from dementia,
can recall whole passages from this version that is so familiar from their
youth.
In the centuries prior to the Reformation the Bible had only
been available in Latin, and it was partly out of the desire to make the Bible
more widely accessible in the English language that the writing of the King
James Version (KJV) was commissioned. The motivation to make the Bible
accessible to everyone is what continues to inspire those who translate the
Bible today. Indeed, there is still much work to do to ensure that the word of
God can be heard in every tongue and dialect used throughout the world.
For 250 years the King James Bible had very few rivals, but
as the English language evolved over time, and words like ‘Thee’, ‘Thou’ and
‘verily’ fell out of common usage, new versions became necessary. The scholars
involved in a new translation always return to the original Greek and Hebrew
manuscripts, and as some of the oldest copies of these biblical documents
weren’t found until the 1940s (when the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered) we
can be increasingly certain about the accuracy of the text that we read.
Whilst some of those with a church background continue to find the
text of the KJV familiar and beautiful, many from a younger generation are
encountering the power of the Bible through versions which communicate its
ageless truth in a language which is bang up to date. These include one version
in ‘street language’ and another called the ‘Manga Bible’ which uses a
graphical format popular amongst teenagers. You can also purchase the ‘Poverty
and Justice Bible’ and the ‘Green Bible’ which highlight in a different colour all
of the many Bible verses referring to these respective issues. The Bible, of
course, is no longer limited to text on a page either, you can also now access
the Bible online and via an app on your mobile phone!
The Christian faith is one which the church is called to proclaim
afresh in each generation and these new translations are a vital tool in this
task. As we celebrate 400 years since the publication of the King James Version
I thank God for those who continue to help each new generation realise that the
Bible is a living text, and one that continues to change the lives of those who
read it.
