SOME MORE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE KJV & THE ESV Part 5
Scott G MacLeod
Please note that my comments are in blue.
EXAMPLE #1
Luke 2:49 And he said unto them, How is it that ye sought me? wist ye not that I must be about my Father’s business? (KJV)
Luke 2:49 And he said to them, “Why were you looking for me? Did you not know that I must be in my Father’s house?” (ESV)
There is a world of different between these two expressions. The expression ‘Father’s house’ is limiting the Lord Jesus Christ, in His work for the Father, to the Temple in Jerusalem. The expression ‘Father’s business’ applies no limits and therefore, wherever He was, He was doing the Father’s business! The Greek Text favors the KJV as there is no Greek word for house used here. The Greek word is actually the definite article (the) that is a plural neuter, thus, ‘business’ or ‘things’.
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EXAMPLE #2
Luke 2:22 And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (KJV)
Luke 2:22 And when the time came for their purification according to the Law of Moses, they brought him up to Jerusalem to present him to the Lord (ESV)
Major doctrinal different here! The Lord Jesus Christ needed no purification from anything, He is sinless!
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EXAMPLE #3
Luke 4:4 And Jesus answered him, saying, It is written, That man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word of God. (KJV)
Luke 4:4 And Jesus answered him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone.'” (ESV)
I am simply lost for words as to why they would remove this wonderful phrase of the Lord Jesus!
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EXAMPLE #4
1Timothy 3:16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory. (KJV)
1Timothy 3:16 Great indeed, we confess, is the mystery of godliness: He was manifested in the flesh, vindicated by the Spirit, seen by angels, proclaimed among the nations, believed on in the world, taken up in glory. (ESV)
If you were to talk to an Unitarian (one who does not believe that Jesus Christ is God) today, they would be happy with ‘He was manifested in the flesh’. To their minds, that means Christ and to them, Christ was only a man. 1Timothy 3:16 in the KJV and all English Bibles before the KJV is a wonderful attestation to the fact that Jesus Christ is the eternal God.
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EXAMPLE #5
John 1:14 And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (KJV)
John 1:14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth. (ESV)
Notice the next 5 examples, 5-9, all references to the Lord Jesus Christ being the ‘only begotten’ is removed and it is replaced with the word ‘only’. Just to clarify, ‘only begotten’ (used by the KJV) is one word in Greek, it is the word ‘monogenes’, whereas, ‘only’ (used by the ESV) in Greek is ‘monos’. Is is not interesting that in the Greek Text used by the KJV Translators that only the writer John uses this word ‘monogenes’ or ‘only begotten’? John is presenting the eternal Son of the eternal Father and by using this unique word he is picturing the real relationship of the Father and the Son. It would be a shame to lose this word as it uniquely applies to the Son of God! The word ‘only’ can be used to describe any human relationship, but, you would never think of using ‘only begotten’ to describe a human relationship of father and son.
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EXAMPLE #6
John 1:18 No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (KJV)
John 1:18 No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father’s side, he has made him known. (ESV)
There needs to be a comment made here, but it is hard to know what to say. By changing the word ‘Son’ to ‘God’, it is a very awkward reading and doesn’t really make sense! You have God beside God who is the Father and He (the Father) has made Him (the Father) known. It makes perfect sense the way it is rendered in the KJV!
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EXAMPLE #7
John 3:16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (KJV)
John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. (ESV)
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EXAMPLE #8
John 3:18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (KJV)
John 3:18 Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God. (ESV)
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EXAMPLE #9
1John 4:9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. (KJV)
1John 4:9 In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. (ESV)
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EXAMPLE #10
Matthew 1:25 And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS. (KJV)
Matthew 1:25 but knew her not until she had given birth to a son. And he called his name Jesus. (ESV)
By leaving the phrase ‘her firstborn’ in the text as the KJV does, it is a very clear indication that Jesus was Mary’s first child born to her.
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EXAMPLE #11
Rev 5:14 And the four beasts said, Amen. And the four and twenty elders fell down and worshipped him that liveth for ever and ever. (KJV)
Rev 5:14 And the four living creatures said, “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped. (ESV)
Why would anyone remove this lovely phrase?
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To download this Word document, click here SOME DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE KJV AND THE ESV part5