The History of the King James Version

The King James Bible is one of the most popular translations of the Bible; some love it for its old-fashioned, flowery language, others for its accuracy of translation. Many churches rely upon it exclusively as the only "true" translation. The history of this influential Bible version begin over 400 years ago, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.

Parliamentary Draft

The King James version of the Bible began with the drafting of a parliamentary act in the late 1500s. It was to commission a new translation of the Bible in order to "reduce the diversities of Bibles now extant in the English tongue..." Dr. Laurence Vance, a noted BIble scholar, tells us that this draft never was completed, and the idea was set to rest for the time.

Hampton Court Conference

In 1603, King James I of England called a meeting of clergymen, government officials and other interested parties for the purpose of "hearing and for the determining things pretended to be amiss in the Church." Very little was accomplished in this meeting, according to Professor Isaac Hall in his history of the King James Version, except for the suggesting of the need for a new translation of the Bible from the original tongues.

Forming the Team

By a little more than a year later, in 1604, King James had appointed a team of 54 translators, all chosen for their desire for truth, their proficiency in Greek and Hebrew, and their humility. This team was divided into six groups and settled at three colleges across England: Cambridge, Oxford and Westminster. Each group was assigned a certain section of the Scriptures to translate.

Completion of the Translation

Although the work began in 1604, the teams did not put their full efforts into the translation until 1607. Consulting all available original manuscripts as well as many other translations in a myriad of languages, the men worked steadily until the last chapter was completed. Two translators from each college were assigned to the final revisions, and at last the manuscript was sent to the press.

Release to the Public

The King James Version, also known as the Authorized Version, was released to the public in 1611. The title page proclaimed, "THE HOLY BIBLE, Conteyning the Old Testament, and the New: Newly Translated out of the Originall tongues: & with the former Translations diligently compared and revised, by his Majesties Special Commandment. Appointed to be read in Churches. Imprinted at London by Robert Barker, Printer to the Kings most Excellent Majestie. ANNO DOM. 1611."

Popularity

It took some time for the King James Version to supersede the beloved Geneva Bible in popularity. The Geneva Bible was last printed in 1644, but the official church prayer books were printed using the text of the Authorized Version. After that, it gained foothold very quickly and came to be considered one of few accurate translations, and certainly a favorite, up until the release of the Revised Version in the 1880s. Even today, many churches use it, and some exclusively.

References

• Dr. Laurence Vance
• Professor Isaac Hall

Resources

• Etext: King James Version