Bibles Based on Textus Receptus

Before the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Christians in western Europe relied on a Latin translation of the Scriptures, called the Vulgate. When Constantinople was conquered by Ottoman forces and some Orthodox Christians from that eastern region fled to western Europe, they brought with them copies of the New Testament in the Greek language. Desiderius Erasmus made a compilation of the text from the Greek New Testament editions that were available to him and published the work in 1516. A later edition of this volume came to be called Textus Receptus, a Latin phrase meaning "received text."

During the time in history called the Reformation, Textus Receptus was the basis for new translations of the New Testament into the languages of Europe. It was used by people such as John Calvin and Martin Luther. It also served as the foundation for one of the best-known versions of the Bible ever produced in English, the King James Version (KJV).

In contemporary times, the KJV and some of its subsequent updates are the only editions of the Bible widely available in English that rely on the family of Greek texts to which Textus Receptus belongs. The next question can help you choose from among them.

If you want a version of the Bible based on Textus Receptus, which is right for you?

If the speech patterns that marked Elizabethan English sound more holy to you than contemporary patterns, and if you enjoy the process of researching vocabulary to understand how the meanings of words change across the centuries, you will likely be happy with a Bible that reprints the text of The Original King James Version of the Bible. This version played a significant role in the literary history of the English language, and many people believe that its literary standard has never been equaled.

If the challenges of reading something published in 1611 interfere with your understanding and enjoyment of the Biblical text, you may want an updated edition of the King James Version. Which one? That depends on how you feel about linguistic changes and the inclusion of notes based on other ancient Greek texts.

Some people believe that Textus Receptus as it was translated into the original King James Version represents God's inerrant, infallible, unchanging Word. If this is your point of view, you will probably want to limit your choice to one of the Updated KJV Versions with Exclusive Reliance on Textus Receptus.

Some people believe that modern scholarship can bring increased understanding. They think the inerrancy of God's word and its infallible and unchanging characteristics apply only to the original documents. If this is your point of view, you may be interested in A KJV Version That Also Considers Modern Scholarship.

If you haven't yet made your choice, please select one of the following answers:

Or, you can return to The Beginning or The Initial Question.

The Original King James Version (KJV)

The King James Version (KJV) of the Bible may be the most commonly known of all English translations. It was commissioned by (and named for) King James of England in the early seventeenth century. It is also sometimes called the Authorized Version because of its status as the first officially sanctioned English translation. Although there were earlier translations of the Bible produced in the English language—some proscribed and some commonly accepted—none were formally approved by church authorities and the reigning monarch. Several of the other early English Bibles are discussed in Some Other Historically Significant and Specialty Bibles.

The KJV translation was created by a team of scholars who relied on a version of the Hebrew Masoretic Text as the basis of the Old Testament, the Greek Septuagint for the books of the Apocrypha, and Textus Receptus for the New Testament. It was first published in 1611. Some people believe that the work of producing this translation was especially favored by God. Therefore, although there have been occasional updates to the KJV during the centuries since it originally appeared, some people insist on the primacy of the 1611 version.

The Summary of Modern-Era English Bibles Discussed in This Guide includes more information about the King James Version (KJV), and it offers some sample text. Choose the King James Version (KJV) to learn more.

If you would like to explore other options, you can return to the beginning of the section Bibles Based on Textus Receptus or to The Initial Question.

Updated KJV Versions with Exclusive Reliance on Textus Receptus

The New Cambridge Paragraph Bible (NCPB), edited by David Norton and published by Cambridge University Press in 2005 maintains the traditional King James Version (KJV) vocabulary and grammatical forms. To help modern readers, it standardizes spelling, modernizes punctuation, and consistently uses paragraphs (except for text intended as poetry) in a way that will be familiar to contemporary readers.

If you think you'd rather have an edition of the KJV text that also incorporates updated vocabulary, you might be interested in the 21st Century King James Version (KJ21) which was published in 1994. KJ21 replaces archaic terms with their modern counterparts (for example, establish instead of the older form, stablish), and it provides alternate words in instances where the originally used word no longer carries the meaning it once did. For example, the KJ21 editors note that the word carriage used in the original KJV means baggage in modern English. Although vocabulary that could be confusing has been updated, KJ21 maintains the tradition of using special religious language and verb forms, such as thee and thy and hath and art, that are not part of contemporary spoken English.

The Third Millennium Bible (TMB), published in 1998, is a version of KJ21 that includes the books of the Apocrypha.

If you would like to explore other options, you can return to Bibles Based on Textus Receptus or to The Initial Question.

A KJV Version That Also Considers Modern Scholarship

The New King James Version (NKJV) is a twentieth century translation, published by Thomas Nelson. It follows the tradition of relying on Textus Receptus and other related manuscripts. Rather than exclusive dependence on tradition, however, other ancient texts were used to inform its marginal notes. The use of special pronouns (such as thee and thou) and verb forms unfamiliar to contemporary readers (such as giveth and wilt) were abandoned in favor of modern forms. Additionally, the translators used contemporary terms for everyday objects, but they retained older terms for things lacking parallels in today's society (the editors offer the term phylactery as an example). Most traditionally used doctrinal and theological terms, such as sanctification, were also retained even if they aren't often used in modern, casual conversation.

For people who think they may be interested in the NKJV but who are unsure about the scope and content of the textual changes introduced, Thomas Nelson publishes a KJV/NKJV Parallel Bible that has the full text of both versions presented in a side-by-side format.

If you would like to explore other options, you can return to Bibles Based on Textus Receptus or to The Initial Question.