James Bible
Does the Old King James Version of the Bible use English from King James’ time?
I heard that the Old King James Version of the Bible borrowed a lot of its language and passages from previous versions of the Bible from years earlier. I was wondering if the King James Version was written in the same English that was around when the King James Bible was made, or if it used English that was considered even older?
1) Does the Old King James Version of the Bible use English from King James’ time?
Roughly, yes. One answer was correct that use of modern “common” language was one of the most important factors for the translators. Probably it *is* Elizabethan, though (Liz I was queen juest a few years earlier).
2) heard that the Old King James Version of the Bible borrowed a lot of its language and passages from previous versions of the Bible from years earlier
This is correct, but understand that the wording was “modernized”. We can do the same thing with the King James Version (KJV) today: for example, “thou shalt not kill” becomes “you shall not kill”. The translators of the KJV were *required* to use the wording of previous bible versions (when that wording was accurate), but they were certainly permitted to modernize those words.
You can compare here – the primary reference for the KJV was the Bishops’ Bible
http://www.studylight.org/desk/?l=en&query=gen+1§ion=0&translation=bis&oq=&sr=1
You will find that it is very close to the KJV.
Jim, http://www.bible-reviews.com/selector_kjv.html
King James Bible + audio, commentary & dictionary
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