should i read only the KJV Bible?

Question

dear all
should i read only the KJV Bible?.i was planning to buy an amplified or a living Bible and any other translation of the Bible to study along with my KJV.but when i searched the web for details these two links came across my way
http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Bible/amplified_bible_exposed.htm

http://www.jesus-is-savior.com/Bible/Living%20Bible/lb_exposed.htm


,and now i am confused.i really need feedbacks,helps,advice,suggestions and every bit your your help now about what to do now.thanks in advance.

Answer 1

Well let me tell you about Bible versions. And let me tell you that website is not a reliable source. I have studied the Greek myself and studied many different translations, here is what you need to know:

IT DEPENDS let me explain.

There are two major types of translations:

1. Word for Word: That is the best equivalent ENGLISH WORD for the Original GREEK or HEBREW Word.

2. Dynamic Equivalent: That is the best equivalent ENGLISH PHRASE for the Original GREEK or HEBREW phrase.

Both methodologies of translation are very good and can be very accurate. The reality is most translations will involve a litte bit of both of these methods.

Also its important to have a modern committee translation. That is a translation that has been published in the last 50 years and was created by a committee of various scholars from different religious backgrounds.

The importance of a recent translation is because in the past recent years we have found some more reliable greek and hebrew manuscripts that modern translations reflect in their works. The most famous example is the Dead Sea Scrolls. I believe they are the oldest collection of Old Testament Manuscripts to date. Not sure about that last statement though.

So the BEST translation for a WORD for WORD methodology is
NASB: The New American Standard Bible (1995 update) (really no debate about that)

The BEST translation that uses a DYNAMIC EQUIVALENT is
NIV: The New International Version

There is probably a little bit of debate about the NIV being the best of dynamic equivalents, but manys scholars will use the NIV for their study. The New Living Translation is also a very good translation, but I personally think it takes a few too many liberties with the text.

I personally use the NIV and the NASB primarily.

Also, a easy to read version is THE MESSAGE, however this is NOT a translation!!! It is a paraphrase.

***UPDATE***
So based upon the above, I would say that it is ok to read other translations besides the KJV. The KJV is a good translation but I would not say it is the best.

***UDPATE 2***
The living Bible is not actually a translation it is also a paraphrase.

Answer 2

I really like the New American Standard Bible, the NASB. It's a reliable literal translation, it draws on the wealth of archaeological, historical, and scholarly advances made since the KJV was published, and it's expressed in clearer English than the KJV (Having to mentally "translate" the KJV's old-style English while reading is, for me, a distraction from what God is actually saying).

I'd advise you to stay away from any type of "paraphrasing" of God's word (The Message, The Way, The Living Bible, etc.). Also the NIV, I understand, simply leaves out quite a number of Scripture passages and even lessens the seriousness of certain sins, such as active homosexuality.

May our Lord God bless you, as you seek to know and understand His word!

Answer 3

I have a friend who just enjoys having ALL the possible versions of the bible she can get her hands on. Ok. That's one extreme.

Personally, I think the other extreme is ONLY reading the KJV.

So....I have and read The Message (a rendering by Eugene H. Peterson) ( which I reallyl like and recommend to my friends and family) and the KJV ( which I enjoy because when I remember a verse or quote one --- it ALWAYS comes out of my mouth in the KJV), the New American Standard Bible (read at my church) and the New King James Version -- which I REALLY like (just mostly takes out the thee's and thou's and puts in you's and your's). So I have FOUR. AND......I have SEVERAL resources for online bibles that I dearly enjoy, too. One of them is at www.bible.org -- the NET bible. Another is at www.blueletterbible.org -- I can even look at the original Greek and Hebrew words there, and a complete Concordance, too. Tonite I double checked myself -- came home from a bible study and we had looked at Galatians 5: 16-20 at the "works of the flesh" - witchcraft. Comes from a Greek word "pharmakeia" -- yep...the use of DRUGS.

Regarding the NIV. I feel it would be important to research that translation on your own and make your own decision. I just read an article on the net myself that outlines in some depth what some of my problems with that particular translation stem from. I have heard it preached from in church, though, by a minister I respect. So you judge for yourself. http://www.scionofzion.com/sodomyniv.htm

Hope this helps. Be blessed. The links below are neat.

Answer 4

Sounds like what you were PLANNING to do (buy an amplified or a living Bible and any other translation of the Bible to study along with my KJV) was just fine! Why did you let yourself get side-tracked with other issues? As long as you study it, and there are also study guides/aids to help, THAT is the important thing.


Have a blessed day.

Answer 5

I dont think you should worry too much about one to study along with your KJV. The new versions of the bible arent so much people trying to change the interpretation as they are trying to update the language to make it understandable. As the KJV was compiled and translated in the 1600s, it is no suprise that certain words have come and gone out of use and meaning since then. Reading two versions at the same time is very interesting, as it does give you a bit more insight as to how certain scholars choose to update certain parts of it.

Answer 6

Yes. I'm a Catholic, and I'll read any Bible. In fact I prefer to read and compare several versions as this reminds me that ANY English Bible is *by definition* a translation. Declaring that any one version is more "divine" or more the "Word of God" than any other, is ascribing divinity to human translators. King James I of England was not "divine", and the team of translators he commissioned may have been great scholars, but they also were not "divine", nor had any more claim of "divine inspiration" than the Douai College that produced the Douay-Rheims Bible, or the translators of the NIV, nor any other human translators. Or let's put this another way. Do people really believe that ANY translation into English carries more "divinity" than a translation into French, or Japanese, or modern Greek? A book is a human artifact. A translation of a book is even more obviously a human artifact. So worshipping a human artifact as divine is essentially idolatry (does the First Commandment ring a bell?). -----

Answer 7

KJV was written with the intention of being read out loud such as poetic language with all the thees and thous. No version is superior to another. Those that say theirs is the one and only true version you will notice have most likely been changed to suit their own doctrines, such as JW bible calling the cross a torture stake. Either way English translations are a far cry from original scriptural texts

Answer 8

The bible that you become familiar with the fastest is the one you cling to, then all the others can be used as well. The most important thing is make it apart of you and like becoming acquainted with friends, God and Christ and each who write and each book in that library of 66 [ is enough for a life time ].
What ever the subject needing to be known, several should give insight into
it.
2Tim.2:15; Study to show thyself approved, rightly dividing the word of truth.

Answer 9

just pick one I have 10 bibles and only one of the are KJV .but people don't know is the fact the the KJV was not the first bible there are 2 or 3 before that one just google the history of the bible and you will find out about all of them

Answer 10

Both from the same website obviously. Its funny how people list many websites but all from the same main website. Anyway, I think the best thing for you to do would be to learn ancient Greek and get a Greek New Testament and translate the Bible for yourself. Then learn Hebrew and get a Jewish Bible.