Happy 400th Anniversary, KJB

Fanny Cradock

So the King James bible is 400 years old. To celebrate, Ship of Fools launched a massive broadside against King James "Onlyism". It's an interesting read.

There's always someone who's got to go too far and spoil it for the rest of us, isn't there? While we're all raising a glass to the 400th birthday of the King James Bible, and pretty much everyone in the western world seems agreed that it's Basically A Good Thing, the King James Only people turn out to have taken the whole thing to a ridiculous extreme.

They hold that the King James Bible is not just a reasonably reliable translation with a winning turn of phrase, but inspired, infallible and the only Bible it's permissible to read.

Amazing Grace Baptist Church in Waynesville, North Carolina, has an annual book burning night every Hallowe'en, where members destroy copies of any Bible apart from the King James, along with country records and the works of liberal heretics such as Billy Graham. "We are burning Satan's bibles like the NIV, RSV, NKJV..." explains Pastor Marc Grizzard. "These are perversions of God's Word, the King James Bible."

Too extreme, or not extreme enough? Steve Van Nattan of the serene-sounding Blessed Quietness Journal, says: "If you do not burn your NIV, NASB, New KJV, or whatever other slop hog filthy piece of excretion you are reading instead of the King James Bible, YOU ARE GOING TO HELL. I am delighted too."

Proof indeed of the blessings of quietness.

[...]

http://shipoffools.com/features/2011/king_james_only.html

The radio programme Unbelievable also marked the date by running a discussion entitled "Which translation should we trust?". It might be entertaining, especially if the pit Steve Van Nattan (no, I hadn't heard of him either before reading the above article) against somebody a little more, eh, rational.

wolfsbane

Fanny Cradock wrote: »

So the King James bible is 400 years old. To celebrate, Ship of Fools launched a massive broadside against King James "Onlyism". It's an interesting read.



The radio programme Unbelievable also marked the date by running a discussion entitled "Which translation should we trust?". It might be entertaining, especially if the pit Steve Van Nattan (no, I hadn't heard of him either before reading the above article) against somebody a little more, eh, rational.

Thanks for that, Fanny.

Yes, it's sad to see zeal without knowledge. I know several brethren who believe much of this 'KJV-Onlyism', and they are genuine believers, just without a knowledge of the facts. They have heard some rabid fool make the assertion and have taken his word, instead of checking it out.

No doubt about it, we Christians are prone to be too trusting - despite the Bible warning us to 'test the spirits'.

_________________________________________________________________
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.

1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

Fanny Cradock

wolfsbane wrote: »

Thanks for that, Fanny.

No problem. I just finished listening to the programme (I enjoyed it) and apparently in a couple of weeks they will be having a "KJV only" guest defend his position. It will be interesting to see if he can mount any sort of coherent defence. I'll post it up if I remember.

Incidentally, I've never met a KJV only person. Do you think this is more of a feature in the North?

Plowman

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PDN

Plowman wrote: »

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No, it's predominantly Americans actually. Quite bizarre when you look at the history of the KJV.

Plowman

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lmaopml

PDN wrote: »

No, it's predominantly Americans actually. Quite bizarre when you look at the history of the KJV.

Yeah, I have a brother in law who believes the KJV is the one and only - born and bred in Chicago illinois..and also a sister who believes the Douay Rheims is more superior ( although, I do 'like' quoting it sometimes...).....It's all mad though really, what a great age to live in now, huh?

Actually one of my favourite actors, Denzel ( never made a crap movie )
Washington, is the 'hero' of the kjv of the bible that survives a literal apocalypse...to see it survive as the 'only' translation... ( The movie is called, 'The book of Ely'..) Only in Holywood..lol..


Bible 'translation advertisement' club eat your heart out...

It is true though that things can be lost in translation and it's a crazy world with so much noise, it's difficult sometimes and very simple other times depending..The bible is defo made to stand the test of time, but sometimes the message is more simple than translation can convey..

I guess that's where 'seek' and you shall find comes in..

wolfsbane

Fanny Cradock wrote: »

Incidentally, I've never met a KJV only person. Do you think this is more of a feature in the North?

Yes, anywhere where American Fundamentalism has reached. I'm not talking about the original American Fundamentalism of the early 20thC., but the subsequent morphing of that which made traditions of men (in this case, shibboleths about versions, dress-codes and media) a test of orthodoxy.

KJV-Onlyism is one of the more extreme ends of that.

_____________________________________________________________________
1 Thessalonians 5:21 Test all things; hold fast what is good.

1 John 4:1 Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits, whether they are of God; because many false prophets have gone out into the world.

darjeeling

There's a good 3-part BBC Radio 4 series on the history of the King James Bible from a couple of weeks ago.

It looks at the theological and political reasons for the King James Bible's commission, the way the translation was done, and the way that the work has shaped the English language ever since.

You can listen to all 3 parts here.