Bible Version Discrepancies #9 - KNOWING GOD THROUGH LOVE
For most of my life I have been afraid of the "King James Version" of the Bible. I always thought that it would be like reading Shakespeare - well, it's not. Most of the time on my Sunday blog posts I referenced the N.I.V. (New International Version) but last year, when I need clarification, I started referring to the K.J.V. (King James Version) and the N.K.J.V. (New King James Version). In making this small switch I discovered that there are many serious discrepancies between NIV & The King James versions. I also found out that the Bible "scholars" who compiled NIV were members of secret societies. Whether or not there was anything nefarious behind the NIV translation does not affect the goal that I have for this series. We are going to use our God-given common sense to compare these versions and come to our own conclusions.
It is important to note that the King James Version was first published in 1611 and it wasn't until 1978 that the New International Version was first published.
Even if we find serious discrepancies by comparing these two versions, I want you to know that I believe God has still been able to get His message across to us - He is not fazed by "misinterpretation". His Truth fills our heart and that is why we are able to objectively study and compare these versions without losing God's meaning.
In this series we are going to really dive deep into God's Word.
We continue our comparison study with
"1 John 4:12-21".
Color code meaning in the pictures below:
Highlighted in yellow means that those words/sentences do not appear in one of the versions (including when references to God or Jesus appear in lower case rather than upper case)
Highlighted in orange means that the meaning of the word comparison was very different
Highlighted in green means that the meaning of the word comparison was similar or the same.
One of the first shocking differences I noticed was the grammar in N.I.V. - it is very disrespectful. Many words describing or referring to God or Jesus are NOT capitalized in the N.I.V. (those letters are underlined in yellow in the pictures below - NIV being on the left). Modern grammar rules have become relaxed in everyday life but that does not mean that this should apply to the Holy Bible!!
We begin by comparing the subtitles. The NIV has one title for the entire featured Scripture, whereas the NKJV has three different subtitles (I have separated the featured passage into three sections according to the NKJV subtitle sections).
"God's Love and Ours" vs "Seeing God Through Love"
Both subtitles are fairly similar but the NIV is so vague, and the NKJV is very deep - I think it's a beautiful statement: "seeing God through love".
ever vs at any time
Technically, "ever" and "at any time" have the same meaning but for me "at any time" is so much more infinite and seems more descriptive.
complete vs perfected
Complete - to make whole or perfect
vs
Perfected - faithfully reproducing the original
In this case "perfected" explains so much more what is actually happening - The Holy Spirit has "faithfully reproduced God in us". Wow - isn't that an awesome description??!!!
If vs Whoever
The word "if" is so doubtful - "maybe someone will acknowledge Jesus as the Son of God." And in NKJV, the word "whoever" implies that when anyone at any time confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, then God abides in him.
The missing word "because"
I know, the punctuation (colon) can imply the word "because" but I just feel that using the word is so much more clear.
"this is how love is made complete" vs "Love has been perfected"
The second statement (NKJV), is final and definite - there's no reason to make it so wordy and imprecise like NIV.
"confidence" vs "boldness"
Confidence - the quality or state of being certain
vs
Boldness - standing out prominently
Yes, being certain is definite but "standing out prominently" is certainty with gumption.
"punishment" vs "torment"
Punishment - suffering, pain, or loss that serves as retribution
vs
Torment - to cause severe usually persistent or recurrent distress of body or mind to
"Punishment" is often positive and beneficial, whereas fear (fear the opposite of love, not fear or respect of God) is NEVER beneficial. Fear is truly torment.
Missing phrases/words
There is no subtitle in NIV ("The Consummation of Love")
"Him" (God) is totally missing from the NIV. In NKJV saying "We love God because He first loved us" makes so much more sense. There is no reason to remove "God" from that sentence.
Missing phrases/words
There is no subtitle in NIV ("Obedience by Faith")
I pray that you will continue to reflect on these differences this week and never stop digging deep into God's Word.
Previous Version Discrepancy posts:
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