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How The New King James Bible Creates Doubt

Issue Date: July/August 2000

When you begin to disciple a new Christian, don't you always tell him that the Bible is God's word and he can trust it above all else? Of course you do.

But if your church is like many others, you may give him a New King James Bible because you think it is easier to read. And in so doing you will plant the seeds of doubt.

In his book, Defending the King James Bible, D.A. Waite explains:

"The diabolical nature of the NEW KING JAMES VERSION shows itself in their printing all the various readings of the Greek text in the footnotes. They print all sides and take their stand in favor of none of them. By so doing, they confuse the readers."

So now this young Christian has to make a decision. You gave him a Bible and said this is God's Word. But that very Bible says God's Word may mean this or it may mean that, he must decide. Waite goes on to explain:

"But the NEW KING JAMES makes note of all the changes so that the new Christian, the young Christian, and all other Christians are supposed to be textual critics on their own, and make up their own mind about the proper Greek text.

"On page 1235, in the back of the book, the editors make that very statement. They wrote:

'It was the editors' conviction that the use of footnotes would encourage further inquiry by readers. They also recognized that it was easier for the average reader TO DELETE [subtract, or take away from] something he or she felt was not properly a part of the text than to INSERT a word or phrase which had been left out by the revisers.'"

"So they say the editors have no opinion, no guess as to what the real text of the Word of God is. You take your pick and choose for yourself. To have a smorgasbord of textual variance down in the footnotes, as the NEW KING JAMES has, is a terrible travesty on the young Christian trying to find out what the Bible says. It certainly puts doubts in the mind whenever there's a difference. Which is right? Is it this reading or that one? No matter which you pick, you have a question mark and a doubt; and the Devil is delighted!"

The bottom line is this: we need to study the historical evidence, decide which text is exactly God's Word, and stick with it. This is the text we need to provide young Christians. And it would certainly help to get the right one - the Received Text. Any Bible version with alternate readings will make the reader have to decide what God really meant. How can you trust Bible translators who can't make up their mind what God really said?

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