The Bible they read

I was recently party to a conversation where someone accused those that prefer only the King James Version of the Bible to a cult. That single statement started a very long conversation with many different people voicing their opinions. Because this conversation happened online there was a varied mix of people that were replying, some were against KJV onlyism, others wouldn't read anything but a KJV Bible, and many more fell somewhere in the midst of the two.

As with many online discussions I didn't get involved, I simply sat back and read all the comments because, quite honestly, some of them are really good and because I enjoy reading the differing opinions on certain topics and seeing what people have to say about it. This topic happened to be one that interested me but that I felt no need to voice my own opinion on.

I've met a few KJV only people in my life. My grandmother was one. So much so that I'm not sure she's ever held any other version in her hands. And I once had a very brief online friendship with someone that was one. My grandmother was the type that had her chosen Bible and as far as I know pretty much kept her opinion on the version to herself except for when one of her children or grandchildren started promoting a different version. The person I knew online...well, that person was very vocal about supporting and promoting the KJV Bible.

I don't suppose I have anything against the KJV Bible in and of itself. It is one of a handful of better Bible versions being marketed in English today. I do have my reasons for not caring for it, mainly the history behind how it came to be in print. But even though I have some objection to that version I still use it sometimes. Which is a statement I can't say about very many Bible versions.

About this time last year I had someone ask me which Bible version is the best version to use. I wound up giving them my preferred versions (ESV and NASB) then told them that beyond my own two preferred versions there were only two other versions I would consider using (KJV and NKJV). I did tell them that I do not care for one of those versions (NKJV) and would only use it if it was the only one of the four versions I had available. I explained that I favor those versions because they aren't what amounts to paraphrased versions like the other English versions on the market are. But I also told this person that the best Bible is the one that a person will use. It does someone no good if they own a KJV Bible but will not read it because of the out dated English used in it. I also told the person asking that the best Bible is the Bible that they have available. If the only Bible available at the time isn't one on my list I would use it so long as it wasn't a completely off base Bible (see my post titled The not-bible). There are other Bibles that make my list of versions that I will read, the original Geneva Bible being one of them. I enjoy the very old English used in writing that version. It has it's own beauty and it is fun to decipher what is almost a foreign language. It also has the ability to force me to slow down as I read Scripture, something I don't always remember to do.

As with everyone that reads even a small bit of Scripture, I do have my preferred version. And I have preferred back up versions. But it never fails to amaze me what some that support KJV only will say in support of their beloved Bible version. My personal favorite...our country was founded on this Bible. Ummm....No, it wasn't. The Pilgrims brought a Bible to America with them but it wasn't the KJV, it was the Geneva. The founders of America came to America to escape religious persecution and the KJV was sort of a part of that persecution. What most proponents of KJVonlyism don't seem to know, at least the ones that claim America was founded on the KJV, is that the Pilgrims refused to use the KJV Bible.

The Pilgrims used the Geneva edition of the Bible, first published in English in 1560. The translation and footnotes of the Geneva Bible were made by early Calvinists more trustworthy to the Pilgrims than the later King James Bible (first published in 1611) whose translation and footnotes were written by the Anglican church hierarchy.  (http://mayflowerhistory.com/religion/)

But I have no real opposition to the KJV Bible. What I found amusing was the ongoing discussion that followed one persons single sentence comment. Some promoted the KJV, others spoke against it, and some...some just said that a person should read whichever version they believed to be accurate. There were those that said that the version you use has a direct result on your soul. I found myself agreeing with them and disagreeing with them all at the same time.

I have done quite a bit of research into Bible versions and the history of the Bible. Like some, I have wondered which was the most accurate version. There was a time when I knew nothing about the different versions except that if I walked into a store selling Bibles I would have plenty of different versions to choose from. But those days are long behind me and I now approach different versions through a different understanding of what each one is. And I have to agree that if a person gets hold of a book that's labeled as a Bible and it's one of those heretical paraphrased books that twist and change Scripture to turn it into what the author wants Scripture to say...well, that very well could have eternal consequences on one's soul. However, I also believe that the Lord will save those that are His no matter what. That means He will save them despite the friends they have, the family they grew up in, the country they live in, their hobbies, habits, and even the Bible they use, or the Bible they don't use. But just as we can't turn an apple into an orange, we can't get Scripture out of heretical nonsense that goes around calling itself the Bible. 

That doesn't mean the Lord can't save a person...even from their very own bible.

And so I sat there, reading comments that I found amusing, entertaining, and slightly educational and wondering why it mattered so much to the people that argued so hard for a certain version of Scripture. 

I know someone that chooses a 'church' building off a single set of beliefs. If the people in that 'church' do 'this' than they think it's a good 'church'. It's no wonder this person is always leaving one 'church' and going to another one. Some of the people arguing for certain Bible versions reminded me of that person. They picked a version based on whatever made them support that version and there was no changing their mind on whether or not it was right or wrong, and it wasn't just the KJVonlyists doing it. 

What seemed to escape most of the people leaving these comments was that the Lord can and will save a person no matter what Bible they use provided that person is one of His people. 

It also seemed to escape their notice that some people only have one version available or can't understand a certain version or... there's no end of reasons why a person might reject one version and accept another. 

So long as they are given the Truth in their Bible....what does it matter the Bible they read?