What do you know about the Holy Bible?

[Grailhunter]

A little background information, because the dates are important.

The Battle of the Milvian Bridge took place between the Roman Emperors Constantine and Maxentius on 28 October 312.

The Edict of Milan was a decree and treaty agreed upon and signed by the Roman emperors Constantine and Licinius, that proclaimed religious tolerance in the Roman Empire. The letter was issued in February, of 313 AD and stopped the persecution of Christians.

The Council of Nicaea convened in 325.

The first bound bible was released around 333

When Roman Emperor Constantine took over the reigns of the Empire, Christianity did not have a unified belief, but Gnosticism was attempting to unite. So in 325 he called for a council to gather at Nicaea to begin the process of standardization. For a Roman, this is a knee-jerk response because Romans were all about that. Now Rome funded an all expense paid trip and the accommodations were provided. You can bet that the bishops were not put up in caves or tents. These Bishops would go back to their regions telling of how the Romans treated them so they were treated well….wanting them to come back for more councils. Roman Funding of the councils would mostly occur over the next seven councils.

So Constantine invited 1800 bishops of the Christian churches within the Roman Empire. There is no agreement on how many showed up. (Keep in mind that this is right after the persecutions, so some were a little weary of Rome’s intent. Some of the bishops that attended were still limping and some with appendages that were missing. Great courage.) Eusebius of Caesarea counted more than 250, Athanasius of Alexandria counted 318. The count of 318, is preserved in the liturgies of the Eastern Orthodox Church and Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria. The Council of Nicea was very significant but contrary to popular belief, it did not suggest or affirm the canon of books that would be included in the New Testament. And also the word canon does not always refer to the approved books of the New Testament but mostly means an approved ruling. The list that finally makes it into the Canon of New Testament books had probably been circulated for a while. But the earliest known complete list of the 27 books of the New Testament is found in a letter written by Athanasius, a 4th century Bishop of Alexandria, dated to 367 AD. But as a whole, each regional church had its own list of favorite books. Eventually they do agree on it, but there is no historical time stamp, no instant in time for when this happens. Then again there were councils that accepted, affirmed and or agreed with the commonly accepted list of books. The Council of Rome, (382) held by Bishop Damasus I looks to be the first to rule on this at least as an acknowledgement, I say that because you will see the discussion on the canon during other Ecumenical Councils and scholars do not agree on a date, or if there is one, except to say that the canon of books are down the road a ways. For example;

For the Orthodox, the recognition of these writings as authoritative was formalized in the Second Council of Trullan of 692.

Thus, by the 5th century, both the Western and Eastern churches had come into agreement on the matter of the New Testament canon. The Council of Trent of 1546 reaffirmed that finalization for Catholicism in the wake of the Protestant Reformation.

So whether there was an official declaration or finalization or not, for sure there was an understanding that the canon was set. Once they move out of the 5th century, bibles were being produced with the canon that we have today. The Protestant bibles will change things in Old Testament, but that is a denominational decision.

The first bound Bibles are generally called the Fifty Bibles of Constantine.

The Fifty Bibles of Constantine were written using the original Koine Greek language of the texts. In 331 Constantine commissioned Eusebius to produce fifty bibles for the Christian capital of Constantinople, I say capital because Constantinople will eventfully become the center of Christendom in the ancient world. All expense incurred from making the Bibles were paid by the empire.

Now there is no clear consensus on when the fifty bibles were completed, but considering the patience levels of the Romans, I would guess well under two years. The texts…were available, all they had to do was copy them. So I am assuming the year would be 333. One note I want to make is that, this bible was released to the Churches while the canon was still being discussed. Still the New Testament of that bible had the same books (different names) as our modern Bibles. The Old Testament included the books of the Hebrew Bible which contained more books than are in Protestant Bibles. The next point I would like to make is in regard to the Conversion of Constantine. I know, off the topic a little bit, but it illustrates his commitment to the religion, councils, and the bible.

"Chapter XXXVI.—Constantine’s Letter to Eusebius on the Preparation of Copies of the Holy Scriptures.
[ “It happens, through the favoring providence of God our Saviour, that great numbers have united themselves to the most holy church in the city which is called by my name. It seems, therefore, highly requisite, since that city is rapidly advancing in prosperity in all other respects, that the number of churches should also be increased. Do you, therefore, receive with all readiness my determination on this behalf. I have thought it expedient to instruct your Prudence to order fifty copies of the sacred Scriptures, the provision and use of which you know to be most needful for the instruction of the Church, to be written on prepared parchment in a legible manner, and in a convenient, portable form, by professional transcribers thoroughly practiced in their art. The catholicus of the diocese has also received instructions by letter from our Clemency to be careful to furnish all things necessary for the preparation of such copies; and it will be for you to take special care that they be completed with as little delay as possible. You have authority also, in virtue of this letter, to use two of the public carriages for their conveyance, by which arrangement the copies when fairly written will most easily be forwarded for my personal inspection; and one of the deacons of your church may be in trusted with this service, who, on his arrival here, shall experience my liberality. God preserve you, beloved brother!”]

So to this also the dedication of Constantine, Eusebius of Caesarea and other Christian sources record that Constantine experienced a dramatic event in 312, just before the Battle of the Milvian Bridge. According to these sources Constantine looked up to the sun before the battle and saw a cross of light above it, and the Greek words that said, “In this sign, you will conquer.” So Constantine had his army paint the Chi-Rho on their shields, P and X overlaid. Although out numbered Constantine decisively won the battle. Constantine was no boy scout, something significantly changed him. It is a matter of history that indicates that Christianity was his first initiative and he sustained that initiative thorough the rest of his life. The fifty bibles are just one of the examples. The Christians…the Churches, did not do that, he requested it and funded it. I could go on and on about the building projects that he initiated.

 

[Grailhunter]

The Long Reign of the Latin Bible

For over one thousand years, the only Bible available in Western Europe was the Vulgate (meaning ‘in the vernacular’ or ‘in the language of the people’). This was St Jerome’s (340-420) translation from the original biblical languages, Hebrew and Greek, into Latin, the spoken language of Italy and the Roman Empire. Jerome’s translation was one of Western Christianity’s most important events. The Vulgate has arguably been the most influential of all versions of Scripture, having been used by the Roman Catholic Church exclusively throughout its history until modern times. Even after Latin ceased to be spoken or understood by ordinary people, the Vulgate retained exclusive status and authority in the Roman Catholic Church. Although understood only by a small minority of people in the Church and in society who could speak and write Latin, it remained the only permitted Bible of the Church. The Vulgate was first printed in 1455, by Johannes Gutenberg (c. 1397-1468) in Mainz, Germany on his newly invented printing press. (One of the 21 surviving complete copies is in the National Library of Scotland). Until the invention of printing, the Vulgate was copied by scribes, which one copy could take months to complete. A clandestine version of the Vulgate Bible in English, circulated in manuscript form in England and parts of Scotland from the fourteenth century. This was associated with the names of John Wycliffe (c. 1330-1384) and John Purvey (c. 1354-1414), who were religious dissenters.

The Wycliffe Bible was groundbreaking and the first complete Bible in English. Done before printing with movable type was invented, the texts circulated in manuscript form and many Wycliffe Bibles were miniatures to enhance their portability for use by itinerant preachers. Wycliffe was a controversial theologian who systematically attacked the abuses, some doctrines and practices of the medieval Church, insisting that it should give up its worldly wealth. His teachings were condemned by the Pope and the English Catholic Church and he was declared heretical by the Church Council of Constance in 1415. His controversial views were propagated by the Lollards, a heretical group remarkable for its demand to read the Bible in English. Yet since Wycliffe’s Bible was translated from the Latin Vulgate, it was of little interest to the later Reformers and classical scholars who wished to ‘get back to the original sources’ of Hebrew and Greek.

Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses on the door of the castle church of Wittenberg, Germany on October 31, 1517, and Christianity would change forever.

Erasmus and Münster
The monopoly of the Latin Vulgate was not openly challenged until the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in the 1520s. Traditionally the Church had either forbidden or discouraged vernacular translations, fearing their misuse by the laity. However, vernacular translations were mandatory for the Reformers. It was asserted that there was a universal right of access to Scripture as the Word of God in a person’s own language, now more feasible after the invention of printing in the mid-fifteenth century.

Ironically, this notion had also been advanced before the Reformation by a committed Catholic and scholar, Erasmus of Rotterdam (1469-1536). His published text of the Greek New Testament (1516) was of epochal significance. Parallel to the Greek text Erasmus presented his own Latin version. Included was a lengthy appendix of textual Annotations, expanded in successive editions down to 1535, from which one can trace the developing learning and thought of Erasmus. His pioneering work constituted a landmark from which two generations of scholars took their bearings. He also famously suggested that translations should include the languages ‘even of the Scots and Irish’. Crucial to his concept was that translation should not be of the Latin Vulgate, whose reliability was now seen as suspect, but from the original biblical languages of divine revelation.
An influential edition of the Old Testament or Hebrew Bible (Basel, 1534-35) along with a greatly improved Latin translation was by Sebastian Münster (1488-1552), cartographer and professor of Hebrew at Basel University. His Latin translation was to be used as an aid by many future translators of the Old Testament into various languages. Translations of the Reformers – Martin Luther, William Tyndale, and Myles Coverdale.

A vernacular translation breakthrough was made by Martin Luther (1483-1546) with his German New Testament of 1522 directly from Erasmus’s Greek New Testament. This bestseller stimulated translations into many other languages, such as French, English, Italian, Swedish and Spanish. Luther, the initiator of the Reformation, grasped the opportunity to translate the New Testament whilst in hiding as a religious outlaw in Wartburg Castle. He completed the work, written in contemporary and idiomatic German, over six weeks in 1522. In collaboration with others he published the German Old Testament in 1534. Luther’s exemplary German translation of the New Testament was enormously influential and served as a model for William Tyndale’s English rendering. Inspired by Luther, the martyred Tyndale (c. 1494-1536) was responsible for the first English translation of the New Testament directly from Greek, printed abroad in 1525. He used the Greek editions of Erasmus and included a translation of Luther’s famous preface to his German New Testament laying down the rudiments of Reformation scriptural doctrine.

William Tyndale and Myles Coverdale (1488-1569) produced a Bible that was Protestant like and it was also published in an unidentified and clandestine manner while they were in religious exile on the Continent, although the year 1535 is stated, and the preface to the reader is in Coverdale’s name. It was the first complete, printed Bible in English, and includes the Apocrypha. Although the New Testament and the first five books of the Old Testament are mostly William Tyndale’s translation from the Greek and Hebrew (1530). Coverdale did not translate the rest of the Scriptures from the original language. As stated in the title, he availed mostly from new Latin and German versions. It was dedicated to King Henry VIII (1491-1547), referred to as ‘Defender of the Faith, and under God the chef and supreme head of the Church of England’. William Tyndale was executed as a heretic on or around October 6th 1536 at the Duchy of Brabant. He was reportedly strangled while being burnt at the stake. His friend Myles Coverdale carried on his work to get a readable Bible to the common people.

The Geneva Bible
The Geneva Bible (1560) was prepared in Switzerland by English speaking churchmen in exile from Catholic persecution at home, among whom were John Knox (c. 1514-1572) and Myles Coverdale (1488-1569). It is regarded as the most outstanding English translation of the Reformation era. Printed by Rowland Hall (d. 1563) in Geneva, it was richly furnished with introductory material, summaries, marginal notes (some provocative), tables, maps, lists, and indexes. It was also the first English Bible to introduce verse numbers, and the first to use roman rather than gothic or black-letter type. It was designed as a study Bible. The scholarship of the textual work was greatly enhanced by the latest Continental advances, and by the direct access that the English translators had to leading biblical scholars and theologians such as John Calvin (1509-1564), Théodore de Bèze (1519-1605), and Henry Bullinger (1504-1575). Addressed to the ‘Brethren of England, Scotland, Ireland’, the Geneva Bible was dedicated to Queen Elizabeth (1533-1603). It became the preferred Bible for family devotions, but was also favored by biblical scholars, clergy and lay people for private study. The Geneva Bible was adopted by the Scottish Kirk soon after 1560 as its ‘common book’ for use in churches. It went through 140 editions up to 1644 (although first published in England only in 1576) retaining popularity for a couple of generations after the King James Bible was first published. The Geneva Bible was the first Bible printed in Scotland (1579), and dedicated to James VI. This was undertaken by the Edinburgh publisher, Thomas Bassandyne (d. 1577), and completed by Alexander Arbuthnet (d. 1585). It is sometimes referred to as the Bassandyne Bible or Breeches Bible....so named because it indicated that Adam and Eve made pants before they left the Garden.

 

[Grailhunter]

The Great Bible (1539-40), and the Bishops’ Bible (1568), were ‘appointed’ or ‘authorized’ for official use in the reformed Church of England. The Great Bible (so called on account of its size) arose out of the perceived need for an English Bible translation with wider consensus. Coverdale, the editor, revised and modified Matthew’s Bible (1537, by John Rogers (c. 1500-1555)) – the most advanced at the time – relying on improved editions of Erasmus’s Greek New Testament and Münster’s Hebrew-Latin Old Testament. The Great Bible was initially printed in Paris but after sabotaged by French Catholic censors it had to be reprinted in London. From 1568 until the printing of the King James Bible in 1611, the Bishops’ Bible was effectively the official version of the Church of England. A conglomerate work of sixteen English and Welsh clergymen, it was a revision of the Great Bible, but with the recent Geneva Bible also in mind. It was recognized that the bishops could not match the linguistic scholarship of the Genevan translators. Yet there was a desire for a version with less controversial notes more suitable for ecclesiastical and liturgical use. Being exceptionally large, and printed in traditional gothic rather than roman type, it was clearly not designed for family or private study.

The Rheims-Douai Bible (1582-1610) was a Catholic approved translation, undertaken by English Catholic exiles in France for English priests and literate laity. It was intended to provide continuing English Catholics with a reliable English Bible based on the Latin Vulgate to fortify them against the perceived Protestant ‘errors’ and bias in the numerous other vernacular translations. It was superseded in modern times by the ecumenically orientated Jerusalem Bible.

The King James Bible
The King James Bible was intended to replace the Geneva and Bishop Bibles. Thereby it was hoped that a genuinely common Bible would be made available, to be used both in church services and for private study. The project took seven years to complete. Forty-seven linguists were involved, coordinated by the Archbishop of Canterbury, Richard Bancroft (1544-1610). Preliminary drafts took three years, then the remainder was spent refereeing and reaching consensus before publication in May of 1611.
The term King James Version was a term that came many years later. Supposedly it was entitled “Holy Bible” Containing the Old Testament and the New: Newly Translated by his Majesties special commandment. Appointed to be read in Churches. The new Bible contained a flattering dedication to the King, as well as an address to readers justifying and explaining the translation as building on the noble work of pioneers and predecessors. The goal as stated was to ‘make out of many good ones, one principal good one’, using all resources currently available. The revision was comprehensive compared to the Bishops’ Bible there are 6,361 textual differences, while in the margins, a further 8,500 alternatives and variants are offered. Its translation was based on previous English versions (mostly Tyndale), better original language texts, commentaries of Jewish rabbis, recent new Latin translations, and other modern language versions.
The new version imposes a poetic Old English style of language –using ‘which’ instead of ‘who’, ‘speaketh’ instead of ‘speaks’, ‘thereof’, and so on. It was conservative and solemn to enhance authority and obedience. Yet it did also create new words, such as ‘amazement’, and mediated over 200 new idioms to English, such as ‘the skin of my teeth’, ‘fall flat on your face’, ‘the powers that be’, ‘filthy lucre’ etc. The publication, of the King James Bible was generally welcomed, although denounced by some; its popularity did not over take the Geneva or Bishop’s Bibles right away. As some were calling it a corruption of the scriptures, as people do with change, as they do today with modern translations. While King James had envisioned a Bible sanctioned by the universities, the bishops, the Privy Council, and royal authority, but as it was it did not work out that way, The ‘Authorized Version’ in its original form was in fact never formally authorized by any Church or state authority. Not even parish churches were instructed to procure it. Oddly enough there was a negative stigma regarding kings, and having a king associated with a bible did not help its popularity, and no, King James was not homosexual. The Bible’s road to fame was still in route.
The King James Bible’s reputation as ‘the authorized version’ came later on sometime after 1769, when a standardized edition, with modernized spelling and punctuation, was produced. All future editions up to the present day replicate this 1769 text and it is only from that time, that its iconic, sacrosanct and immutable status as the eternal Word of God in English derived. All in all, the most printed and popular Protestant Bible of all time.
Some scholars seem to thing that 80% of the content and vocabulary of the 1611 King James Bible came from Tyndale’s New Testament translation, others go off the charts. From what I can tell there was an intent to review all of the information available during the 1600 time period. People mention the Textus Receptus and some Latin texts, Septuagint, and Hebrew. I think there was a good intent. The weakness of the King James is that there was a cultural and time period view point that was used as a template for translation. Then 400 years later there have been older manuscripts found that do not include some of the verses found in the KJV. This is no fault to the translators of that time period. Also the language and style is of the 1600’s and although poetic…even beautiful to listen to, not that understandable to the general public. Still, no matter what, it is the most popular Protestant Bible in the world, its closest competitor, being the Catholic Bibles, of which both can be produced in some very beautiful table top additions.

 

[Grailhunter]

Mistakes can be very valuable. Ever heard of coins that are double stamped…here ya go. A list of King James Bibles that had printing errors that are now very valuable and highly sought after collectibles. This is not a reflection on the bible but a testament to the difficulty of type-set press printers. In various printings of the King James Version of the Bible, some of the errors are famous and some errors have been given their own names. Among them are:

The Wicked Bible, sometimes called Adulterer’s Bible or Sinners' Bible, is an edition of the Bible published in 1631 by Robert Baker and Martin Lucas, the royal printers in London, meant it to be a reprint of the King James Bible. The names are derived from a mistake made by the Compositors: in the Ten Commandments (Exodus - 20:14) the word "not" --was not-- in the sentence so that the "Thou shalt not commit adultery" verse read "Thou shalt commit adultery". This error occurred in a number of copies, before it was caught. About a year later, the publishers of the Wicked Bible were called to The Star Chamber and fined £300 franks. (Equivalent to £49,067 in 2018) and deprived of their printing license. The fact that this edition of the Bible contained such a flagrant mistake outraged Charles I and George Abbot, the Archbishop of Canterbury. The majority of the Wicked Bible's copies were immediately cancelled and burned, but still there are copies that exist today, which are considered highly valuable by collectors. One copy is in the collection of rare books in the New York Public Library and is very rarely made accessible; another can be seen in the Dunham Bible Museum in Houston, Texas, US. The British Library in London had a copy on display, opened to the misprinted commandment, in a free exhibition until September 2009. The Wicked Bible also appeared on display for a limited time at the Ink and Blood Exhibit in Gadsden, Alabama, from August 15 to September 1, 2009. A copy was also displayed until June 18, 2011 at the Cambridge University Library exhibition in England, for the 400-year anniversary of the King James Version. I saw one of these at the Christ of the Ozarks, Bible Museum.

"The Judas Bible", from 1613: This Bible has Judas, not Jesus, saying "Sit ye here while I go yonder and pray"(Matthew -26:36). A second folio edition printed by Robert Baker, printer to King James I, is held in St. Mary's Church h, Totnes, Devon, UK. In this copy, the misprint has been covered with a small slip of paper glued over the name of Judas.

"The Printers Bible", from 1612: In some copies Psalm - 119:161 reads "Printers have persecuted me without a cause" rather than "Princes have persecuted me..."

"The More Sea Bible", from 1641: "...the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was more sea" rather than "...the first heaven and the first earth were passed away and there was no more sea." (Revelation - 21:1)

"The Unrighteous Bible" from 1653: Cambridge Press: Another edition carrying this title omits a "not" before the word "inherit", making 1st Corinthians 6:9 read "Know ye not that the unrighteous shall inherit the kingdom of God?..." In addition, Romans - 6:13 reads "Neither yield ye your members as instruments of righteousness into sin..." where it should read "unrighteousness".

"The Sin On Bible", from 1716: Jeremiah - 31:34 reads "sin on more" rather than "sin no more".

"The Vinegar Bible", from 1717: J. Baskett, Clarendon Press: The chapter heading for Luke - 20 reads, "The Parable of the Vinegar" instead of "The Parable of the Vineyard." One reviewer noting several other errors said it was "a Basket full of errors". One copy sold for $5,000 in 2008.

"The Fools Bible", from 1763: Psalm - 14:1 reads "the fool hath said in his heart there is a God", rather than "...there is no God". The printers were fined £3,000 and all copies ordered destroyed.

"The Denial Bible", from 1792: The name Philip is substituted for Peter as the apostle who would deny Jesus in Luke - 22:34.

"The Murderer's Bible", from 1801: "Murmurers" is printed as "murderers", Making Jude - verse 16 read: "These are murderers, complainers, walking after their own lusts; and their mouth speaketh great swelling words, having men's persons in admiration because of advantage."

"The Lions Bible", from 1804: 1st Kings 8:19 reads "thy son that shall come forth out of thy lions", rather than "loins". This edition had another error in Numbers - 35:18 which read: "The murderer shall surely be put together" rather than "...put to death".

"To-remain Bible", from 1805: In Galatians - 4:29 a proof-reader had written in "to remain" in the margin, as an answer to whether a comma should be deleted. The note inadvertently became part of the text, making the edition read "But as then he that was born after the flesh persecuted him that was born after the Spirit to remain, even so it is now."

"The Discharge Bible", from 1806: "Discharge" replaces "charge" making 1st Timothy - 5:21 read "I discharge thee before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, and the elect angels, that thou observe these things without preferring one before another, doing nothing by partiality."

"The Standing Fishes Bible", from 1806: "Fishes" replaced "fishers" making Ezekiel - 47:10 read "And it shall come to pass, that the fishes shall stand upon it from Engedi even unto Eneglaim; they shall be a place to spread forth nets; their fish shall be according to their kinds, as the fish of the great sea, exceeding many."

"The Ears To Ear Bible", from 1810: Edition which makes Matthew - 13:43 read: "...Who has ears to ear, let him hear." The correct phrase should be "ears to hear". In the same edition, Hebrews - 9:14 comes out as "How much more shall the blood of Christ ... purge your conscience from good works [should be "dead works"] to serve the living God."

"The Wife-hater Bible", from 1810: "Wife" replaces "life" in this edition, making Luke - 14:26 redundantly read "If any man come to me, and hate not his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brethren, and sisters, yea, and his own wife also, he cannot be my disciple."

"The Rebecca's Camels Bible", from 1823: "Camels" replaces "damsels" in one instance, making Genesis - 24:61 read "And Rebecca arose, and her camels, and they rode upon the camels, and followed the man: and the servant took Rebecca and went his way."

"The Affinity Bible", from 1927: Contains a table of family affinities that includes the line "A man may not marry his grandmother's wife."

"The Owl husbands Bible", from 1944: "Owl" replaces "own", making 1st Peter - 3:5 read, "For after this manner in the old time the holy women also, who trusted God, adorned themselves, being in subjection to their owl husbands."

If you find one of these, it is not only good for reading the word of God, it could be good for your bank account. If you do find one, do not sell it to a museum, sell it to a collector.

 

[Grailhunter]

Recent translations of the Holy Bible.

American Standard Version (A.S.V.) in 1901. It waswidely-accepted and embraced by churches throughout America for many decades as the leading modern-English version of the Bible. In the 1971, it was again revised and called New American Standard Version Bible (often referred to as the N.A.S.V. or N.A.S.B. or N.A.S.). This New American Standard Bible is considered by nearly all evangelical Christian scholars and translators today, to be the most accurate, word-for-word translation of the original Greek and Hebrew scriptures into the modern English language that has ever been produced. It remains the most popular version among theologians, professors, scholars, and seminary students today. Some, however, have taken issue with it because it is so direct and literal a translation (focused on accuracy), that it does not flow as easily in conversational English.

New International Version (N.I.V.)
For this reason, in 1973, the New International Version (N.I.V.) was produced, which was offered as a “dynamic equivalent” translation into modern English. The N.I.V. was designed not for “word-for-word” accuracy, but rather, for “phrase-for-phrase” accuracy, and ease of reading even at a Junior High-School reading level. It was meant to appeal to a broader (and in some instances less-educated) cross-section of the general public. Critics of the N.I.V. often jokingly refer to it as the “NearlyInspired Version”, but that has not stopped it from becoming the best-selling modern-English translation of the Bible ever published.

New King James Version (NKJV)
In 1982, Thomas Nelson Publishers produced what they called the “New King James Version”. Their original intent was to keep the basic wording of the King James to appeal to King James Version loyalists, while only changing the most obscure words and the Elizabethan “thee, thy, thou” pronouns. This was an interesting marketing ploy, however, upon discovering that this was not enough of a change for them to be able to legally copyright the result, they had to make more significant revisions, which defeated their purpose in the first place. It was never taken seriously by scholars, but it has enjoyed some degree of public acceptance, simply because of its clever “New King James Version” marketing name.

Amplified Bible
For this update to the Amplified Bible (AMP), the goal of the translation team was to enhance the appeal of the Amplified Bible by refreshing the English and refining the amplifications for relevance and clarity. The result is an Amplified Bible that is easier to read and better than ever to study and understand. The Amplified Bible of 2015 includes more amplification in the Old Testament and refined amplification in the New Testament. Additionally, the Bible text has been improved to read smoothly with or without amplifications, so that the text may be read either way. The same feel and style of amplification has been maintained, so that those who read the classic Amplified Bible will be able to easily transition to the new text.
The AMP was the first Bible project of The Lockman Foundation. Its goal was to take both word meaning and context into account to accurately translate the original text from one language into another. The AMP does this through the use of explanatory alternate readings and amplifications to assist the reader in understanding what Scripture really says. Multiple English word equivalents to each key Hebrew and Greek word clarify and amplify meanings that may otherwise have been concealed by the traditional translation method. The first edition was published in 1965.
The AMP is based on the American Standard Version of 1901, Rudolph Kittel’s Biblia Hebraica, the Greek text of Westcott and Hort, and the 23rd edition of the Nestle Greek New Testament as well as the best Hebrew and Greek lexicons available at the time. Cognate languages, the Dead Sea Scrolls, and other Greek works were also consulted. The Septuagint and other versions were compared for interpretation of textual differences. In completing the Amplified Bible, translators made a determined effort to keep, as far as possible, the familiar wording of the earlier versions, and especially the feeling of the ancient Book.

Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSV) (RSV-CE)
The Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition is an English translation of the Bible which was first published in 1966. In 1965, the Catholic Biblical Association adopted, under the editorship of Bernard Orchard OSB and Reginald C. Fuller, the Revised Standard Version (RSV) for Catholic use. It contains the deuterocanonical books of the Old Testament placed in the traditional order of the Vulgate. The editors' stated aim for the RSV Catholic Edition was "to make the minimum number of alterations, and to change only what seemed absolutely necessary in the light of Catholic tradition." The Psalms preserved the numbering of the RSV (which reflects the Masoretic numbering), accompanying it with the Septuagint numbering system in brackets, in line with the New Vulgate, which is the official Latin version for the Catholic Church. Noted for the formal equivalence of the translation, is widely used and quoted by Catholic scholars and theologians is used for scripture quotation in the Catechism of the Catholic Church. The RSV is considered the first ecumenical Bible and brought together the two traditions… the Catholic Douay-Rheims Bible and the King James Bible Today the original 1966 edition of the RSV-CE is still published by several publishers.

New American Bible Revised Edition (NABRE)
Released in 2011, the New American Bible, Revised Edition (NABRE) includes a newly revised translation of the entire Old Testament (including the Book of Psalms) along with the 1986 edition of the New Testament. This edition took nearly 20 years of work by a group of about 100 scholars and theologians. The New Testament remained the same as the 1986 revision of the NAB, but Old Testament was fully revised. The NABRE was approved by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in 2010 and since has been a popular translation with the Catholics.

English Standard Version (ESV)
The English Standard Version (ESV) is an English translation of the Bible published in 2001 by Crossway. It is a revision of the Revised Standard Version that employs an "essentially literal" translation philosophy. Work on this translation was prompted, in the early 1990s, by what the publisher Crossway Books, stated was a need for a new literal translation by scholars and pastors. A translation committee was formed, and it sought and received permission from the National Council of Churches to revise the 1971 edition of the RSV as the English textual basis for the ESV. This was a major attempt to bridge the gap between the simple readability of the N.I.V., and the extremely precise accuracy of the N.A.S.B.
Translation philosophy
The stated intent of the translators was to follow an "essentially literal" translation philosophy while taking into account differences of grammar, syntax, and idiom between current literary English and the original languages. The ESV uses some gender-neutral phrasings.
Revisions
In 2007, the ESV underwent a minor revision, and the publisher did not identify the updated text as a revised edition. The update changed about 500 words by focusing on grammar, consistency, and clarity. One notable change was from "wounded for our transgressions" to "pierced for our transgressions".
In April 2011, another edition was issued, involving 275 verses and less than 500 words. The publisher announced the intention of the changes were to correct grammar, improve consistency or increase precision in meaning.\ The 2007 edition has been gradually phased out.
In August 2016, Crossway announced the "ESV Permanent Text Edition" with 52 word changes in 29 verses. The publishers announced their intention to leave the text alone for the foreseeable future after this update.\ However, this policy was abandoned the following month, with Crossway announcing that they would still consider "minimal and infrequent" updates to reflect "textual discoveries or changes in English over time". Lane Dennis, Crossway's president and CEO, said: "We apologize for this and for any concern this has caused for readers of the ESV [...] Our desire, above all, is to do what is right before the Lord."

 

[justbyfaith]

I've recently had kjv Bibles, one in which Agabus prophesied of Paul that he who oweth this girdle shall be delivered into the hands of the Romans, and another in which Judas convenanted with the Jews to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

 

[Grailhunter]

I've recently had kjv Bibles, one in which Agabus prophesied of Paul that he who oweth this girdle shall be delivered into the hands of the Romans, and another in which Judas convenanted with the Jews to betray Jesus for thirty pieces of silver.

Ya you can find that in there...There is a Old Testament scripture in there about a king with chest full of milk....