I wish I had read this years ago.
This is the most approachable, readable, comprehensive, and understandable defense of the reliability and validity of various translations as the Word of God in English designed for the average Christian. This book examines the claims of King-James-Only adherents and in a firm yet gentle manner, shows the deficiencies of that view on the grounds of a proper understanding of history, logic, and most importantly, the Bible.
Additionally, the book goes further than most, as it even traces in detail the history of the modern KJVO movement, back though the major proponents and their publications, and reveals their roots in a Seventh-Day Adventist book from the 1930's. This history, of course, is left wholly untaught in KJVO churches.
It also extensively addresses the various arguments use to support the KJVO movement, yet addresses them with a grace and care that rarely flows from the other side. The articles repeatedly heap praise on the King James, and on Pages 164-165 make explicitly clear that they have no problem with those that even say the KJV and it's underlying texts are better than other translations and texts. The authors only have a problem with the belief that the KJV is the ONLY Word of God in English and use of any other translation is a compromise with Hell. (As KJVO authors would have you believe.)
Chapter Breakdown
The bulk of the book is divided into five chapters, each written by various faculty members of Central Baptist Theological Seminary.
Each chapter draws on historical realities, contextual and intelligent Biblical interpretation, and sound reasoning to loving refute the KJVOnly arguments and reveal that God's Word in English is not locked into archaic 400 year old English. These chapters are well-written and very well-reasoned. While the text itself is detailed, extensive chapter end-notes are provided with page after page of other resources, comments, and explanations.
Chapter 1 - The Background and Origin of the Version Debate by Doug Kutilek
This is an especially helpful chapter that traces historical attitudes towards various translations that stretch back even to the Septuagint, it's history, and it's embrace by the Apostles and the early church. This history continues, addressing not only major church translations, but also various Jewish translations. It even honestly addresses the incredibly scant historical data regarding some who thought the KJV was inspired before the 1900's and reveals the roots of the modern KJVonly movement.
Chapter 2 - The Old Testament Text and the Version Debate by Roy E. Beacham
While acknowledging that most of the textual issues center around the New Testament, this chapter addresses the neglected issue of Old Testament Textual Criticism. Of note is that this chapter does NOT, by any means, embrace the heretical "higher criticism" that denies the Divine Source of the OT and gets bogged down in source criticism and claims books were not written by their stated authors or at their traditional times. While, sadly, history itself is a bit fuzzy on the details of the rise of the Masoretic Text, and even the Septuagint, but the authors do a competent job gathering the available evidence and presenting it in an understandable way. This, however, does leave this chapter as the most speculative and even I am not entirely convinced by the sometimes thin threads of evidence on certain lesser points.
Chapter 3 - The New Testament Text and the Version Debate by W. Edward Glenny
This chapter succinctly defines many of the terms needed to understand this debate. (Things like "textual criticism" the different textual families, and what "manuscripts" actually are.) This chapter traces the history and rational behind the major Greek texts in play, then gets into the many, many sources that contributed wording to the KJV. The graph on Page 89 alone visually illustrates that the KJV is certainly not the strict product of one particular Greek text and one particular Hebrew Text as some falsely claim. The chapter ends with a brief note on the fluidity of the KJV text, noting some of the bigger differences over the many years of it's publication. the chart on page 92 is very helpful in this regard.
Chapter 4 - The Preservation of Scripture and the Version Debate by W. Edward Glenny
This chapter delves into the various definitions of "preservation" that various groups have used. It highlights the historical problems facing those that claim a word-perfect text has passed down to us today, before diving into the biblical problems. This chapter brilliantly displays the exegetical fallacies and blatant manipulation and misapplication of certain passages by those in the KJVonly camp before ending on a positive note that ably defends the reliability and trustworthiness of our Bibles, even with the uncertainties in the textual record here and there.
Chapter 5 - Translation Theory and the Twentieth-Century Versions by Robert W. Milliman
This chapter details the various textual basis and translation philosophies behind different popular English translations. (However, being written in 2001, it obviously isn't completely up to date on the newest translations and revisions.) It compares the reasoning behind the "Formal Equivalence" translations with those in the "Dynamic Equivalence" and even "Paraphrase" camps. Again, this chapter is to be especially noted for it's even-handed discussion of each side's pros and cons. This chapter also addresses "Inclusive Language" and how different translations fulfill different roles.
The book appendixes include a copy of the classic and woefully neglected "The Translators to the Readers" that was included as a preface to the 1611 KJV. They also include a "FAQ" about the translation controversy, a historical address by the Baptist historian Thomas Armitage on the subject, and a massive bibliography for further research.
Conclusion:
While some of the arguments and issues are fairly technical, each is detailed in an understandable and approachable manner. Much study has gone into the book, with the writer's desire to sow understanding and knowledge evident from the very beginning. This is not a product of hate or malice, as these criticisms do not come from atheists or God-hating men, but rather, from Baptists proud of their fundamentalism and committed to a life long love for God's Word.
Pastors and Leaders in every church ought to read this, as the book addresses far more than just the KJVonly movement that spurned it's writing. This gives an easy to understand, yet detailed and honest, look at the history, reliability, and authority, not only of the wide manuscript tradition, but of the blessings of the many English translations available to us today. It effectively details the pros and cons of various views in an evenhanded and intelligent manner that is such a breath of fresh air for any who have read the ahistorical, poorly reasoned, Biblically-unsound, and blatantly hateful writings of far too many on the KJVonly side of the fence.
For laymen with questions concerning these topics, this book is unparalleled. It's at the very top of my list as far as recommended books on the subject. While the book covers a lot of ground, it never feels bogged down, nor overtly technical. It's written for church members edification and education. It's not only a helpful read, it's a well-written and enjoyable read.
I couldn't recommend it more.
5/5
Buy it here on Amazon.com
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