What is the King James Version?

[@enoynaert]

I had my first contact with an evangelical Christian was in the early 1970s. I was naive. I was trying to find a "Phillips Translation" of the Bible, and I could not find one in local book stores. The evangelical I was talking to said that all Christians should use the King James Version. I thought they were joking. So I joked back "Well, it was the version carried by twelve apostles." She said "I didn't know that!" I kind of regret that I told her that I was joking.

[@mattr.1887]

😂😂

[@keithwilson448]

The more i watch Bart, the more I love him. Thank you sir, for all your work, and for so generously sharing it. You are an inspiration. Thanks to Megan and everyone else involved in these productions too.

[@dozilla77]

Same. He's got the perfect soft spoken voice that fits very well. Megan's accent is the cherry on top as yank lol

[@AlanCanon2222]

As an escaped Christian (Church of Christ) there's something wonderfully comforting about Prof. Ehrman's style of elocution. His voice sounds very much like the more gentle of the fundamentalist preachers I grew up listening to. Having the New Testament deconstructed by someone with that sort of speaking voice is just the best thing.

[@alexanderweddle3948]

Ex-CofC here. I like his style, too.

[@J_Z913]

Same here regarding the church of Christ. I've noticed Bart's style is bit like that of one of my old preachers. I like Dale Martin as well. He came out of the CofC tradition too.

[@AlanCanon2222]

@@J_Z913 I'll take that as a "strong recommend" on Dale Martin, thank you for the reference.

[@MrTrickatreat]

The biggest thing is that I don't feel like he's trying to sell me something. I love that he's not overly charismatic. He's just saying what he's seen and either concluded or has reasonable theories about and I can take it or leave it.

[@Chad-xs2de]

Congratulations on your escape!

[@richardsorel4647]

Bart's great at taking something of such profound importance, and make it not only easy to understand, but enjoyable while doing so.

[@JudyJean-j2]

These two are individually and combined so delightful. I love their intelligence and educational discipline.

[@idreamofgenie2599]

I decided to read the King James Version all the way through several years ago, and I was surprised to discover weird expressions in the Old Testament like "him that pisseth against a wall"! It took me a while to figure out that basically meant a small boy. I don't recall *ever* hearing that phrase in any Bible readings in church! :D

[@timothynelissen948]

Part of the charm of this series is watching Bart and Megan just enjoy catching up in the beginning and getting to know each other better.

[@GlorifiedTruth]

It almost got a tear from me when, at the very end, Megan said, "I'll be listening, even though I won't be participating." Dumb, I know, but it just seemed so sad.

[@Wretched2JZ]

@@GlorifiedTruthyou seem emotionally attached to these folks. Can be dangerous.

[@GlorifiedTruth]

@@Wretched2JZ No argument here. Hey, JZ is my name in real life (initials, i.e.).

[@Wretched2JZ]

@@GlorifiedTruth haha that’s cool!

[@jeffcarlson3269]

well each to their own I guess I am more of a brass tacks kind of guy... just get down to the points.. cut the unnecessary banter... make your point and be done with it... most of the time thru these videos I put the speed on 2X the fastest it will go.. in order to help push them along... these people act like I have all day to ingest their stuff? ..I tried listening to this junk.. but honestly ..I feel I was led into it under false pretenses.. it is titled "WHY IS THE KING JAMES VERSION"... well what about it?.. c'mon already!!..

[@ctriamimgons]

20:45 ringstraked (adjective): marked with circular stripes habergeon (noun): a medieval jacket of mail shorter than a hauberk hauberk (noun): a tunic of chain mail worn as defensive armor from the 12th to the 14th century ligure (noun): a traditional precious stone that is probably just jacinth jancinth (noun): a gem more nearly orange in color than hyacinth hyacinth (noun): a precious stone of the ancients sometimes held to be sapphire

[@JoseChung21]

Fantastic job Megan - can Bart get a new microphone at some point? He sounds like he’s in a tunnel. You guys are doing great work thanks!

[@jdewit8148]

"Those who seek should not stop seeking until they find. When they find, they will be disturbed. When they are disturbed, they will marvel, and will reign over all. [And after they have reigned they will rest.]"

[@MarcusStenberg]

Megan: "So Bart, since we last spoke you have been working on suggestions for some new Pokémon to spawn in 2023, would you care to share some of those names you've come up with?" Bart: 21:10

[@AurorXZ]

Haha!

[@DarthGylcolious]

You absolutely slayed me -- I have been belly laughing for the last 5 minutes. Thank you, totally genius.

[@MarcusStenberg]

@@DarthGylcolious Thanks for letting me know. :) His delivery is so great.

[@davidgagnon7806]

If you grow up with The KJV, the language seems natural to you and when you come to read Shakespeare in school, you have a leg up on everyone else.

[@jamesbinns8528]

So true! My KJV Bible had many words accompanied by vowel markings for pronunciation purposes! Hallelujah!

[@ReeveBehrens-ej2un]

Facts

[@sofiatgarcia3970]

I was raised with the KJV as an evangelical Christian. Though I'm no longer a Christian I still prefer the KJV for the beauty of the wording. However, if I want to better understand a passage I tend to check out other versions for comparison.

[@stephenarmiger8343]

Knowing nothing of this, I purchased a 1611 Edition of the King James Version. It was unexpected to see the introductory material! Because of this I can appreciate it’s literary value. Thank you Bart and Megan!

[@Bobson_Dugnutt_Esq]

I want to thank you both for all you do. the expertise that you two bring to tell the human story of the Bible is truly eye opening.

[@coreyham3753]

Bart must have something like a photographic memory to be able to recite dates and information as easily as he does. Very impressive.

[@brucecook502]

All of the churches I ever attended all the way up until I'd be converted in 2017, we're all independent fundamentalist Baptist that were strictly King James av1611 only. They were so serious about it that I remember one evangelist used to sing a song that made fun of other denominations and other translations of the Bible. In fact, the boys home I was at had a man that lived on our property that took a whole slew of other non kjv 1611 translations and blew them away with his 30-06 rifle after a sermon was preached one afternoon where the preacher claimed that the other versions were inspired by the devil and should be burned, so this guy took his rifle and shot these Bibles with us boys that lived in that boys home watching him. That is how nutterbutter these people were that brought me up.

[@zapkvr]

Boys home? Jeepers

[@brucecook502]

@@zapkvr yeah it was a very physically abusive boys home, which got raided and shut down in 2006 for child abuse and you can even find police press conferences here on KZbin talking about it. Just look up "buddy Maynard Heritage boys Academy". You'll find quite a few videos of people covering that abusive Boys Home in Panama City Florida. I was a member of that boys home from early 1998 until the fall of 2000. I was the one and only boy who successfully ran away from that place.

[@chriswimer6296]

This was an outstanding discussion of the KJB! I’m sure Bart has a series or extended lecture on this that I’m gonna have to find! A question for Bart or anyone familiar with Bible translations: what would be the best translation to study the original texts? Also, has Bart ever considered doing an annotated bible? And if so, what version would he choose? I’m sure there’s a better way to get my questions to Bart, and I’ll look it up, but I just thought I’d put it in the comments while I’m here 🤷🏻‍♂️😅 Thanks!

[@davidkeller6156]

At his blog site he recommends the Harper Collins Study Bible

[@spencerjones274]

Absolutely loving this podcast series! I wonder if a quick roundup of the facts/points stated could be added at the end of each discussion? Or maybe even a bonus episode briefly going over the points made in each episode? I get that it's not all that simple though! Thanks for the work you're doing ❤️

[@Greglouis1961]

Have you tried taking notes as you watch it?

[@davidlee8464]

My favorite KJV-related quote was a pastor who said (with a straight face), “If the King James Bible was good enough for St. Paul it’s good enough for me.” Whaaa…?

[@stevearmstrong6758]

Living in the Bible Belt, I have seen bumper stickers: "If it ain't King James, it ain't the Bible"

[@mojoman2001]

Gimme that old time religion: Good enough for Grandma, then it's good enough for me. (Not really. It's a classic song lyric.)

[@jawdroppingbeautybyjulie61]

As an Evangelical, I want a translation that sticks as closely to the earliest manuscripts as possible. Since the original manuscripts are not available, then it is important to continue to re-examine the texts each time an even earlier manuscript is discovered. At this point in time there are better translations than the KJV.

[@Greglouis1961]

HAIL . SATAN.

[@jeffharper9703]

​@@Greglouis1961Why do you write this?

[@corriepitt7630]

Thank you, Dr. Ehrman for providing such rich content in easily digestible portions. You are a truly gifted teacher. You are my Saturday morning listening every week.

[@leonardbartholomew5021]

Yes, for me, Bart's explanations have been the captivation of this series but Megan's observation from 53:11to 53:20 transends everthing I have heard so far.

[@truthwithin1565]

I don't think it was a mistake in the KJV earliest version when it translated the isaiah 7:14 about a young lady giving birth to a son. (Hineh ha-almah harah ve-yoledet ben ve-karat shemo Im-anu-el) First of all, it doesn’t say “a young woman” (almah); it says ha-almah (the young woman-in other words, a specific young woman Isaiah is indicating). Second, it doesn’t say “will conceive,” it says “has conceived.” Third, it says, “she will call him Im-anu-el”

[@thelostone6981]

Being raised in Mormonism and “educated” by SDA schools for many years, I am more familiar with the KJV. Even though I’m an atheist now, I still admire the ability and willingness to translate the Bible into English. I think it helped gain a love for Shakespeare and older English linguistics.

[@russellmiles2861]

Interesting I could barely understand it: fortunately we had the RSV

[@KaiHenningsen]

In terms of importance, in Germany, there's Luther's translation. He had, in fact, a huge influence on the development of standard German, which didn't exist before his translation. It is, of course, pretty much independent of the KJV, though he consulted Erasmus' second edition (and became rather upset Erasmus tried to distance himself from his church troubles). Also, there were even more German translations before Luther than for English, starting in the 14th century. Of course, Luther was a rampant anti-Semite, and a number of his utterings on the subject would fit right in five centuries later. I believe Luther is also who came up with _"sola scriptura"._

[@boblackey1]

Yes the SDA church is a big promoter of the KJV. I became puzzled by the 1844/IJ doctrine. SDA is the only church that has developed this doctrine and it's endorsed by EGW whom SDA's hold as a prophet. SDA claim to be Bible only yet at the same time, EGW's books are also inspired just as Scripture. That is puzzling too. It seems it has been so many years now since 1844 AD and Jesus still hasn't returned to earth at the close of the IJ, it seems as we close in on 100 years, the 1844/IJ doctrine will eventually collapse and seen as somehow not correct!! But almost 170 years later it's still a cardinal teaching.

[@russellmiles2861]

@@KaiHenningsen yes Wenceslaus IV tried to publish a German Bible to strengthen his hold on power. But it was never completed

[@fly_8659]

Ouch!!! Double whammy! Mormon and SDA, what a combination.

[@ChiliMcFly1]

I have been reading and listening to Dr. Michael Heisner and became to appreciate the ESV. It has become my go to Bible for reading and studying. I also own the NRSV which appears to be the progression of the Catholicism in the Christian faith. I like to compare the ESV with the NRSV. You should note that the Laws of Nature are also the Laws of God.

[@fretnesbutke3233]

As I've heard it said,if the King James Bible was good enough for the apostle Paul, it's good enough for me! A more depressing matter arises from the Pentacostals who insist on handling rattlesnakes and drinking cyanide, occasionally resulting in amputation,necrosis or death,still fail to realize that after circa 4 centuries of scholarship since the translation of the King James version.we're reasonably certain that the verse that their motivation derives from was tacked onto the later copy they used.

[@brokinsage7138]

You made the volume on your mics more even- thank you!

[@stevearmstrong6758]

Another good podcast - Bart's explanation of the problems with the KJ version of Isaiah 7:14 (and the entire story being told in that passage) was brief but to the point.

[@AurorXZ]

Agreed. One thing good to add is an explanation for the tense shift (from the traditional "shall" to "is"/"has"), however. This wasn't simply translators being flippant for theology-in Classical Hebrew, there are only two tenses (perfect and imperfect, or completed and uncompleted). Critically, Hebrew prophecy is written in perfect/completed tense, as if the action has already happened. While the consensus appears to be that the woman is _currently_ with child, a lot of ink has been dedicated to whether she already IS with child, or if she WILL be with child soon. Amusingly, the latter understanding would allow for a virginal reading: if she somehow is a virgin (which _almah_ sometimes implies), she won't be by the time she conceives!

[@johnemanuele8695]

How refreshing. Mr. Ehrman is a happy joyful individual who is intelligent, articulate and well versed in the scriptures. He shares his years of research with others. Thank you for enlightening those of us who struggle to understand biblical origins, the writers, exegesis vs eisegesis..tales vs facts...fiction vs science. All religions are powerful influences on the masses. It's a good thing to protect oneself from religions goal to control.

[@davideldred.campingwilder6481]

With reference to Bart's Soapbox and 'thoughts' Oscar Wilde said. 'Most people are other people. Their thoughts are other people's opinions, their lives a minicry, their passions a quotation.

[@nasonguy]

Here is your weekly reminder to read "The Truth of Fact, the Truth of Feeling" by Ted Chiang. Very relevant to the nature of turth, translation, subtle meaning, bias, etc. I recommend "Omphalos" by Ted Chiang as well. Also very relevant to the small mention of the Bible disagreeing with archaeology.

[@mariemeyer]

What editions do you encourage your students to use for cor coursework?

[@Hamann9631]

When Bart mentioned words with different meanings now, I thought of "replenish". In 1611 it meant to fill. There was no connotation of the thing being previously filled. The "re" in "replenish" doesn't mean again. It is like the "re" in "replete" doesn't mean again.

[@phinehasochayi3900]

Thank you, Prof Ehrman, for the beautiful work you do.

[@ThisTrainIsLost]

Having examined a number of different versions of the Bible, specifically using the 23rd psalm as the point of comparison, I have settled on the Revised English Bible as my preferred version. I find that it sits nicely on the balance between the accurate expression of the language and poetry.

[@blogbalkanstories4805]

Thanks so much for this episode. To us people from outside the English speaking world the reverence for the King James Bible really is somewhat puzzling. By comparison, the historically immensely important Luther translations of the Bible are considered significant for several reasons in its own right in German speaking countries, but has nowhere near the relevance today the King James Bible has for Britain or the US. Incidentally, Luther's translation was also formative for modern German, and created many phrases, some of them the same as created by the KJB in English. ("Salt of the Earth", "Brother's Keepers") This episode has helped me understand a bit more about the KJB's impact.

[@scienceexplains302]

In the companion episode to this one, the translator points out that KJV gives the false impression that the Christian biblical characters were speaking eloquently and serenely, but the Greek is often very coarse (Mark?)

[@HkFinn83]

@@scienceexplains302maybe to a modern reader, but at the time the KJV was written in ‘Ploughboys English’. It was very accessible. Now it sounds like Shakespeare because it’s a muscular version of early modern English.

[@scienceexplains302]

@@HkFinn83 Not according to scholars, afaik. “The KJV’s Language Was Outdated the Day it was Published” on Dan McClellan channel. kzbin.info/www/bejne/aqXSkHt4m7OYbassi=G9CsDn5dKqjWS8HY But you have a point that what sounds serene to me wouldn’t necessarily have sounded serene in -1621- 1611.

[@HkFinn83]

@@scienceexplains302 the thee/thou and singular/plurals were not in common usage anymore, but easily understood. Also this isn’t a stylistic choice, it is to accurately represent the originals. Also the entire idea of a vulgar bible is for the ploughboy. This IS scholarly consensus. They’re pointing out archaisms in grammar words, not a high falutin inscrutable literary affectation

[@scienceexplains302]

@@HkFinn83 Not snobbish , just outdated. Tyndale wrote in “everyday” English for his time, which was about 86 years before the KJV. It is primarily Tyndale’s words that populate the KJV.

[@Chandransingham]

Thought provoking as usual. One point missed here is that the (Classical German) Historical Critical Method is already used by dedicated scholars. For a good example see Prof John J Collins et al's important recent publication: The Jerome Biblical Commentary for the Twenty-First Century (t&tclark 2022). It has a Foreword by Pope Francis.

[@chadgarber]

Great stuff. Bart, what translation do you think is the most accurate (and that is readable)?

[@veggiehamb8666]

He often recommends the NRSV. He’s talked a lot about being “in the room where it happened” and his mentor’s role. He has also recommended the Harper Collins study Bible, which you can find used pretty cheap. He has blog posts about the subject and 100% of the money to subscribe goes to charity if you want more info.

[@chadgarber]

@@veggiehamb8666 Thanks! Already subscribed!

[@Chad-xs2de]

@@veggiehamb8666 Which has been updated (NRSVUE)

[@jeffmacdonald9863]

@@Chad-xs2de I've got an old RSV. I'm amused by there being an Updated Edition of the New version of the Revision of the Standard Version. Maybe that wasn't a great naming convention to work with.

[@jamesbinns8528]

@@jeffmacdonald9863 Good point. My wife was an English major who is overly literal and has word crochets! She will love your comment!

[@rochelebierhalspereira7106]

Being indoctrinated by Irish missionaries in Brazil when I wanted to learn English (became a teacher) they told me the KJV was the best version. My first thought when I looked into it was "oh they must like because people depend on them to understand it, they want to be relevant as missionaries". My mom is also an ex christian and she was always extremely bothered by the fact that they kept explaining that in our Portuguese version (João Ferreira de Almeida's Revista and corrigida) that we were told to use exclusively, sometimes what the text says is not what it means "according to the original", so they'd talk about Greek and Hebrew and basically said the passages meant whatever they wanted it to means because they had access to the "original" language. In my learning process of th English language I actually favoured contemporary texts and media, so I didn't actually looked into the KJV and bible versions. What I found out eventually just helped in my way right out of the church and belief in general😅.

[@Matt_The_Hugenot]

I grew up Anglican, first with KJV and then with other translations. The biggest problem I find is that people think they know what it means when in fact they misunderstand words and whole phrases that have changed their meaning.

[@richardvass1462]

Maybe they're too lazy to learn?

[@davidsinclair7439]

@@richardvass1462 No. They don't know they need to learn anything new - because the language still makes sense to modern readers, despite the meaning having changed. I

[@richardvass1462]

@@davidsinclair7439 I bought an old dictionary so I can look up words in the King James but yeah I know I seen Gail ripplinger's video the Bible's built-in dictionary

[@Purwapada]

the soapbox section really touched my heart. Great message that so many need to hear

[@jamesbinns8528]

Well, having an open mind and studying history, learning how the Bible came to be , and learning about science and other religions and cultures, is what led me down the path to apostasy. Ignorance and blind faith is what leads to "salvation.!"

[@wickedcabinboy]

Which version of the bible does Dr Ehrman use in teaching his classes?

[@deadboyzX8]

i have consumed so much of your content. its been hard to watch but i need this information so badly. thank you so much

[@songsmithy07]

I very much enjoyed this episode, and I look forward to your next program on the NRSVUE.

[@raydavison4288]

I have always wondered why Daniel wasn't chucked into the "fiery furnace" along with Meshach, Shadrach, and Abednego. 🤔

[@KaiHenningsen]

There's a recent PhD (who made YT videos about his work) who researched the psychology of losing and gaining faith. One result I remember is that the largest predictor of losing faith he found was a desire for honesty and truth, which they originally got taught in their church, but which then led them away from their faith. This is probably related to the claim that reading the bible makes you an atheist.

[@FlashGeiger]

Useful Charts

[@russellmiles2861]

I contend that is a false dichotomy: believe not believe. Whereas the majority of folk are "indifferent". They may or may not attend church, practice or sometimes observe faith. But this makes very little difference to how folk live thrive and survive. There are significant research that shows little difference in behaviour based on a faith or none a person identifies with. So I contend that it is too complex a question to define if someone has or has not faith. Remember if we ask men and women if they have had sex the answers we get are - well, they don't add up. And faith is a tad more abstract an idea to measure

[@StephenCowley001]

I note that the "claim", "result" and "significant research" waved at here are not cited in a form that anyone else can independently check or verify. Francis Bacon said that a little philosophy takes you away from religion, but a great deal returns you to it. Perhaps the study is verifying the first part of this old saw.

[@KaiHenningsen]

@@russellmiles2861 I think you missed the point; this was specifically about people who switched, not about those who don't care enough to switch. Why do people switch in either direction? Those are usually a minority, most people don't switch.

[@russellmiles2861]

@@KaiHenningsen oh I often miss the point ... I still don't believe this assertion could be measured...it sounds like opinion trying to sound more important

[@kylelloyd4437]

I've learned so much from these programs. The people I work with are biblical literalists and they clearly don't understand how the Bible even became the Bible. Scholarships show that these clearly are not the word of God and they were authored written by people claiming to be inspired by God. And it all comes down to faith. So basically these people choose to believe in a book that has known errors in it. I get that some people wanna use it too have community and raise their families by it. But is the sacrifice of lying to yourself worth it?

[@aubreysprite]

What English version of the Bible would you recommend?

[@johnlavers3970]

i had a tindal bible many years ago. it was very poetic and simpler language than the king james. and i'm not a christian, but i read a lot as a young person.

[@Templetonq]

I once heard a prosperity gospel preacher quote that, in the parable of the widow's mite, she "gave out of her want", then he declared, "She wanted something".

[@carlbrewerii1619]

Does anyone recommend anyone like Dr Ehrman, but Old Testament?

[@charlespatin5496]

I certainly enjoyed this presentation, although I knew some of the problems with the KJV. I had understood that part of the problem was that King James himself inserted his own ideas during the formation of the texts to favor his own beliefs. Beyond that, I really enjoyed the "Soapbox" this week.

[@davidchupp4460]

Try again kzbin.info/www/bejne/iZrPiYZmaKtqoKM

[@stephenarmiger8343]

If I understood Bart correctly, he is saying something consoling. A young woman is with child, pregnant. She doesn’t have to worry about the future of her child. The world will be a safer place by the time that the child grows up. Cool! How many couples today are not having children because of their fear of the future. A common fear. In the age of birth control, couples can make such decisions.

[@matthewlawrenson2734]

When I hear genuinely intelligent people who are still 'faith based' ..always amazed. I guess its cultural or family based but genuinely unfathomable. Like a snail trying to explain why it's temperament prefers the shade. The water nearly always takes on the colour of the cup....but here they are rational! .Thank goodness for the intelligent discourse though. Thank you both for your genuinely enlightening work.

[@richardvass1462]

There work leaves people with no hope in the savior and his perfect word. That's why things are getting worse all the time.

[@kwamesolo3315]

@Richard Vass Truth is the only thing that will set your mind and soul completely free (even in hardship). God is real, but Christianity as a religion is false.

[@tommac5411]

Bart needs a better microphone and sound setup. Sounds muffled

[@macroman52]

If you have ever heard a Sovereign Citizen or a Moorish American give their interpretation of the constitution or their interpretation of an expired 19th Century treaty between the US and Morocco to mean they don't have to have a driver's licence or pay taxes, and that no US law applys to them, you can perhaps understand why the Church heirachy in the 1400s didn't want people interpreting the bible for themslves.

[@Sp4mMe]

It'd be interesting to see the attitudes to Bible versions across different languages, and if it's similar everywhere or not. Given that Christendom is so global and has this "definite" attitude towards the truth, yet for obvious reasons everyone uses their own versions of the Bible and in each language Christians need to figure out how to deal with their own translations, of which there inevitably will be loads ...

[@jimbo2227]

Grew up independent Baptist, always liked the language of the KJV never could get used to other translations.

[@simonfielding577]

I'm an English teacher rather more confidently than a Christian and I always Visualized the Works of Shakespeare and the authorised version as the twin helix of the English languages DNA.....

[@mburland]

I'm surprised no mention was made of that the fact that it is the King James Version and not the King James Translation.

[@ane-louisestampe7939]

Follow those, who seek the truth. And run away - as fast as you can - from those who have found it.

[@420JRMan]

If you forget the lesson, you will be condemned to relive the experience.

[@danklebesiii2257]

@bartdehrman do we know if the few manuscripts that the KJV translators used had differences in them from manuscript to manuscript?

[@abedonwona8576]

Wonderful exposition Professor Ehrman. My research affirms your intellectual assertions Wiclif' finished his translation in 1382. A hundred and fifty years later came Tyndale, then Coverdale (1535), Cranmer's (1539), the Genevan (1557), Rheims (1582), and finally The King James Authorized (1611). The KJV truly isn't divinely inspired as popularly preached

[@erichstocker8358]

Two funny facts from my point of view. I was talking with one of those strange right-wing evangelical christians and he told me "if King James English was good enough for Jesus, it is good enough for me" So, you can see many crazy and ignorant people (explains the reasons that the church for ages was leery of people reading the bible directly) talking nonsense about KJ Bible being god's bible. When I attended a Catholic seminary our rector who also taught many classes including Greek and Hebrew also taught "biblical historiography". The English translation that he had us use was the Annotated Revised Standard version. Even though a work by protestant scholars, he said this was probably the most accurate English translation we had at the time. He didn't care for any of the typical Catholic authorized translations. Shows what good work that committee brought forth.

[@annestephens9631]

Thank you. Good points well made.

[@mr.c2485]

Where exactly are these “original” manuscripts? Are they on display in a museum somewhere?

[@MarkGrago]

Why can't we paste the url code from this onto other websites for folks to review?

[@justmagicmostly]

I'm actually like to hear an episode where Megan talks about how Syro-Palestinian history as we know it from archaeology is not what we learned from the Bible. That little comment of hers piqued my interest more than anything else.

[@trilithon108]

I like these two and saw her interviewing Bart and I'm in.

[@dynamic9016]

Very interesting topic..Learned quite alot..

[@montagdp]

In the church that I grew up in, the view (still) is that the King James Bible is the unique divinely inspired Word of God, and where it differs from the various source manuscripts, it is superior to them.

[@ballasog]

That's what I've always believed. Think about it. God isn't a native English speaker, right? So one of the things the KJV translators did was to help God find the music in the language. They did a lot of edits that amounted to saying what God would have said if he had been a better writer - for example, making "darkest valley" into "valley of the shadow of death." That's a truly (ahem) inspired piece of editing.

[@susanstein6604]

The first phrase in Genesis 1 is In a beginning, not in the beginning.

[@foxyshabazz]

I am not even a Christian, and I love the KJV. Whenever Dr. Bart says 'they don't know what they're doing' something inside me always screams 'no you idiot, it's "They know not what they do!"' :)

[@winros]

Dogs in general. However, I love them!!!! I'm a KJV only kinda girl! Ex Catholic/Pentecostal. I'm here to learn more.

[@sead5794]

@Bart D. Ehrman What about The Ethiopic version? It believed to be 800 older than KJV. What does that version like compared to the others and also other older manuscripts?

[@ArrozMisto]

Would be nice to know, for study purposes, what translation Dr.Ehrman recommends.

[@pappapiccolino9572]

He always recommends the NRSV

[@AlanCanon2222]

I'd like to know that too. (Christian turned atheist here). If I was going to go buy another hard copy Bible, for me it'd be whatever the newest version of the Oxford Annotated NRSV is. The NRSV does a good job of retaining the poetry of the KJV, while correcting some of the more egregious errors of translation, and the footnotes in it are prepared by a secular editorial committee, including Jews and atheists. The annotations do a good job of contextualizing each book, in terms of probable authorship, time period, etc. I'm sure there are more technical versions that genuine scholars use, but the Oxford NRSV has a lot going for it, for the lay reader who isn't a believer, but fascinated by the text itself.

[@spykezspykez7001]

Secular study, non confessional, Harper Collins is pretty good. NRSV. And Bart’s book on New Testaments. I don’t like the way the NRSV reads though. Confessional, I use the RSV / Vulgate/Douay Rheims.

[@pappapiccolino9572]

@@spykezspykez7001 Yes, I think the downside of pursuing accuracy and fidelity to the original words is that a certain level of poetry is lost.

[@nathanaelsmith3553]

@@pappapiccolino9572 poetry schmoetry - just tell me what the words mean

[@brianeibisch6025]

Old Bibles are great and new ones probably better but doesn’t Megan look ultra beautiful today!! Cheers

[@manbrains]

What's the name of the professor or program Megan's husband studied in Palestinian history?

[@Seccheus]

The KJV is not the best translation...

[@davidkeller6156]

As an amateur astronomer I was surprised to find, some years ago, that there were a lot of people who believe in flat earth. Mostly I would encounter them in the comment sections of videos on astronomy or space exploration. At first I thought it was a joke, but soon realized that these people were serious. I large percentage are fundamentalist Christian’s who, of course, think the Bible is the inerrant word of God. I have argued in the past with many and have brought up a lot of what I knew at the time of the history of the Bible, the mistranslations, scribes adding, subtracting and making mistakes, the influence of other cultures on Jewish beliefs, etc. I discovered Professor Ehrman a few months ago and have read four of his books now, as well as a book by Paula Freidriksen I just finished. I been following Dr. Ehrman’s videos as well as those of other biblical historians. Although I’ve learned a lot from all of this, the one thing that frustrates me still is the claims of biblical inerrancy by these Christians. Now I feel a bit stupid. The one thing I never thought to point out Bart covered at the end in his soap box and it has given me the perfect answer to claims of inerrancy of the King James Bible, their Bible of choice. Thanks you for that, Dr. Ehrman.

[@corringhamdepot4434]

The Great Bible of 1539 was the first authorised edition of the Bible in English, authorised by King Henry VIII of England. Which revised and tried to complete the missing parts of the Tyndale Bible.

[@ppetal1]

Delighted to discover the etymology of "porridge".

[@annaskele628]

52:40 PAlatable should be pronounced with the accent on the first syllable.

[@pappapiccolino9572]

Thanks to both of you for the great content. Note to Megan. The NIV is favoured by fundamentalists. It's not really used by scholars unless they're fundies. I would avoid it if I could. The RSV and the NRSV are the best.

[@AlanCanon2222]

Concur, all points.

[@karlwagner7150]

The prediction in Isa 7 was for King Ahab, not for future Messiah seekers. When the child came of age knowing right from wrong, the problem Ahab was facing would be gone, i.e., history. But if you keep reading, like through chapter 9 and 10, Isaiah takes this little prophecy and moves toward the future application of the coming Messiah. The books of prophecy, the major and minor prophets, always seem to speak of the current or local application of the prophecy mixed with a future global application. Like God is promising something for the now, but is excited and slips in words with a global eschatological promise.

[@mekalkasias6571]

I'm an atheist, but the host is definitely an angel !

[@edwardlouisbernays2469]

King James VI and I’s Demonology, 1597 In 1597, King James VI of Scotland published a compendium on witchcraft lore called Daemonologie. It was also published in England in 1603 when James acceded to the English throne. The book asserts James’s full belief in magic and witchcraft, and aims to both prove the existence of such forces and to lay down what sort of trial and punishment these practices merit - in James’s view, death. Daemonologie takes the form of a dialogue (popular for didactic works) and is divided into three sections: the first on magic and necromancy (the prediction of the future by communicating with the dead), the second on witchcraft and sorcery and the third on spirits and spectres. Daemonologie and Macbeth Many elements of the witchcraft scenes in Macbeth conform to James’s ideas and beliefs in witchcraft as expressed in Daemonologie, News from Scotland and his anti-witchcraft legislation. This includes ideas such as the witches’ vanishing/invisible flight, their raising of storms, dancing and chanting, sexual acts, their gruesome potion ingredients and the presence of animal familiars. Scholars are divided as to whether Shakespeare’s portrayal of witchcraft panders to the King’s interests, or whether it is a more subversive comment on his involvement with witch-hunting, or perhaps a mix of the two. It seems noteworthy that although the play Macbeth is contaminated with the witchcraft of the ‘Weyward Sisters’, and Macbeth himself is spurred on by their prophecies and the urging of his somewhat witchy wife, Shakespeare places the responsibility for Duncan’s murder on Macbeth himself and Macbeth’s downfall is a result of his tyranny as King. His greatest error in his dealings with the witches seems to be his credulity and naivety with their double-speaking prophecies. Books of this period were usually sold unbound for customers to commission their own binding according to taste and cost. Booksellers would often recourse to simple stab stitching with a wrapper of binder’s waste (i.e. used paper or parchment that was no longer needed and so was recycled for wrappers and other binding material) to hold the book together with a cheap and/or temporary cover. This copy is preserved in its original wrapper: a fragment of parchment from a medieval manuscript of Thomas Aquinas’s Catena Aurea, a book of glosses on the Gospels. This particular fragment is from the glosses on Matthew. Full title: Dæmonologie, in forme of a dialogue, divided into three Bookes Published: 1597 : Discovering Literature: Shakespeare & Renaissance John Mullan explains the position of ghosts in Elizabethan and Jacobean culture, and shows how the ghosts in Shakespeare's plays relate to and boldly depart from ghostly representations in other drama of the period. ""Witchcraft, magic and religion Witchcraft in Shakespeare's England Article by: Carole Levin Did Shakespeare’s contemporaries believe in witches? Carole Levin looks at witchcraft trials in the 16th century and considers their relation to the ‘weird sisters’ of Macbeth. Reference to a play which prompts a murderer to confess in A Warning for Fair Women, 1599 Created by:Christopher Marlowe Plot summary of Doctor Faustus Would you sell your soul? And, if you would, for what? Doctor Faustus opens with its protagonist John Faustus, eminent scholar of theology, medicine and metaphysics in Wittenberg, renouncing his studies in favour of the ‘metaphysics of magicians / And necromantic books’ (1.1.49-50), and the power, knowledge and prestige that he believes they will bring him. Like many of Christopher Marlowe’s heroes, Faustus seeks to surpass the restrictions of ordinary life. He summons the demon Mephistopheles, and pledges his soul in blood to Lucifer, the Devil, in exchange for 24 years of power, magic and Mephistopheles’s service. Almost immediately, the bargain doesn’t live up to his expectations: Mephistopheles gives disappointing and limited answers to his questions about the nature of the universe. But Faustus and Mephistopheles travel the world, playing tricks on monks and unsuspecting citizens, and performing magical demonstrations. Meanwhile, Faustus’s fellow scholars worry for his soul, and his comic servants misuse his magical books. 24 years later, Faustus, now a famous magician, returns to Wittenberg as the hour of his end draws near. Although tormented by thoughts of God and damnation, he rejects repentance. At the stroke of midnight, he is dragged away to hell. When did Marlowe write Doctor Faustus and when was it first performed? When exactly Marlowe wrote Doctor Faustus is unknown, but it must have been between about 1589 and his death on 30 May 1593. The earliest surviving record of a performance of the play dates from 1594, and the earliest surviving printed text is from 1604. Another version of Doctor Faustus was printed in 1616. This version differs significantly from the playtext printed in 1604. The 1604 Doctor Faustus is shorter, and its action is carefully concentrated, while the 1616 text is over 600 lines longer, with more comic scenes and spectacular stage-properties and displays. For example, Faustus’s death-scene in the 1616 Doctor Faustus features an audience of watching devils, a representation of a hell-mouth onstage, and later Faustus’s ‘mangled limbs’ (5.3.132), all absent in the 1604 text. It is generally accepted that the 1604 text presents a version of the play closer to Marlowe’s original text, while the 1616 text preserves an ‘updated’ version of the play prepared for a later run of performances. It might include the ‘adicyones’ [additions] to the play that the actor-writers William Birde and Samuel Rowley were paid for by the theatre manager Philip Henslowe in 1602. Explore Doctor Faustus in context Eric Rasmussen and Ian DeJong’s introduction to Doctor Faustus explores the play’s ambiguities and dualities, while Andrew Dickson looks at the infamous mysteries and controversies surrounding Marlowe's life.

[@JoseChung21]

Fantastic job guys thanks

[@craigfairweather3401]

The puritan Pilgrim fathers of the Mayflower brought over more than 20 Bibles, all either the Geneva Bible or Miles Coverdale’s Bible. Only about 2 KJV were brought over on the Mayflower, both by the so called ‘strangers’ who were not originally part of the puritan oath-bound covenanted group. The KJV was considered the mouthpiece of the oppressive Anglican hierarchy.

[@Mike-jl1rl]

For those interested in evolutionary phycology try looking at some of Jonathan Haidt's talks on youtube and reading his books. I love listening to Bart and Haidt and I found it so interesting Bart is looking into that subject.

[@zerowing6031]

Great recommendation! I've been reading through Haidt's stuff only recently and have been very impressed by the exploration of the 'scientific' side of psychology.

[@TheRealDyscyples]

Does he spell it phycology?

[@spandrel1858]

I've always considered, when thinking about translations, that Muslims have it over Christian literalists, in that the Koran must be read in the original Arabic. If you believe the Bible is the literal word of God, shouldn't you read it in its original Greek and Hebrew?

[@HeritageWealthPlanning]

At the 45 minute mark Bart said he’s getting into evolutionary psychology. Man, I hope he has a more discerning mind than Bret Weinstein who made a statement that Eddington proved Einstein. Ugh. Obviously Einstein has nothing to do with evolutionary psychology BUT that’s Bret’s gig and the complete ignorance of the Eddington experiment regarding General Relativity doesn’t make me think that field is made of deep thinkers

[@raymondsanders3584]

Definitely when these people walk around, saying that the Bible is true, that there is a God just this discussion alone proves just how fallible that thinking is if the word of God is divinely inspired, it shouldn’t be changed. It shouldn’t be altered. There shouldn’t be multiple versions you shouldn’t have to pay for it because that is the only way that you can get your hands on the “word of God “. None of this makes any sense and I don’t know why people don’t wake up and realize that it is all man-made mythology with the same bases. In fact, as the Greek gods are the Roman gods or the Viking gods or the Hindu gods or any gods. It just blows my mind.

[@adapssis]

As an Assyriologist I would think it relevant for Megan to ask Bart about the Peshitta version which the Assyrian Church of the East proclaim it as a more accurate version and precedes any Greek translation of the Bible. Love your show BTW Megan.

[@mandomayhem]

I want to hear more about Bert's Grandfather

[@joeg46Highlands]

A study of Reggae lyrics showed the KJB as the primary influence on the language and vocabulary, with Shakespeare coming in second.

[@garrygiordano4059]

Especially liked how in Daniel, a birth by a young woman is used as a metaphor for the passage of time, not the prediction of a coming Messiah.

[@IscariotHeartwork]

I don't see anything about Tyndale being burned at the stake for his translation.

[@Jd-808]

Could be because he wasn’t

[@zapkvr]

There's a issue of Nationl Geograpihic from 2011 celebrating the 500th anniversary of the KJV. I commend it to you. Fascinating