Order of Events in the Transmission of the New Testament Text
The following is a synopsis of the things I learned after reading The Origin of the Bible, edited by Phillip Comfort, with chapters contributed by scholars such as F. F. Bruce, Carl F. H. Henry, J. I. Packer and Leland Ryken among others. I highly recommend this book for those who would like to learn the facts regarding New Testament textual criticism. Having come out of an Independent Baptist, King-James Only perspective, this topic is dear to me, although I am not an expert. What follows is my synopsis only, with links to names or concepts that may warrant further study.
If you are knowledgable of the facts below, are not King-James Onlyist, and detect any inaccuracy, feel free to speak up and correct what I’ve written. Of course, if you are King James Onlyist, feel free to engage me in dialogue about it. Again, I’m no scholar, I just wanted to put this info down to help solidify in my mind that which I read in the book. But I posted it because I wanted it to benefit anyone it can. I admit the information listed below is kind of condensed, which may make it a little difficult to comprehend. Feel free to also ask me to clarify what I’ve written, if necessary.
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Original Autographs
- Early faithful copies
- “Western” or “Popular” Text copies (independent copies all seeking to “improve” the text by either harmonizing events or parallel passages, smoothing out awkward language, emphasizing doctrinal aspects)
- “Alexandrian” or “Polished” Text, begins taking shape through a long process of classifying manuscripts and applying textual critical methods to recover the original readings, developing a superior type of text, although some original readings are “polished” (and thus corrupted) and are instead preserved by the Western or Byzantine Texts.
- Concurrent with the ongoing efforts of Alexandrian scholarship, Lucian of Antioch, Syria, (head of the theological school in that city) edits a recension (revision) of the Western Text, conflating (combining) variant readings and smoothing out awkward language. Subsequently, Roman emperor Diocletian persecutes the Church and confiscates Bibles. After Constantine legislates tolerance for Christianity, copies of Lucian’s recension of the Western Text of the New Testament are distributed among the Eastern churches by bishops trained at Lucian’s theological school. This becomes the dominant type of text during the Byzantine era, and is classified as the Byzantine Text. This also becomes the text of Protestant Christianity after the fall of Byzantine civilization and the westward migration of eastern Greek manuscripts, including Byzantine New Testament manuscripts. Hence the formation of the Textus Receptus.
- Usage of the Greek language falls out of use in the Mediterranean region and so the demand for copies of the Alexandrian Text of the New Testament is diminished until the type of text is largely lost to Christendom, although traces of it are retained in the Latin Vulgate and other versions. About 1481 Codex Vaticanus is discovered and placed in the Vatican’s library, but it is not until the 19th century before the bulk of Alexandrian manuscripts is discovered and begins to influence the work of textual critics.
- The two strands meet when in 1881, the Authorized Version (based on the Textus Receptus) is revised utilizing Alexandrian scholarship to create the English Revised Version, which revolutionizes the work of English Bible translation, culminating in the Nestle/Aland/UBS critical editions of the Greek New Testament which brings the New Testament to as close proximity to the original wording of the New Testament as has yet been achieved.
You Just Gotta Check Out The ESV Study Bible!
You just gotta see this! If you don’t own a study Bible yet, don’t bother shopping around. The ultimate study Bible is going to be released on October 15, 2008. Many of my Reformed blogging buddies are already aware of this monumental achievement, and most are undoubtedly awaiting it’s arrival as eagerly as I am, even though we’ve already got a shelf full of various study Bibles. But for those of you who are shy of solid resources that can help you understand the meaning of Scripture, the backgrounds of the places in the Bible, even instruction on Christian living, ethics and material that can clue you in on what many of the major world religions believe as compared with what the Bible teaches (and who knows what else?), your search need go no further. The ESV Study Bible will provide all of this for you, and then some, with full color maps and illustrations all over the place!
I just watched some of the promotional videos describing the project, the vision behind it and the contents of the product, and it is intended to be the equivalent of a miniature version of a multi-volume library on a broad cross-section of information vital to not only learning the Word of God, but also to personal growth in grace, and even to aid in the work of gospel ministry. The ESV Study Bible promises to be useful to layman, teacher and pastor alike.
Take a look at the following videos, hosted by PCA pastor and grandson to Billy Graham, Tullian Tchividjian , in which he will introduce the purpose of the ESV Study Bible and then take you on a guided tour of the contents. Seeing is believing . . .
If you’d like to see more of the videos, they are available at the Video Resources page of the ESV Study Bible website, which you can access by clicking on the colorful button near the top of the sidebar, just under the portrait of our blog mascot and namesake.
Even though the ESV Study Bible will come in a variety of bindings including the traditional leather, it’s so chock full of amazing resources that it may prove a bit cumbersome, were one wanting to carry it to church. In my opinion, this isn’t that kind of Bible. It’s a study resource, not a tag along Sunday-go-to-meetin’ Bible. For that reason, I’m getting the hardback edition, which comes with the additional feature of being the least expensive of all the varieties. But I must confess, that when, Lord willing, I obtain my copy, I may not be able to part with it for a few weeks, so it may in fact tag along with me to church now and then. But I’ll try to pay attention to the sermon, anyway. 😉
What Illuminates Your Path?
Mark Dever, pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, D. C., the successor to Dr. Carl F. H. Henry, founder of 9Marks Ministries
, and speaker at bi-annual “Together for the Gospel” conferences, has written a great post on “The Bondage of Guidance,” in which he bursts the bubble of those who don’t realize that waiting for God’s “still, small voice” to direct all of your decision making, is really a form of mysticism which can undermine the sufficiency of Scripture. Many have heard this practice prescribed from pulpits for so long, that even those who confess faith inthe sufficiency of Scripture are among its chief proponents and practitioners.
Subjectivism reigns among modern American Christians. Otherwise orthodox believers who grew up being taught the memory verse, “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path” (Psalm 119:105, KJV), even having grown up singing these words with Amy Grant, yea, and even the generations prior to ours, regularly turn from the objective divine guidance recorded for them in the Bible, praying for wisdom and acting on their “sanctified common sense,” and wait with Elijah to mystically hear God speak directly to them in the “still, small voice” to guide them in their daily decision-making process.
Nothing will do our systems better than to give them a good flushing out with some Bible-based objectivism. Read Dever’s post (linked above), and then go over to the blog of my buddy, Gage Browning’s church, Grace Community Presbyterian Church and read the helpful discussion of this same post in their post, “What To Do, What To Do . . . “
But first, here’s an excerpt from Dever’s sage counsel on seeking guidance from God’s will:
I do believe that God’s Spirit will sometimes lead us subjectively. So, for instance, I am choosing to spend my life here on Capitol Hill because my wife & I sensed in 1993 that that is what God wanted us to do. However, I realized then (and now) that I could be wrong about that supposition. Scripture is NEVER wrong.
There is also some interesting and relevant discussion about the general tendency of American Christianity toward gnostic-like mysticism in yesterday’s episode of the White Horse Inn to which I have linked in the sidebar. About twenty-one minutes into the program, host Michael Horton quotes the provocative words of a critic of American Christianity which we discount to our own discredit:
‘Whatever the stated doctrinal positions that stated American Evangelicalism shares with historic Christianity, Mormons and Southern Baptists call themselves Christians, but, like most Americans, they’re closer to ancient gnostics than to early Christians.
(Gulp!)
The Sign of Jonah: What Christ’s Resurrection Says About Jesus, Believers and Unbelievers
Matthew 12:38 Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.”
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They just saw him cast a demon out of a blind and mute man, and they said he did it by the power of the devil. But it was really a sign that the kingdom of God has come, and they refused to believe it and will be judged. He also said they said bad things about him because they don’t believe and don’t want to repent. Like a bad tree bears bad fruit, so does a bad heart speak unbelieving, sinful words in response to God’s Word.
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Having seen and denied a sign, they want one done on demand, wanting to condemn him if he doesn’t.
39 But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah.
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They are not true children of Abraham, but of the devil (John 8:39-47). Abraham heard the gospel and believed, they hear it and deny it, because they are not of God.
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Jesus won’t do tricks on demand, so the only sign they get is a reminder of a past prophet.
40 “For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.
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Jonah signifies Jesus in that he experienced a kind of death and resurrection over a three-day period just as Jesus would one day.
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The resurrection is one of the most important teachings about Jesus there is in the Bible: 1) it tells us things about Jesus: a. His claims as Judge and Savior are true (Acts 17:31; 1 Cor. 15:1-11, 20) b.Jesus’ victory over death (Acts 2:24; 1 Cor. 15:54-57) c. Jesus’ righteousness (John 16:10) d. Jesus’ deity (Romans 1:4) e. Jesus’ resurrection leads to his ascension and enthronement, so identifies him as King (Acts 1:9-11; 2:33-34; Phil. 2:9-11; cf. Isa. 53:10-12) f. Jesus is our Great High Priest forever (Heb. 7:16-17) 2) it tells us things about believers: a. Signifies their forgiveness and justification (Romans 4:25; 1 Cor. 15:17;Heb.7:24-25) b.Signifies their hope of resurrection in the future (Romans 6:4-11; 1 Cor. 15:42-57) c. Signifies their life to God and death to sin, the power of which is defeated by the resurrection (Romans 6:11). Believers can resist temptation, if you remind yourself of the fact that Jesus’ resurrection means sin is not your lord anymore. d. Without it, their faith would be worthless, they’d still be condemned to suffer the consequences of their own sin, and have no hope of eternal life in resurrected bodies (1 Cor. 15:12-20).
3) it tell us things about unbelievers (See following verses):
41 “The men of Nineveh will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah, and behold, something greater than Jonah is here.
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Jesus’ resurrection signifies that the unrepentant will suffer the consequences of their sins, because they rejected the preaching of the greatest Prophet, whereas the people of Ninevah repented at the preaching of Jonah.
42 “The queen of the South will rise up at the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon, and behold, something greater than Solomon is here.
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To add weight to this testimony, Jesus refers to another example of Gentiles gladly receiving from types of Christ, and this fact makes the scribes’ and Pharisees’ rejection of Jesus that much more dangerous to them.
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Remember that when you hear the Word of God, God will judge you on whether you believe his promises, and whether you repent and obey when you hear his commands. If you love Jesus, you will believe what he says, like Abraham, and you will obey his commands.
Jesus’ “Lost Years” Found In the New Testament
In my post last Sunday morning, I blogged about Lee Strobel’s book defending “the Real Jesus.” With this topic fresh in my mind, as well as the Sunday School lesson which I’d prepared for that morning, when class began, during our conversation with the children before the lesson, one of them asked out of the blue where Jesus was between the time he was a kid and the time he began his public ministry. I could tell immediately where he was going. Naturally, he followed up by saying his dad had been watching the History Channel and heard that people say Jesus went to India for some time between the ages of 12 and thirty. In the providence of God, my lesson for the day was from Luke 2:39-52, the account of “The Boy Jesus in the Temple,” as the heading over this passage in the English Standard Version describes it.
I’m not terribly familiar with the claims regarding Jesus’ reputed trip to India, spread by those outside the realm of orthodox Christianity. However, having perused the search engine and scanned a few sites (like this one, for example) and Wikipedia articles (like the one on the gnostic Acts of Thomas and the theosophical Aquarian Gospel), I’ve hit upon the apparent basis for the theory that Jesus went to India as a boy. I’d probably already be more clued in about it if I didn’t avoid History Channel programs of this nature and other popular sources of info on the secularized revisionist research on the “historical Jesus.” But I’m getting ahead of myself.
My immediate response to my student was that there are a lot of people who like Jesus, but who don’t believe the Bible. Often, they are people or groups from other religions that associate Jesus with their beliefs in an attempt to lend credibility to them, or for some other reason. In the middle of giving this summary of where stories like that come from, a verse from my lesson came to mind. “Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the Feast of the Passover” (Luke 2:41). After I glanced at the passage for a minute, it became clear to me that even though the verse doesn’t say, “Now Jesus and his parents went . . . ” the context indicates that when his parents went to Jerusalem every year, so did Jesus.
It seems I’ve found a piece of New Testament evidence that would indicate that Jesus of Nazareth did not, in fact, ever go to India, or on any fanciful “magical mystery tour” of eastern religions between the ages of 12 and 30, as suggested by the Aquarian Gospel, but was with his parents every year when they went to Jerusalem to celebrate the Feast of Passover.
Evangelical Defense of the Biblical Historical Jesus
Many Reformed Christians often decry the glut of Evangelical literature on the market. We frequently wring our hands about how much literature available at your local Christian bookstore isn’t worth buying. For example, I have a friend who always says that you can find better Christian books at Barnes & Noble. I know what he means, and I don’t disagree. However, when those of us with high expectations for Christian books spend all of our time talking about the undesirable aspects of the Evangelical literature, we forget that with the bad comes the good.
I, for one, am glad that the Evangelical bookselling market is there to regularly defending the reliability of the Bible on a popular level against the constant onslaught of critical, skeptical, cynical and outright irreverent and disrespectful “search for the historical Jesus.” I added irreverent and disrespectful with Ann Rice’s comments about her opinion of the critical scholarship she’s read over the years in her historical research for her writings. When I find the article I read in which her opinion was cited, I’ll update this post. But I digress. I’m glad the Evangelical Booksellers market is there if only to provide on a popular level a defense of the reliability of the biblical account of Jesus of Nazareth. The Bible makes lots of historical and theological claims about Jesus, and we, as Evangelicals, are obligated to believe the Word of God on these issues. If we are willing to believe the spiritual revelation about Jesus in the Bible, we’d better be prepared to believe the historical revelation about him, too. After all, Jesus told Nicodemus in John chapter three, “If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things?” (John 3:12) The historical reliability of the Bible (“earthly things”) is part of the basis for the reliability of the theological reliability of the Bible (“heavenly things”).
That’s why, one day, I hope to get around to reading Lee Strobel’s book, The Case for the Real Jesus. You can check out Zondervan’s website with lots of promotional material about it. But right now, I’m having too much fun along the same lines with one of Zondervan’s other great recent releases, The NIV Archeological Study Bible!
The Delusion of Extreme KJV Onlyism
In this simple paragraph from the Massachusetts General School Law of 1647, aka “The Old Deluder Satan Law”
Yt being one cheife piect of ye ould deluder, Satan, to keepe men from the knowledge of ye Scriptures, as in formr times by keeping ym in an unknowne tongue, so in these lattr times by pswading from ye use of tongues, yt so at least ye true sense & meaning of ye originall might be clouded by false glosses of saint seeming deceivers, yt learning may not be buried in ye grave of or fathrs in ye church & comonwealth, the Lord assisting or endeavors,—
lt is therefore ordred yt evry towneship in this jurisdiction, aftr ye Lord hath increased ym to ye number of 50 householdrs, shall then forthwth appoint one wthin their towne to teach all such children as shall resort to him to write & reade, whose wages whall be paid eithr by ye parents or mastrs of such children, or by ye inhabitants in genrall, by way of supply, as ye maior pt of those yt ordr ye prudentials of ye towne shall appoint; pvided, those yt send their children be not oppressed by paying much more ytn they can have tm taught for in othr townes; & it is furthr ordered, yt where any towne shall increase to ye numbr of 100 families or househouldrs, they shall set up a gramer schoole, ye mr thereof being able to instruct youth so farr as they may be fited for ye university, pvided, yt if any towne neglect ye pformance hereof above one yeare, yt every such towne shall pay 5 Ito ye next schoole till they shall pforme this order.
Now, let me revise the above highlighted clause in order to make it easier to read.
“. . . so in these latter times by persuading from the use of tongues, that so at least the true sense and meaning of the original [Old Testament Hebrew & New Testament Greek, that is] might be clouded by false glosses of saint-seeming deceivers . . . ”
What is the moral of this story? If you simply prefer the use of the King James Version of the Holy Scriptures for your own personal study and devotional reading, or even if you believe after a considerate examination of the issues of textual criticism, that it is best to retain the Byzantine readings of the New Testament, and therefore ought to not revise the King James Version with a modern, eclectic, critical Greek text, this post does not criticize your view (even though I certainly disagree with your view). But if you believe that the King James Version of the Bible was given by the special inspiration of God, and that it’s English text is superior to the lost original Hebrew and Greek manuscripts for the simple reason that we can hold the KJV in our hands, while we cannot hold the original manuscripts in our hands, and that therefore, we need not bother burdening our congregations with recourse to the original languages to properly interpret the words of the KJV, the Massachusetts General School Law of 1647 identifies those who would undermine the need to understand the Word of God in the original languages as “saint-seeming deceivers” whose efforts would in effect, bury learning in the graves of our fathers in the church. If only you would see the error of your ways, and stop deceiving unlearned believers under your care that it’s dangerous to “correct the King James” with anything, even the sense of the original Hebrew and Greek languages.
Hanegraaff’s Handy Headknowledge Helpers
Introduction
Resurrection of Antichrist
Racial Discrimination
Real Estate
Exegetical Eschatology (e2): Method vs. Model
Literal Principle
Illumination Principle
Grammatical Principle
Historical Principle
Typology Principle
Scriptural Synergy
Literal Principle: Reading the Bible as Literature
Form
Figurative Language
Fantasy Imagery
Illumination Principle: Faithful Illumination vs. Fertile Imagination
Two Distinct People
Two Distinct Plans
Two Distinct Phases
Grammatical Principle: “It depends on the meaning of the word is”
This Generation
The Pronoun You
The Adverb Soon
Historical Principle: Historical Realities vs. Historical Revisionism
Location
Essence
Genre
Author
Context
Years
Typology Principle: The Golden Key
The Holy Land
The Holy City
The Holy Temple
Scriptural Synergy: The Code Breaker
Supreme Rule
Substance or Shadow
Sacrificing Traditions
Riplinger, the author of such enduring KJV-Only classics as New Age Bible Versions and In Awe of Thy Word: Understanding the King James Bible/Its Mystery & History Letter By Letter, making a case for the greater mnemonic benefit derived from translating in the inspired King’s English, generally attempts to emulate the KJV’s memorability by resorting not only to alliteration, but also to clever turns of phrase and at times resorts to rhymes (sorry, just couldn’t help myself). Here’s a sample from New Age Bible Versions . . .
Now compare this with the way Hanegraaff almost alliterates an entire paragraph on page 53 of The Apocalypse Code:
“As God had promised Abraham real estate, he had also promised him a royal seed. Joshua led the children of Israel into the regions of Palestine; Jesus will one day lead his children into the restoration of Paradise. There they will forever experience rest. From Adam’s rebellion to Abraham’s Royal Seed, the Scriptures chronicle God’s one unfolding plan for the redemption of humanity. Far from a postponement in God’s plans because the Jews crucified Jesus, Scripture reveals the fulfillment of God’s plans in the crucifixion. For only through faith in Christ’s death and his subsequent resurrection can God’s one covenant community find rest from their wanderings (Hebrews 4:1-11). In Christ—“the last Adam” (1 Corinthians 15:45)—God’s promises find ultimate fulfillment. As Paul so elegantly put it, “If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise” (Galatians 3:29). [emphasis mine]
Now, I agree that it is indeed helpful to receive a memorable outline, and alliteration can help the reader associate parallel concepts. For this I do not fault Hanegraaff. It was simply the rate of such devices, especially in chapter three (so far) that got me giggling about his how his writing was reminiscent of Riplinger (there I go again!).
The Apocalypse Code, overall, is a very good book, but it seems to desperately try to tick off Dispensationalists, especially by associating Dispensationalism, Darby’s quaint nineteenth century theory from the British isles, with evolution, Darwin’s quaint nineteenth century theory from the British isles which lead to the fallacious science of eugenics and culminated in the twentieth century holocaust. Hanegraaff likewise charges that Dispensationalism may create its own self-fulfillment of their literal interpretation of the Battle of Armageddon, resulting in a future holocaust of the Jews they so mean to bless (Gen. 12:3). While the two seem to parallel effectively, Hanegraaff may deserve whatever charges of sensationalism he may receive.
Buy the book and read it. It will aid in communicating the heterodoxy of Dispensationalism to its victims, and will help lead many of them toward more orthodox eschatology. And enjoy the entertainment value eminently evidenced in Hank’s exposition of “exegetical eschatology.”
From Rasict Ruckmanism to Reformed Theology
The KJV Code Revisited
What precedent is there in Scripture, history or the disciplines of textual criticism or translation theory/practice for demanding a static translated text? There is none. There are anecdotal cases to which KJV onlyists could appeal, like the superstitious exaltation of the Septuagint, but these are erroneous and would prove utterly ineffective to persuade the bulk of orthodox scholarship to adapt everything to this invalid line of reasoning. Besides, radical KJV onlyists deny the validity of the Septuagint, and wouldn’t want to go there. This leaves them all alone with their novel theory.
Fundamentalists Contra Mundum!
That’s when it hit me! Fundamentalists contra mundum! Fundamentalists who seem to be against everything that’s going on in the broader Christian world except what’s going on within the four walls of their own churches, and the small group of churches with whom they are willing to extend genuine fellowship are like a photographic negative of the man for whom this Latin nickname was coined. There for a minute I considered telling my friend the story of Athanasius, who famously stood “against the world” (contra mundum) to defend the orthodox view of the Trinity and the deity of Christ during the Council of Nicea, but he had plenty of other things on his mind so before I had another chance to speak, the thought had escaped me. But now it’s back, and I thought it was a cute enough little association that serves to underscore the hyper-separatism of fundamentalism, that I just had to share it with you.The KJV Code
Actually, for Riplinger to focus in on every word and letter of the KJV as divinely placed by God and therefore, never to be changed, is nothing new. In this book, Riplinger goes into painstaking detail how to construct a definition of the words in the King James Version by its context. Contending that modern dictionaries mislead modern readers as to the definitions of archaic King James words sometimes, she suggests, instead of getting a version translated in more modern English, the faithful King James Onlyist should get older dictionaries!
Like an environmentalist worrying about the delicate balance of the ecology, the King James Onlyist dares not to disturb the inspired wording of the King James Version, lest eternal verities which can only be mined from its decaying pages are lost forever, as if the gates of hell would prevail against the church if twenty-first century Christians read the Word of God translated for them in the language of twenty-first century Christians, using twenty-first century biblical textual scholarship.
Pray for those in your circle of influence who are involved with such paranoid isolationism that the Lord may reveal to them the weakness of the case built by King James Only propagandists like Gail Riplinger, Peter Ruckman, Bill Grady and others of their extreme persuasion.
Riplinger’s Mythology Regarding Wycliffe and the Latin Vulgate
The myth that Wycliffe had no access to the original languages is discounted by Wycliffe himself who said that he had access to Hebrew Old Testament manuscripts which were in “complete agreement” with the Old Latin text he followed. He adds, “[T]he Jews were dispersed among the nations, taking with them their Hebrew manuscripts. Now this happened . . . that we (Christians, not Wycliffe and his fellow editors, specifically–CHK) might have recourse to their manuscripts as witnesses to the fact that there is no difference in the sense found in our Latin books and those Hebrew ones” (Truth, p. 157). He also makes reference to manuscripts being “corrected according to the Greek exemplar.” Once Jerome’s text was corrected, there was “complete agreement of his translation [Wycliffe’s] with the Hebrew and Greek manuscripts” (Truth, pp. 143,157 et al.).
Part Two: The Authority of Scripture
Part Three: The Divine Origin of Scripture
Part Four: Scripture as the Law of Christendom
Riplinger Fails Pop Quiz
First, Riplinger attempts to document that “Wycliffe had access to Hebrew Old Testament manuscripts which were in ‘complete agreement’ with the Old Latin [purportedly followed by] Wycliffe” (In Awe of Thy Word, p. 788).Jerry & Jimmy: History Repeats Itself
Modern extreme fundamentalists seem to refuse to learn the lessons of even their own Protestant heritage, and in this way, among others, repeat the mistakes of history. Fundamentalist discouragement of critical thinking and study is a tyranny comparable to that of medieval Roman Catholicism, while exposure to the views of the broader evangelical community in regard to textual critical and translational issues will inevitably prove both enlightening and liberating to the truth-seeking fundamentalist. Words Martin Luther directed toward the tyranny of the medieval Roman Catholic Church apply well to modern Protestant fundamentalist King James Onlyists: ” 90. To suppress them by force alone, and not to refute them by giving reasons, is to expose the church and the pope to the ridicule of their enemies, and to make Christian people unhappy. ” Although King James Onlyists don’t have the civil authority to literally force their followers to abstain from modern biblical scholarship and modern Bible translations, and do, in fact, offer reasons for this expectation, the social pressure exerted in their preaching and personal relationships, likewise “makes Christian people unhappy” who seek to honestly examine for themselves the competing claims of both sides of the English Bible Version debate.
The Misadventures of Captain Headknowledge 