The King James Version (KJV) of the Bible has exercised a remarkable influence on the church and the world since it was first published in 1611. The general accuracy of its renderings, the striking majesty of its style, and the wide acceptance of its translations, among other excellencies, have made the KJV the most significant translation of the Bible into the English language — or into any language. As a result, it might seem petty and ungrateful to critique the KJV, but there are a number of places where a problem in its rendering of the original language has fostered significant confusion and even error in the churches. And those problems have endured to the present day, so that these unfortunate translations deserve both identification and correction.
However, before launching into an occasional post about these (mis)translations, it only fair to notice one of the KJV’s most significant correct translations. The KJV renders the Great Commission in the Gospel of Matthew as “Go therefore and teach all nations” (28:19a). Here, “all nations”, as nations, are the object of the evangelistic endeavors of the church, sent by the Mediatorial King, Jesus. As He had just said: “All authority has given to Me in heaven and on earth” (28:16 NKJV). Subsequent translations have changed “all nations” to “of all the nations”. The mission of Jesus has been downgraded, from seeking the conversion of nations — as such — into covenantal conformity to God and His Way (KJV), into seeking to win a few here and there to the good news of salvation from sin through the work of Jesus (modern translations). The KJV helps us in this way to keep our focused on the great purpose of the Only Mediator between God and man: all nations serving God through the mediation of Christ.
