Who Was King James?
An interesting article appeared recently in "Christian History Magazine" by
Elesha Coffman, Assistant Editor of Christian History magazine. The article
simply gives some history concerning the life and character of King James of
England, who authorized scholars to translate a new English language version of
the Bible. This version has been the most widely used version among English
speaking people for several centuries and has proven itself reliable, though not
perfect. The most serious objection to it usually made has to do more with
archaic language than mistranslation, though these can be found as well.
The magazine article reports on a January 12, 1604 meeting over which King James
presided over at his estate at Hampton Court. The gathering included English
bishops and the leaders of the Puritan movement. The Puritans were calling for
church reforms, and one of their was the need for a new Bible translation. King
James, a student of theology himself, promptly approved. "I have never yet seen
a Bible well-translated," he said. Work began in 1607, and the first copy
appeared in print in 1611. Yes, at one time even the KJV was "one of them modern
translations."
Although often called the "Authorized Version," the translation was only
authorized by its own title page. The authority is of man, not God, that
this is the Bible that "is to be read in the churches." Not everyone liked this,
mistrusting the "newfangled" version. And there were complaints about some of
its inconsistencies. But it must be admitted that it was a big improvement over
the earlier Bishops' and Geneva Bibles.
The article asks: "But just how honorable was James?" The answer is given: "Not
very." King James liked the bishops, and was enraged by the Puritan's request to
be freed from their authority. He would often interpret laws to favor the
bishops, and they, in turn, would ignore his faults, including drunkeness and
very likely deviant sex.
At any rate, there are some interesting insights into the man. In Biblical
history, we find God using not only imperfect men and women, but sometimes
wicked unbelievers to advance His purpose, including Nebuchadnezzar, Pharaoh,
Judas and Pilate to name a few.
By Jon W. Quinn
The Front Page
From Expository Files 7.2; February 2000
