I am not wishing for it, but I see the death of the King James Bible (KJV).
Please do not get me wrong; I am not hoping for the death of the KJV, but morning it. The faith in the KJV that I saw in the first fundamental Baptist church I attended started to change my life. I had gone to churches where various versions were read in bible studies that subconsciously hindered a complete trust in the Bible.
When I attended Bible college, I learned some wonderful things about why we should use the KJV, and I have used it for forty years. Recently I attended a Bible study at a church that did not have any standard Bible, and when people were asked to read or we read together, it was disturbing to me. The reason was I thought, how could anyone start remembering any verses? Repetition is a great teacher, but she is missing in that situation.
So what is the problem? Why is the KJV dying? I listen to many Christian programs, read articles, and use social media, and you will often hear scoffing at those who use the KJV. I know that some will try and use a verse like 2 Peter 3:3 to say they are on the right side of the issue.
It is about superstition
The main reason is the illogical and superstitious beliefs about the KJV—double inspiration is the biggest culprit. That has as much truth as a Mormon does about the Book of Mormon; it is just wishful thinking. I will not get into it because most people understand its foolishness, so most reject it.
I have followed a Twitter account called “Bad Preacher Clips,” while I don’t agree with some they post as bad, many are indefensible. The crazy thing is those who defend the KJV the most are the worst at teaching it. They tend to take a verse they like and say, “that will preach,” even though it has nothing to do with the context. Many sermons are created for what a preacher hears or reads, and then a search for verses is done to support their opinion.
An example of how bad it could be is when one preacher spoke about Eutychus; he asked where was his parents. He said so many parents are not teaching their children these days. That may be true, but that is not what the Bible taught (https://twitter.com/BadSermons/status/1658282002271854594?s=20). Another preacher wondered where the prodigal son’s momma was (https://twitter.com/BadSermons/status/1592645116057075713?s=20).
It just might be idolatry
I believe some have made the KJV translation into an idol. It is no longer understood as a translation but as something to worship. The very words are inspired so that they cannot be touched. Does anyone use the word “purtenance” anymore (Exodus 12:9)? What is a milch kine ( 1 Samuel 6:10)? It is a remnant leftover from an old German translation. Did you “wot” not that before? Or did you “wist” not it was true?
The point I am making is languages change; sometimes, it is not for good, but if it is a translation, it needs to speak with the words people understand. We don’t need to abandon the KJV, but we do need to update it. We don’t need to retranslate it; we need to adjust it.
In those “Bad preachers clips,” many are telling the congregation that fundamental churches are moving away from the KJV and that I believe it is accurate. It won’t be long before only cultish-type Baptists use it. People will be left without a standard translation they can have faith in like I did in those early days (not that I don’t today).
It is time for scholarly preachers who accurately teach the word of God to move together to have a standard based on the majority text and lose archaic words. That is easily done by simply doing a minor update to the KJV.
I know the traditions of men keep us held back, but brave men will act. If you change Jewish to KJV fundamentalist, I think it applies.
“Not giving heed to Jewish fables, and commandments of men, that turn from the truth.”
Titus 1:14