Lesson #20--So
Which Translation Should I Use? (Part 5)
V. The New King James Version (1982)
A. It's hard to believe that the New" King James Version
is now over 15 years old! This revision project sponsored by Thomas
Nelson Publishers involved 119 scholars, seven years of labor, and 4.5 million
dollars. Thomas Nelson made many extravagant claims about the new version, stating that it
was the "first major revision of the classic Bible in more
than 200 years" and that its production was "the
most important event in Bible publishing since the original King James was released in
1611." In 1984 Nelson launched an advertising campaign costing 1.6
million dollars which described the NKJV as The Accurate One.
B. All scholars who participated in the project signed a document which stated
that they believed in the complete, verbal (plenary)
inspiration of the original autographs of the Bible. Their stated aim was to update the
readability and accuracy of the KJV to reflect modern scholarship and English usage. "Where obsolescence and other reading difficulties exist,"
they stated, "present-day vocabulary, punctuation, and
grammar have been carefUlly integrated." In preparing the Old Testament
text these scholars consulted most of the manuscripts which have become available since
the original KJV was printed. They also considered the Dead Sea
Scrolls in their work. Their New Testament work, however, relies primarily on the TEXTUS RECEPTUS, which Erasmus originally translated from the Vulgate in 1516. This is the same text which the original KJV
relied on. The NKJV claims to retain "every verse of the
original translation" (1611 ). Interestingly, most other recent
translations follow a New Testament text other than the TEXTUS
RECEPTUS.
C. Strengths. The NKJV is a good, readable
translation. Because it remains one of the top five selling translations in America, it is
available in a variety of page and print sizes and in various bindings. Several study
Bibles and children's editions utilize this version. It does a fine job of updating the
vocabulary and usages of the original KJV.
Many who enjoy the beauty and poetry of
the original KJV, and yet who struggle with some of the archaic language, find the NKJV to
be an excellent alternative. It is one of the most recent translations completed by a
sizable group of translators who still believed in the complete inspiration of Scripture.
D. Weaknesses: One criticism of the NKJV is
that it is a curious mixture of the old and the new, retaining archaic expressions in one
place, while substituting current vocabulary in another. In Matthew 1:23, for example, the virgin shall be "with child," but in Matt. 24:19
the women are "pregnant." In some places
the Greek word porneia is translated "fornication" (Gal. 5:19), and in other places
it is rendered "sexually immoral" (I Cor.
5:9-10). In some cases, the NKJV mysteriously fails to update the vocabulary. For example "offscouring" is maintained in I Cor. 4: 13 and "winebibber" is kept in Matt. 11:19. From a
scholarly standpoint, some wonder why the NKJV translators consulted most of the
manuscripts which have become available since the KJV in their Old Testament work but
relied primarily on the RECEIVED TEXT for the New Testament
