For English speaking people the historically most important
Bible was that produced under James of Scotland, king of Great Britain
1603-1625. The story of how that King James Version Bible became unexpectedly dominant
for centuries need not delay me here. In the 1800s it was a point of contention
in the Colony of NSW that children must be taught that ‘Bible’ in Government
schools. As recently as the 1950s it is hard to imagine any Australian English
speaking background household not having its ‘Bible’, a cultural artefact of
the day. I would say the book was a cult item with an established place; it
could be used to ‘swear’ on in court. It could press flowers. It could contain
the family history [births, deaths, marriages]. Not to say the pages were read all
that much. Our KJV Bibles were many and the Bible’s notional cultural status a
given. I think it fair to say the KJV had become an annex to English as a
language. Those days are past.
That 1611 ‘King James Version’ [KJV] is still available in
print and on the internet and is treasured by very many I think. [The KJV is
also available in a mildly revised version.] However, in view of advances in textual
studies and the changes in common language, by 1881 many scholars supported
publication of a thoroughly revised translation. Since then many versions have
followed.
Some people did not, and many do not, agree!
Separately, I posted copyright details of the versions I am using.
