Recommended Reading

The Greek New Testament is the 1881 printing of the Textus Receptus edited by Frederick H. A. Scrivener, a well-respected late nineteenth century scholar. The Textus Receptus (TR), also called the Received Text, is a printed Greek New Testament that is based on the vast majority of ancient hand-written New Testament manuscripts. This massive quantity of manuscripts is called the Traditional or Byzantine Text. The King James Version New Testament was translated from the Received Text. The TR was first published in 1516.

This volume is similar to interlinears, in that it compares the Greek and English. However, it differs with many interlinears in that it does not include a separate “literal” translation. Interlinears often include a new translation or a so-called “literal” translation. The implication is that the “literal” translation is more correct than the popular translation (such as the KJV), because it is “literal.” However, literal does not always mean “literal.” Most Greek words can be translated in various ways, so the word chosen by the translator as the literal translation may actually not be the best word in the context.

Novum Testamentum Graece (The New Testament in Greek) is a critical edition of the New Testament in its original Koine Greek, forming the basis of most modern Bible translations and biblical criticism. It is also known as the Nestle–Aland edition after its most influential editors, Eberhard Nestle and Kurt Aland. The text, edited by the Institute for New Testament Textual Research, is currently in its 28th edition, abbreviated NA28.

Following intensive preparatory work, the UBS Greek New Testament, the most widely used edition of the Greek New Testament worldwide, is now available in a revised and improved edition the UBS 5th Revised Edition (UBS 5). Changes include 1) The readings of the newly discovered Papyri 117 127 have been incorporated into this edition, thereby opening up interesting perspectives particularly for Acts of the Apostles. Besides, it is now displayed in the apparatus, where selected modern Bible translations (English, German, French, Spanish) are based on a variant reading rather than the principal version of the text. 2) A special focus of the revision was on the Catholic Epistles, in which the edition has been made consistent with the Second Edition of the Editio Critica Maior and the 28th Edition of the Nestle-Aland Novum Testamentum Graece. This has led to more than 30 modifications in the reading text and resulted in a new selection of witnesses for the textual apparatus, in addition to modifications of the selection of apparatus units. 3) The Discourse Segmentation Apparatus has also undergone thorough revision. 4) Finally, the UBS 5 edition was typeset with a new, aesthetically appealing and readily legible Greek font.

The manuscripts that form the Greek New Testament are scattered throughout the world and are usually only accessible to scholars and professionals. These were the manuscripts read by the earliest Christians, which comprised their “New Testament.” In his volumes, Philip Wesley Comfort bridges the gap between these extant copies and today’s critical text by providing accurate transcriptions of the earliest New Testament manuscripts, with photographs on the facing pages so readers can see the works for themselves. Comfort also provides an introduction to each manuscript that summarizes the content, date, current location, provenance, and other essential information, including the latest findings. This allows students and scholars to make well-informed decisions about the translation and interpretation of the New Testament.

Volume 1 includes manuscripts from Papyrus 1-72. Volume 2 includes manuscripts from Papyrus 75-139 as well as from the uncials. In addition, it features a special section on determining the date of a manuscript. This two-volume set replaces the previously published single volume Text of the Earliest New Testament Greek Manuscripts, as it contains many new manuscripts, updated research, and higher quality images of all manuscripts previously covered.

Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS) is known to be the definitive edition of the Hebrew Bible. It is widely regarded as a reliable edition of the Hebrew and Aramaic scriptures and is the most widely used original-language edition among scholars.

It is a revision of the third edition of the Biblia Hebraica edited by Rudolf Kittel, the first Bible to be based on the Leningrad Codex. The Leningrad Codex is the oldest complete Hebrew Bible still preserved. It originally appeared in installments, from 1968 to 1976, with the first one-volume edition in 1977; it has since been reprinted many times. The text is a nearly exact copy of the Masoretic Text as recorded in the Leningrad Codex. The Masoretic notes are completely revised.

Included is a foreword in German, English, French, Spanish and Latin as well as an English and German key to the Latin words, abbreviations and other symbols in the critical apparatus.

Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia (BHS) Wide Margin Edition is identical in content to the Standard Edition but is larger in size and priced lower. The Wide Margin Edition gives professors and students the opportunity to make notes in their Bible as they translate the Hebrew Scriptures.

Modern Bible translations still come under attack from the King James Only camp. In this revision of a book continually in print for more than ten years, James R. White traces the development of Bible translations old and new, investigating the differences between versions like the NIV, NASB, and NKJV and the Authorized Version of 1611. Written with the layperson in mind, The King James Only Controversy leads the reader through the basic issues of the debate and into the more complex issues of textual criticism. Enlightening reading for all Christians.

Surprising Insights on the Translation Philosophy of the King James Translators.

The apparent conflict between Christ’s deity and humanity was fought out years ago, so that now Bible believers all accept the fact that Christ was perfectly human, yet without a trace of sin or a limitation of His deity. The similar paradox of the eternal perfection of the Word of God, “settled forever in heaven,” yet given in human words through human personalities, has not been so well explained and thought out. We believe that here Dr. Rice has gone further in clearing up this matter than has before been done. The teaching agrees closely with that of Gaussen, Warfield, Harris and Young. Here you will find the truth, witnessed by devoted and learned Bible scholars Charles Feinberg, R. Laird Harris and S. Maxwell Coder, as well as other trusted fundamental scholars, that the Bible was settled in God’s mind in every detail before written down on earth and that God prepared the men who wrote–Isaiah is “a polished shaft,” for example (Isa. 49:2)–and that God even prepared and controlled the environment and character and feeling of the writers so that they wrote down God’s revelation in His inspired words. Here the Bible’s clear claim to being God-breathed, perfect, eternal, is expounded; the greatest Bible expositors and authors on inspiration are quoted, questions are answered, fallacies explained, all with a holy devotion to Christ and to the Bible as the very Word of God. There has been a great need for a scholarly, thoroughly trustworthy exposition of what the Bible claims for its own inerrant, authoritative inspiration recorded in God-breathed words. Here, evangelical faith and scholarship combine with evangelistic warmth and crystal clear, flowing language. This is the documented result of forty-eight years of Bible teaching, preaching and writing, followed by monumental labor to prepare this volume. We believe the book will prove itself an indispensable classic setting the standard for Bible believers for years to come.

The King James Version has shaped the church, our worship, and our mother tongue for over 400 years. But what should we do with it today?

The KJV beautifully rendered the Scriptures into the language of turn-of-the-seventeenth-century England. Even today the King James is the most widely read Bible in the United States. The rich cadence of its Elizabethan English is recognized even by non-Christians. But English has changed a great deal over the last 400 years–and in subtle ways that very few modern readers will recognize. In Authorized Mark L. Ward, Jr. shows what exclusive readers of the KJV are missing as they read God’s word.

In their introduction to the King James Bible, the translators tell us that Christians must “heare CHRIST speaking unto them in their mother tongue.” In Authorized Mark Ward builds a case for the KJV translators’ view that English Bible translations should be readable by what they called “the very vulgar”—and what we would call “the man on the street.”

This book is the result of an exhaustive six year collation of new Bible versions, their underlying Greek manuscripts, editions, and editors. It objectively and methodically documents the hidden alliance between new versions and the New Age Movement’s One World Religion. Mrs. Riplinger’s 6-year investigation of Bible texts and translations led her to unlock the more sinister aspects to the creation of a Common “bible” based on the Alexandrian perverted texts. Very detailed, and better to read after reading some other available books. Then you will be able to understand her better. David Daniels

“The Scriptures cannot be broken.” In all of history one Bible translation best fits this description given to the true Words of God by Jesus in John 10:35. The King James Bible and its textual base are just that – Unbroken. They have stood the test of time and illustrated the power and durability of God’s Words. Those who advocate for other modern, Critical text versions must cede that their Bible was at some point broken or lost, and in need of recovery or reconstruction. The King James Bible stands unique in its incredible history of transmission, accuracy of translation and legacy of unmatched cultural, linguistic, and spiritual influence on the English speaking world and beyond.This volume is the result of the compilation of the writings of Dr. Phil Stringer on the issues related to the text of Scripture and the King James Bible. These writings represent decades of faithful scholarship and dedicated defense of the King James. May this publication be a lasting legacy to the contributions of Dr. Stringer and a help to future scholars and defenders of the Unbroken Bible.”Dr. Phil Stringer writes with the power of a preacher, the finesse of a professor, the love of a pastor, and the artful ink of a seasoned writer. There is not another author so well-fit for the subject. Phil presents the clear evidence with the profound faith of a true believer, and the kind reasoning of one who truly cares for the critic.” – Dr. Douglas Levesque, Bible Nation Society

This book is an answer to requests for more information concerning the radical textual contamination in many of our modern Bible versions. Many pamphlets have been written giving detailed information about the anti-christian background of the translators, but to the author’s knowledge no one has recently put anything in print which goes to the source of this stream of Bible manuscript pollution.

The Bible in English has fallen on hard times. Not only do some feminists see it as a format from which to transform Ancient Near Eastern, patriarchal religions into modern, 20th century paradigms of egalitarianism, but the American Bible publishing industry has reduced it to a commodity, hoping to maximize gains by imposing a marketing-manufactured consensus on conservative evangelicals, calling it the beginning of a “new tradition.” Edward F. Hills in his work The King James Version Defended represents a sober and compelling argument for the “old tradition.” As a well-trained classicist and an internationally recognized New Testament text critic, he analyzes the problems of both modern language translations and current New Testament text criticism methodology. With the sometimes widespread and uncritical acceptance of such translations as the New International Version by pastors as well as laymen, this defense of the historic, English Protestant Bible should be read by all who share an interest in these areas.

Final Authority is a thoroughly researched and documented research on the history of the King James Bible and how it came to be. Who were the translators, and how were the different bible versions translated and what were the source manuscripts. Which version can we trust to be “God’s Word” to us in this generation.

Dr. Sam Gipp is one of the best authors to read behind concerning Biblical matters. He takes the text of the King James Bible and shows Scriptural answers to inspired translations, Bible preservation, how modern version editors corrected Greek and Hebrew texts with the English.