Lineage of the King James Bible

Compiled by Dr. Ken Matto

The King James Bible has a very Godly lineage dating back to the original autographs and has been transmitted to us through the ages without corruption because God promised that His Word would be preserved by Himself so subsequent generations of Christians would have the same authoritative words as the Early Church. Below are the names of the earlier versions of which the King James Bible drew its incorruption from.

If you have a pastor in your church that discards the King James Bible as inferior to other Bible Translations, then he has been seriously deceived.  If the KJB was inferior would God have used it to literally evangelize the world?

THE OLD TESTAMENT

The Masoretic Text

1524-25 Bomberg Edition of the Masoretic Text also known as the Ben Chayyim Text

THE NEW TESTAMENT

All dates are Anno Domini (A.D.)

30-95------------Original Autographs
95-150----------Greek Vulgate (Copy of Originals)
120---------------The Waldensian Bible
150---------------The Peshitta (Syrian Copy)
150-400--------Papyrus Readings of the Receptus
157--------------The Italic Bible - From the Old Latin Vulgate used in Northern Italy
157--------------The Old Latin Vulgate
177--------------The Gallic Bible
350--------------The Gothic Version of Ulfilas
350-400-------The Textus Receptus is Dominant Text
400--------------Augustine favors Textus Receptus
400--------------The Armenian Bible (Translated by Mesrob)
400--------------The Old Syriac
450--------------The Palestinian Syriac Version
450-1450------Byzantine Text Dominant (Textus Receptus)
508--------------Philoxenian - by Chorepiscopos Polycarp, who commissioned by Philoxenos of Mabbug
500-1500------Uncial Readings of Receptus (Codices)
616--------------Harclean Syriac (Translated by Thomas of Harqel - Revision of 508 Philoxenian)
864--------------Slavonic
1100-1300----The Latin Bible of the Waldensians (History goes back as far as the 2nd century as people of the Vaudoix Valley)
1160------------The Romaunt Version (Waldensian)
1300-1500----The Latin Bible of the Albigenses
1382-1550----The Latin Bible of the Lollards
1384------------The Wycliffe Bible
1516------------Erasmus's First Edition Greek New Testament
1522------------Erasmus's Third Edition Published
1522-1534----Martin Luther's German Bible (1)
1525------------Tyndale Version
1534------------Tyndale's Amended Version
1534------------Colinaeus' Receptus
1535------------Coverdale Version
1535------------Lefevre's French Bible
1537------------Olivetan's French Bible
1537------------Matthew's Bible (John Rogers Printer)
1539------------Taverner's Bible
1539------------The Great Bible
1541------------Swedish Upsala Bible by Laurentius
1550------------Stephanus Receptus (St. Stephen's Text)
1550------------Danish Christian III Bible
1558------------Biestken's Dutch Work
1560------------The Geneva Bible
1565------------Theodore Beza's Receptus
1568------------The Bishop's Bible
1569------------Spanish Translation by Cassiodoro de Reyna
1587------------Geneva Bible ("Imprinted at London by Christopher Barker, Printer to the Qveenes Maiestie. 1587. Cum priuilegio." )
1598------------Theodore Beza's Text
1602------------Czech Version
1607------------Diodati Italian Version
1611------------The King James Bible with Apocrypha between Old and New Testament
1613------------The King James Bible (Apocrypha Removed) (2)
1769------------4th update of the English Language in the King James Bible

We have in our possession today the 4th update of the King James Bible. It was done to update the English language only. No translation work was done.

(1) Out of the Bible which was translated by Martin Luther came True Bibles in the following languages: Russian, French, Norwegian, Spanish, Italian, Bulgarian, Rumanian, Swiss, Swedish, Austrian and Czech Bibles.

(2) Out of the 1611 KJV came a Bible in the following languages: Chinese, Burmese, Malayan, Japanese, Persian, Arabic, Hebrew, American and many others.

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