Modern English Bible translations


Modern English Bible translations consists of English Bible translations developed and published throughout the late modern period to the present.
A multitude of recent attempts have been made to translate the Bible into English. Most modern translations published since are based on recently published critical editions of the original Hebrew and Greek texts. These translations typically rely on the Biblia Hebraica Stuttgartensia / Biblia Hebraica Quinta, counterparted by the Novum Testamentum Graece.
With regard to the use of Bible translations among biblical scholarship, the New Revised Standard Version is used broadly, but the English Standard Version is emerging as a primary text of choice among biblical scholars and theologians inclined toward theological conservatism.

Development of Modern English Bible versions

The Wessex Gospels were the first translation of the four Gospels in English without accompanying Latin text. The Authorized King James Version of 1611 was sporadically altered until 1769, but was not thoroughly updated until the creation of the Revised Version in 1885. However, it was not until the Revised Standard Version was published that a translation that rivaled the KJV in popularity was published. The RSV gained widespread adoption among the mainstream Protestant Churches in America and a Catholic Edition was released in 1966.
In the late twentieth century, Bibles increasingly appeared that were much less literal in their approach to translation. In 1946, the New English Bible was initiated in the United Kingdom, intended to enable readers to better understand the King James Bible. In 1958, J. B. Phillips produced an edition of the New Testament letters in paraphrase, the Letters to Young Churches, so that members of his youth group could understand what the New Testament authors had written. In 1966, Good News for Modern Man, a non-literal translation of the New Testament, was released to wide acceptance. Others followed suit. The Living Bible, released in 1971, was published by its author Kenneth N. Taylor, based on the literal ASV of 1901. Taylor had begun because of the trouble his children had in understanding the literal text of the King James Bible. His work was at first intended for children, but was later positioned for marketing to high school and college students, as well as adults wishing to better understand the Bible. Like Phillips' version, the Living Bible was a dramatic departure from the King James Version.
Despite widespread criticism due to being a paraphrase rather than a translation, the popularity of The Living Bible created a demand for a new approach to translating the Bible into contemporary English called dynamic equivalence, which attempts to preserve the meaning of the original text in a readable way. Realizing the immense benefits of a Bible that was more easily accessible to the average reader, and responding to the criticisms of the Living Bible, the American Bible Society extended the Good News for Modern Man to the Good News Bible by adding the Old Testament, in this more readable style. This translation has gone on to become one of the best selling in history. In 1996, a new revision of Taylor's Living Bible was published. This New Living Translation is a full translation from the original languages rather than a paraphrase of the Bible.
Another project aimed to create something in between the very literal translation of the King James Bible and the more informal Good News Bible. The goal of this was to create a Bible that would be scholarly yet not overly formal. The result of this project was the New International Version. This version became highly popular in Evangelical Protestant circles.
The debate between the formal equivalence and dynamic equivalence translation styles has increased with the introduction of inclusive language versions. Various terms are employed to defend or attack this development, such as feminist, gender neutral, or gender accurate. New editions of some previous translations have been updated to take this change in language into account, including the New Jerusalem Bible, the New Revised Standard Version, the Revised English Bible, and Today's New International Version. Some translations have approached the issue more cautiously, such as the English Standard Version.
A further process that has assisted in greatly increasing the number of English Bible versions is the use of the Internet in producing virtual bibles, of which a growing number are beginning to appear in print – especially given the development of "print on demand".
Today, there is a range of translations ranging from the most literal, such as the Young's Literal Translation to paraphrases such as The Message and The Word on the Street.

18th and 19th century translations

20th and 21st century translations

King James Version and derivatives

The King James Version of 1611 still has an immense following, and as such there have been a number of different attempts to update or improve upon it. The [|English Revised Version and its derivatives] also stem from the King James Version.
AbbreviationNameDate
WebsterWebster's Revision of the King James Version1833
1920
CKJVChildren's King James Version Jay P. Green1960
KJ IIKing James II Version of the Bible Jay P. Green1971
KJ3/LITVKing James 3 Version of the Holy Bible 1985
KJV20King James Version—Twentieth Century Edition Jay P. Green
NKJVNew King James Version1982
KJ2121st Century King James Version1994
TMBThird Millennium Bible1998
MKJVModern King James Version by Jay P. Green1999
KJV2000King James Version 20002000
UKJVUpdated King James Version2000
KJVERKing James Version Easy Reading2001
HSEHoly Scriptures in English2001
CKJVComfort-able King James Version2003
NCPBNew Cambridge Paragraph Bible2005
AV7AV7 2006
AVUAuthorized Version Update2006
KJV-CEKing James Version—Corrected Edition
DNKJBDivine Name King James Bible2011
MCTMickelson Clarified Translation, translated by Jonathan Mickelson2008, 2013, 2015, 2019
MEVModern English Version2014
King James Bible for Catholics2020
SKJVSimplified King James Version2022

English Revised Version and derivatives

The English Revised Version was the first official attempt to update the King James Version of 1769. This was adapted in the United States as the American Standard Version. The translations and versions that stem from them are shown in date order:
AbbreviationNameDate
RV/ERVEnglish Revised Version1885
ASVAmerican Standard Version1901
RSVRevised Standard Version1952, 1971
NASBNew American Standard Bible1971, 1995, 2020
NRSVNew Revised Standard Version1989, 2021
WEBWorld English Bible2000, 2020
ESVEnglish Standard Version2001, 2025

New International Version and derivatives

The popular New International Version has appeared in a number of editions.
AbbreviationNameDate
NIVNew International Version1978, 1984, 2011
NIrVNew International Reader's Version1996, 1998, 2014
NIVINew International Version Inclusive Language Edition 1996-2002
TNIVToday's New International Version 2002-2011

Dynamic translations and paraphrases

A significant aspect in translations from the latter half of the 20th century was much greater use of the principles of dynamic equivalence.
AbbreviationNameDate
TLBThe Living Bible1971
GNT/GNB/TEVGood News Translation/Good News Bible/Today's English Version1976, 1992
TCWThe Clear Word 1994
CEVContemporary English Version1995
GWGod's Word1995
NLTNew Living Translation1996, 2004, 2015
MSGThe Message2002
RNTRestored New Testament2009
INTInterpreted New Testament2020

Internet-based translations

The New English Translation is a project to publish a translation of the Bible using the Internet. It is freely available and accompanied by extensive translator's notes. The Open English Bible aims to create the first modern public domain English translation of the Bible, using an open-source process for corrections and modernizing verses.
AbbreviationNameDate
NETNew English Translation2005
OEBOpen English BibleIn progress.
LEBLexham English Bible2011
WEBWorld English Bible2020
BSBBerean Standard Bible2022
MSBMajority Standard Bible2022
FBVFree Bible Version2023