Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1881-02-17
a(istellaueuus &eadiug.
NEW TESTAMENT CHANGES.

NEW TESTAMENT CHANGES.
FAMILIAR PASSAGES AS THEY READ IN THE
REVISED EDITION.
The revision of the New Testament, which
was begun under the direction Of the Convo.
cation Of Canterbury ten years ago, was com.
pleted last October, and the new version is
now in print, although it has not yet been
given to the public. The work is the result
of the deliberations of two committees, one
of fifty learned Biblical scholars in England
and one Of thirty in this country. The two
committees did not meet together and take
Joint action, but corresponded with each 9th
er and compared notes, and, as general
thing. were able to agree upon the proper
reading of the texts In cases of disagree
ment, the text of the British committee is
used, but the reading of the American COM
mittee is given in an appendix, so that the
reader or student has before him both trans
lations. The only copies of the book in this
country are those which have been sent to
members of the American committee, Of
which the Rev. DR.. Phillip Schaff is the pres
ident, and they are pledged not to show them
to any person, or give any information as to
the changes made in the texts Of the King
James version, until the new version is for
nally approved and adopted by the Convo.
cation Of Canterbury. DR.. Schaf said last
week that the Convocation would meet early
in February, and, as soon as it approved the
version, the revised New Testament would be
given to the world. The American commit
tee has taken out no copyright on the book,
and the intention is to give it to the public
free, as the old Bible has been given. In
very few days at furthest, if the Convocation
approves of the revision, the hook will be
published, and everybody will then be at lib.
erty to compare it with the old version.
Notwithstanding the precaution taken by
the two committees to prevent any portions
of the revision from being brought before the
public before its formal adoption by the Con-
vocation, the main features of the work are
known to the religious world. Copies of the
book were sent 10 Church of England papers
to be used in preparing reviews a strict in
junction being laid upon the editors against
printing any portion of the text or any re.
view of the book before the action Of the
Convocation. The London Record disregard
ed this injunction, and published review on
the 9TH instant, quoting literally from the
work to show where and in what manner the
text had been changed. The following week
the Record apologized for this publication,
saying it was the result of mistake but
the apology could not recall the passages
which had been made public, so that the main
features of the revised New Testament are al
| l., IN no
to day as they will bs after the book is pub
lished. Those who imagined that any Of the
accepted fundamental doctrines Of Christian
ity were to be overturned by the work Of the
committee will find themselves greatly mis-
taken In very few instances has any text
been changed so as to alter the meaning
which attached to it in the King James ver-
sion, and in still fewer instances is the change
material from doctrinal point of view. AS
general thing, the changes consist of the
substitution of the present for the past tense
in the verbs, the use Of the indefinite article
in place of the definite, and the changing of
propositions. In several instances verses have
been omitted altogether, but as a general
thing the omission detracts nothing from the
sense of the lesson. AS an example of this,
MAI Ia may NC CiteN' LII lA0 p'So
ent version the verses read as follows:
"43. And if thy hand offend thee, cut it
, off: it is better for thee to enter into life
MANNED, than to have two hands to 60 into
hell, into the fire that never shall be quenched
, "44 Where their worm dieth not and the
, fire is not quenched.
f as. And if thy foot offend thee, cut it off
it is better for thee to enter halt into life
) than having two feet to be cast into hell
, into the fire that is never quenched."
, "46. Where their worm dieth not and the
2 fire is not quenched."
Verses Al and 46 in the above are entirely
8 the same chapter, which is in precisely the
, same words is allowed to stand. The work
e is arranged in paragraphs, and the chapters
J.. and verses are printed in the margins. The
, familiar head lines to the chapters which
: serve so well as means of reference are eX
: plunged. This will make the book seen
!, strange to the ordinary Bible reader. The
t text Of each Gospel is thus made continuous
/ in the body of the book from the beginning
2 to the end, and in order to find the subdi
= visions with which one has been familiar
!. the margins must be consulted. The work
of trapslation has been very faithfully per
r formed, and the committees have adhered
i scrupulously to the idioms of the origina
0 language, instead Of adopting the English
y idiom, as the public was led to believe tha
9 they would do The result is that the worl
h is very scholarly, but the text is not SO plail
i as it might have been made by frecr trans
lation. The changes, on the whole, are no
= of character to create any alarm in th
mind of Christians Not single accepted
f, truth has been eliminated, and no specia
o doctrine Of the Church is assailed.
# Among the more striking changes may b
: noted an alteration in the Lords Prayer, a
$ rendered in Matthew, vi, 9-l3. In the new
version the doxology is entirely omitted, an.
|. the Prayer reads thus: "Our Father, whlc!
e art in Heaven, hallowed he thy name TIL.
il kingdom come. Thy will be done, as il
o Heaven. 50 on earth Give US this day on
II daily bread, and forgive us our debts as "
also have forgiven our debtors. And lead u