The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1912-11-23
BaptiStS Make Many Changes
in Holy Writ.
Aim to Rid Pulpit of Sixteenth
Century DictiOn.
WHALE MYSTERY is SOLVED
Adam and Eve Are Eliminated
in New Version.
"Under WOrId'' Is Substituted
for Hell i'm Luke 16.

Philadelphia, Pa, Nov. 23.-The
new improved Bible recently published
by the American Baptist Publication
society will eventually rid pulpit pray
er of sixteenth century diction, accord
ing to DR.. C. Kingsley Rowland, Sec
rotary of the society.
| 1.-The scholars who have prepared
| the translation for the Baptist Bible, u
said DR.. Rowland. "have aimed, Sc
far as it was consistent with strict in
| depreciation of the thought. to elimi-
| nate obsolete EHizabethan words and
! to replace them with those in general
modern use. The substitution of the
I monosyllables love and lead for the
archaic forms 'loveth and 'leadeth
marks but one instance where the
English of the King James version has
given way to that in currency today.
f'It is my belief that the new edition
will eventually eliminate Anticipated
language from pulpit supplication.
Prayer has always been modelled af-
ter Biblical expression of thought,
and a change in the former, I believe,
will follow the change in the latter"
Solve the Whale Issue.
With its modern phraseoIogy and
new verbal clothing designed to give
the Word wider dissemination through
a more popular presentation, the Bap-
fist Bible has aroused much comment
in the world of thought and religion.
Since its appearance a few days ago
thousands long familiar with the King
James version or the Douay Catholic
Bible have been busy comparing the
new translation with the older edi-
tions.
The story of the whale and the
prophet has for years been bone of
contention among Christians arsu-
mentatively inclined, and has been re-
sponsible fer the backsliding OF many
doubling Thomases-" Men OF science
have long admitted that whales. at
least modern whales, would choke to
death on a loaf of bread, and there
fore, when celebrating upon the ao-
normal esephagus credited to Jonah,s
whale, have been forced to accept with
consideration the murmurs of the In
The Baptist Bible, however. has
solved the issue. 1t has substituted
the indefinite great fish" for the spe-
cific whale as a nearer interpreta-
ton Of the ancient Hebrew.
Changes in Commandments.
In the effort to give the new edi-
ton greater lucidity of expression
not even the ten commandments have
escaped. Love thy God" is replaced
by Jehovah thy God" and still more
startling alterations have been made
in the working of the second law.
The great commandment defining
mans duty to God reads as follows
in the translation prepared for King
James:
9aThou shalt not make unto thee any
craven image, or any likeness of any
thing that is in heaven above or that
is in the earth beneath, or that is in
the water under the earth; thou shalt
not bow down to them nor serve them; /,
for I the Lord thy God am a Jealous
God. visiting the iniquity of the ia
theirs upon the children unto the third +
and fourth generation of them that |
hate me, and showing mercy unto |
thousands of them that love me and |
keep my commandments"
The same passage in the Baptist
edition reads as follows:
Thou shalt not make to thee
carved image or any likeness of what
Is in the heavens above, or or what
is in the earth beneath, or of what is
in the waters beneath the earth; thou
shalt not bow thyseH down to them
nor serve them; for I Jehovah thy
God am a Jealous God, visiting the
niaufty of the fathers upon sons, upon
the third generation and upon the
fourth generation of them that hate
me, and showing mercy to the thou
sandth generation of them that love
me and keep my commandments"
Includes Countless Numbers.
Thus the obsolete craven" Is re-
placed with carved" by the Baptist
scholars in dealing with the above
The iniquity of the
fathers is visited upon sons in the
Baptist translation, instead of upon
he children" as in the King James
version.
The most apparent change, how
ever is the substitution of showing
mercy to the thousandth generation
Tor of showing mercy unto thou
sands"
Dr. Rowland pointed out that 'the
generation" is more
expression for divine
owe, and, extending over ages of
ime, includes in it's meaning count
ess numbers more than a thousand.
"Adann'' and "Eve'' Eliminated.
Genesis, with its outline of Chris
ian cosmogony has also suffered
,ome change. In the Baptist Bible
ne name of Adam does not appear.
rhe father of the human race is
Hebrew meaning of Adam. Eve" be-
comes the woman since the Hebrew
Interpretation of Eve was simply
Woman.
The sixteenth chapter of Luke elm
mates the word hell as the name of {
u bterrestiaI realms and replaces it
With under world" The verse affect
d by the change now reads:
And / also say to thee that thou {
ut Peter, and on this rock I will
uild my church, and the gates of
he under world shall not prevail
gainst it, I
All the portions of the Bible which
re written in poetry are printed in
heir verse form. The Psalms again
ppear in a form approximating the y
ncient Hebrew, with the divided line