What Is the 1611 King James Bible?

Original photo by 칼빈500, stylized in Procreate (license information)

The 1611 King James Bible (a.k.a. the KJV or original KJV) is the original version of the King James Version of the Bible, which was completed and released in 1611 A.D., hence the name.

Was the 1611 KJV the First English Bible?

The 1611 KJV Bible was not the first English translation; that would be the Wycliffe’s Bible, which was translated from the Latin Vulgate. There were at least eight complete English translations of the Bible before that:

• Wycliffe’s Bible (1388)
• Coverdale Bible (1535)
• Matthew’s Bible (1537)
• Great Bible (1539)
• Taverner’s Bible (1539)
• Geneva Bible (1560)
• Bishop’s Bible (1568)
• Douay-Rheims Bible (1610)

Some of those Bibles continued to be updated as new scholarly information was learned and as new ancient documents were discovered and studied. That’s also why new versions were translated, because translators sometimes disagreed about how to translate certain ancient texts into English or which ancient texts should be considered the most authoritative or original. That’s actually part of the reason why the 1611 KJV was written.

Why Was the 1611 KJV Written?

My understanding is that there were sociopolitical motivations for King James’s support of the KJV translation project. He was inheriting a kingdom in the midst of Catholic/Protestant tensions, as well as pressures from more fundamentalist groups, such as the Puritans. Additionally, different versions of the Bible were being used in different contexts, with clergy preferring certain versions while non-clergy had access to different versions outside of worship. Further complicating matters, King James’s mother, Mary, Queen of Scots, had been Roman Catholic, while his predecessor, Queen Elizabeth, had been Protestant.

The KJV, having been commissioned by the king, wasn’t the explicit property of any church, and so was more accessible to the public. This was empowering for Protestants who now had direct access to an English Bible apart from any particular church hierarchy and especially so for groups such as the Puritans who used the KJV when they were colonizing North America.

As for the translators, one of the motivations for proposing the project in first place was disagreements about some of the other English translations. The KJV translators and King James all desired a new translation, so their goals were aligned.

What Sources Were Used to Translate the 1611 KJV?

The following sources were used to translate the 1611 KJV:

• Masoretic Text: Hebrew and Aramaic texts of the Hebrew Bible
• Textus Receptus: Greek texts of the New Testament
• Tyndale New Testament: William Tyndale’s translation of the New Testament from the Masoretic Text and Martin Luther’s German Bible.
• Erasmus Manuscripts: various Greek manuscripts collected by Erasmus
• Theodore Beza’s 1598 Edition: the fifth edition of Beza’s Greek translations that later became part of the Textus Receptus

Many of these same sources were used for previous versions of English translations, but as mentioned above, translations differed depending on which documents translators thought were more authoritative or original, as well as on theological grounds. Those disagreements were part of the motivation for translators to propose the project in the first place.

“He” and “She” Bibles

Some of the 1611 King James Bibles have “He” or “She” on the cover or spine. The one in the header image indicates “He”, although it might be tough to see with the stylization. This specifically refers to a difference of translation for Ruth 3:15. According to the Museum of the Bible:

In one edition of the 1611 King James Bible, Ruth 3:15 reads, “he went into the cit[y],” referring to the character of Boaz. This edition is called the “He” Bible. The other 1611 edition reads, “she went into the cit[y],” referring to Ruth, earning it the name, the “She” Bible.

Translations still differ on this particular word. For example, the KJV currently uses “she” without a footnote, and the NKJV uses “she” with the following footnote:

Many Heb. mss., Syr., Vg. she; MT, LXX, Tg. he

Ruth 3, NKJV

Conversely, the NRSVUE uses “he” without a footnote, while the NIV uses “he” with the following footnote:

Most Hebrew manuscripts; many Hebrew manuscripts, Vulgate and Syriac she

Ruth 3, NIV

What Books are Included in the 1611 KJV?

The 1611 KJV included the 66 books that are standard in all Protestant Bibles today, plus a collection of apocrypha.

Old Testament

New Testament

Apocrypha

The New King James Version (NKJV), which is the most recent version of the KJV, doesn’t usually include the apocrypha; generally, it only has the 66 standard books of the Protestant canon. Any particular verses that were changed or omitted were changed because of new Biblical scholar information about authentic ancient texts or better translation techniques, but it’s important to remember that translation teams also have other goals that guide their efforts. Some are focused on word-for-word translations, while others may be focused on consistency within a particular doctrinal framework. Still others, like the KJV, may want to preserve a poetic aesthetic or particular flow of certain passages.

Ultimately, translation is interpretation, and the details will differ from team to team and context to context.

Disclaimer

As always, these FAQ posts aren’t exhaustive. They’re just brief introductions to questions and topics — jumping off points to help you on your journey. You can contact me if you’d like to ask a question or request a more in-depth look at a particular topic, and you can check out some of the Bible Study or Theology posts for more.

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