The King James Bible: Why this Story?

Why this Story – about a 400 year-old Book? A simple answer: Because of its effect on: (1) the nation’s leaders; (2) the nation’s life; (3) the nation’s enemies.

(1) The nation’s leaders. e.g. HRH Charles, the Prince of Wales. This is an American Independent KJB Baptist pastor quoting The Daily Telegraph, Dec. 20, 1989, no. 41,832, his emphases.

“According to the Prince of Wales…the English language “has become impoverished, sloppy, and limited, a dismal wasteland”…The Prince accused the editors of the [new bibles] of “making changes in the Authorized Version, just to lower the tone, and believing that the rest of us wouldn’t get the point if the word of God was a bit over our heads.” The Prince went on, “the word of God is supposed to be a bit over our heads, elevated as God is.”

Never heard it put better anywhere. It will never be said to anybody over here any better…This is the King with the King’s English, and “where the word of a King is, there is power” [Ecclesiastes 8:4a].”” That’s a remarkable effect of a 400 year-old Book on the future king, especially insofar as he appears to think the same about that Book over 20 years later.

(2) The nation’s life. Here are two statements about the effect of the 1611 Holy Bible on the nation’s life. The first is from the Roman Catholic writer F. W. Faber, speaking in the mid-19th century. “Who will not say that the uncommon beauty and marvellous English of the Protestant Bible is not one of the great strongholds of heresy [Protestant Bible belief] in this country? It lives on the ear like music that can never be forgotten, like the sound of church bells. Its felicities often seem to be things rather than words. It is part of the national mind, and the anchor of national seriousness.” The second is from the noted historian, Dr David Starkey from his series Monarchy and the episode on King James 1st. “The King James Version of the Bible, more than any other book, formed the English language and shaped the English mind.” According to these men, the 1611 Holy Bible principally “shaped the English mind” and was “part of the national mind.” That is a significant effect of a 400 year-old Book during those 4 centuries on the nation’s life.

(3) The nation’s enemies. Charles Chiniquy was a 19th century French-Canadian Catholic priest. He was a Catholic for 50 years and a priest for 25 of those years. After he got saved, Chiniquy issued this solemn warning. “It is a fact that to-day, almost all over the world, the Church of Rome grants permission to read the Bible…But I will here ask the Roman Catholics, “To whom do you owe that privilege and honour of a Bible in your house? Is it to your Church?” Oh! no, for if your Church could be free to fulfil her own laws you would be sent to gaol; nay you would be burnt on a scaffold for that Bible. But you owe that privilege to the glorious British Protestant flag which protects you – wherever it floats on the breeze, no Pope, no priest will dare to trouble you for that Bible – they let you possess and read that holy book because they cannot help it.” Chiniquy’s statement indicates that “the glorious British Protestant flag” enabled even Catholics to read what many at the time perceived as the glorious British Protestant Bible. That’s quite an effect of a now 400 year-old Book on the nation’s enemies.