The King James Version of the Bible was commissioned during the reign of King James I of England. At the Hampton Court Conference in 1604, John Rainolds proposed that a new English translation be prepared. King James approved the idea, and the completed Bible was published in 1611.
The new translation was intended for use in churches and by English-speaking readers. In time, it became commonly known as the King James Version or the Authorized Version.
The work was divided among six companies of scholars located at Westminster, Oxford, and Cambridge. Different companies were assigned different portions of the Bible.
The translators worked with the biblical languages: Hebrew and Aramaic for the Old Testament and Greek for the New Testament. Under their translation rules, the Bishops’ Bible served as the primary English basis for the revision. The scholars also consulted earlier English Bibles and other available resources.
Their work passed through several levels of review. Each company examined its assigned books, and completed sections were reviewed by other translators. This cooperative process limited the influence of any one person and helped produce consistency throughout the translation.
The first edition appeared in 1611. Its spelling, punctuation, typeface, and page design looked considerably different from the KJV commonly printed today.
Later editions corrected printing errors and standardized spelling and punctuation. The wording remained substantially the King James translation, but most modern KJV Bibles reflect editorial work completed in later editions rather than reproducing every typographical feature of the original 1611 printing.
The Old Testament was written primarily in Hebrew, with some portions written in Aramaic. The New Testament was written in Greek.
No original handwritten copy produced by a biblical author is known to survive. The biblical text has been preserved through manuscript copies made and transmitted across many centuries.
The traditional Hebrew text of the Old Testament was preserved with great care by Jewish scribes. The Masoretes later added written marks to help preserve pronunciation and reading traditions.
Other important witnesses include the Dead Sea Scrolls and ancient translations such as the Septuagint, a Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures. Comparing these sources helps scholars study how the Old Testament text was transmitted.
Thousands of Greek New Testament manuscripts and manuscript fragments are known today. They include papyri, manuscripts written in capital Greek letters, manuscripts written in later lowercase scripts, and books containing passages arranged for public worship.
Ancient translations and quotations preserved in early Christian writings also provide evidence for the New Testament text.
Because manuscripts were copied by hand, small differences sometimes appeared between copies. Most involve spelling, word order, or accidental omissions and repetitions. Scholars compare the available manuscripts to identify these differences and evaluate the earliest recoverable wording.
The translators of the King James Version worked with the biblical manuscripts and scholarly resources available in their time. Manuscripts discovered and studied in later centuries have given scholars additional evidence, but the KJV remains one of the most influential and widely recognized English Bible translations.
Its language has shaped Christian worship, preaching, literature, and English expression for more than four centuries.
Drew’s Animals provides the King James Version online so visitors can freely read and study God’s Word.