1 Corinthians 11:24 in 8 translations
8 distinct wordings, grouped by what each translation is trying to do. Differences from the King James text are marked below.
Early modern English
Seventeenth-century wording and sentence shape. Familiar, rhythmic, and the version most quotations you have heard are taken from.
And when he had given thanks, he brake and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me.
1611 / 1769 · Public domain · The Authorised Version, revised to the 1769 Blayney text. Includes the Apocrypha as printed in 1611.
Literal, word-for-word
Follows Hebrew and Greek word order and grammar closely, even where the English becomes stiff. Useful for seeing what the underlying sentence is doing.
and when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, This is my body, which is for you: this do in remembrance of me.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
and having given thanks broke [it], and said, This is my body, which [is] for you: this do in remembrance of me.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
and having given thanks, he brake, and said, `Take ye, eat ye, this is my body, that for you is being broken; this do ye--to the remembrance of me.'
1898 · Public domain · The most extreme word-for-word rendering here, keeping Hebrew and Greek tense and word order at the cost of natural English.
Modern English
Contemporary vocabulary and punctuation, aiming for the sentence a present-day reader would write while staying close to the source.
When he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, “Take, eat. This is my body, which is broken for you. Do this in memory of me.”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
and, after saying the thanksgiving, broke it and said “This is my own body given on your behalf. Do this in memory of me.”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
and, after saying the thanksgiving, broke it and said ‘This is my own body given on your behalf. Do this in memory of me.’
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · The Commonwealth spelling edition of the Open English Bible. Identical wording to the US edition apart from spelling.
Simplified English
Built from a deliberately small vocabulary so the sense stays reachable for new readers and non-native speakers. Trades nuance for clarity.
And when it had been broken with an act of praise, he said, This is my body which is for you: do this in memory of me.
1949 · Public domain · Written with roughly a thousand basic English words plus a small Bible vocabulary. The plainest reading available here.
What changes between the King James and modern wording
The modern rendering is printed below with every word that differs from the King James text marked, so the actual divergence is visible rather than left for you to spot.
when he had given thanks, he broke it, and said, Take, eat: this is my body, which is broken for you: do this in memory of me.
Word-for-word swaps
- brake→broke
- remembrance→memory
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.