1 Corinthians 7:26 in 8 translations
7 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.
I suppose therefore that this is good for the present distress, that good for a man so to be.
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.
I think therefore that this is good by reason of the distress that is upon us, [namely,] that it is good for a man to be as he is.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
I think then that this is good, on account of the present necessity, that [it is] good for a man to remain so as he is.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
I suppose, therefore, this to be good because of the present necessity, that it is good for a man that the matter be thus: --
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.
Therefore I think that because of the distress that is on us, that it’s good for a man to remain as he is.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
These 2 editions word this verse identically.
I think, then, that, in view of the time of suffering that has now come upon us, what I have already said is best – that a man should remain as he is.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
Simplified English
Built from a deliberately small vocabulary so the sense stays reachable for new readers and non-native speakers. Trades nuance for clarity.
In my opinion then, because of the present trouble, it is good for a man to keep as he is.
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.
therefore I think that because of the distress, that is on us, that it’s good for a man to remain as he is.
Word-for-word swaps
- for→because
- be→remain
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.