1 Peter 4:10 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.
As every man hath received the gift, minister the same one to another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
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.
according as each hath received a gift, ministering it among yourselves, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God;
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
each according as he has received a gift, ministering it to one another, as good stewards of [the] various grace of God.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
each, according as he received a gift, to one another ministering it, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God;
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.
As each has received a gift, employ it in serving one another, as good managers of the grace of God in its various forms.
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.
Whatever the gift that each has received, use it in the service of others, as good stewards of the varied bounty of God.
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.
Making distribution among one another of whatever has been given to you, like true servants of the unmeasured grace of God;
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.
As each has received a gift, employ it in serving one another, as good managers of the grace of God. in its various forms.
Word-for-word swaps
- hath→each
- the→a
- same→employ
- stewards→managers
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.