1 Timothy 6:15 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.
Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
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.
which in its own times he shall show, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
which in its own time the blessed and only Ruler shall shew, the King of those that reign, and Lord of those that exercise lordship;
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
which in His own times He shall shew--the blessed and only potentate, the King of the kings and Lord of the lords,
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.
which in its own times he will show, who is the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
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.
This will be brought about in his own time by the one ever-blessed Potentate, the king of all kings and Lord of all lords,
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.
Which at the right time he will make clear, who is the eternal and only Ruler, King of kings, and Lord of lords;
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.
Which in its own times he will show, who is the blessed and only Ruler, the King of kings, and Lord of lords;
Word-for-word swaps
- his→its
- shew→will
- Potentate→Ruler
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.