2 Corinthians 5:14 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.
For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that if one died for all, then were all dead:
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.
For the love of Christ constraineth us; because we thus judge, that one died for all, therefore all died;
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
For the love of the Christ constrains us, having judged this: that one died for all, then all have died;
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
for the love of the Christ doth constrain us, having judged thus: that if one for all died, then the whole died,
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.
For the love of Christ constrains us; because we judge thus, that one died for all, therefore all died.
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.
It is the love of the Christ which compels us, when we reflect that, as one died for all, therefore all died;
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.
For it is the love of Christ which is moving us; because we are of the opinion that if one was put to death for all, then all have undergone death;
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.
For the love of Christ constrains us; because we judge, thus, that one died for all, therefore all died.
Word-for-word swaps
- constraineth→constrains
- were→therefore
- dead→died
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.