2 Corinthians 8:20 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.
Avoiding this, that no man should blame us in this abundance which is administered by us:
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.
Avoiding this, that any man should blame us in [the matter of] this bounty which is ministered by us:
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
avoiding this, that any one should blame us in this abundance [which is] administered by us;
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
avoiding this, lest any one may blame us in this abundance that is ministered by us,
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.
We are avoiding this, that any man should blame us concerning this abundance which is administered by us.
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.
What we are specially guarding against is that any fault should be found with us in regard to our administration of this charitable fund;
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.
And so that no man might be able to say anything against us in the business of this giving which has been put into our hands:
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.
We are Avoiding this, that any man should blame us concerning this abundance which is administered by us:
Word-for-word swaps
- no→any
- in→concerning
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.