2 Corinthians 8:6 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.
Insomuch that we desired Titus, that as he had begun, so he would also finish in you the same grace also.
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.
Insomuch that we exhorted Titus, that as he made a beginning before, so he would also complete in you this grace also.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
So that we begged Titus that, according as he had before begun, so he would also complete as to you this grace also;
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
so that we exhorted Titus, that, according as he did begin before, so also he may finish to you also this favour,
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.
So we urged Titus, that as he had made a beginning before, so he would also complete in you this grace.
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.
And this led us beg Titus, since he had started the work for you, he should also see to the completion of this expression of your love.
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.
So that we made a request to Titus that, as he had made a start before, so he might make this grace complete in you.
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.
So we urged Titus, that as he had made a beginning before, so he would also complete in you this grace
Word-for-word swaps
- that→So
- desired→urged
- begun→made
- finish→complete
- same→this
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.