2 Peter 1:17 in 8 translations
8 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 he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
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 he received from God the Father honor and glory, when there was borne such a voice to him by the Majestic Glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased:
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
For he received from God [the] Father honour and glory, such a voice being uttered to him by the excellent glory: This is my beloved Son, in whom *I* have found my delight;
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 having received from God the Father honour and glory, such a voice being borne to him by the excellent glory: `This is My Son--the beloved, in whom I was well pleased;'
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 he received from God the Father honor and glory, when the voice came to him from the Majestic Glory, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
For he received honor and glory from God the Father, when from the glory of the Divine Majesty there were borne to his ears words such as these – ‘This is my dearly loved son, who brings me great joy.’
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
For he received honour and glory from God the Father, when from the glory of the Divine Majesty there were borne to his ears words such as these – “This is my dearly loved son, who brings me great joy.”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · The Commonwealth spelling edition of the Open English Bible. Identical wording to the US edition apart from spelling.
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 God the Father gave him honour and glory, when such a voice came to him out of the great glory, saying, This is my dearly loved Son, with whom I am well pleased.
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 he received from God the Father honor and glory, when the voice came to him from the Majestic glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.
Word-for-word swaps
- honour→honor
- a→the
- excellent→Majestic
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.