Acts 13:39 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.
And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
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.
and by him every one that believeth is justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
and from all things from which ye could not be justified in the law of Moses, in him every one that believes is justified.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
and from all things from which ye were not able in the law of Moses to be declared righteous, in this one every one who is believing is declared righteous;
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.
and by him everyone who believes is justified from all things, from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
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 that, in union with him, everyone who believes in him is absolved from every sin from which under the Law of Moses you could not be absolved.
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 through him everyone who has faith is made free from all those things, from which the law of Moses was not able to make you free.
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.
And by him everyone who believes is justified from all things, from which you could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Word-for-word swaps
- are→everyone
- ye→you
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.