Acts 14:5 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 when there was an assault made both of the Gentiles, and also of the Jews with their rulers, to use them despitefully, and to stone them,
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 when there was made an onset both of the Gentiles and of the Jews with their rulers, to treat them shamefully and to stone them,
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And when an assault was making, both of [those of] the nations and [the] Jews with their rulers, to use [them] ill and stone them,
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 when there was a purpose both of the nations and of the Jews with their rulers to use them despitefully, and to stone them,
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.
When some of both the Gentiles and the Jews, with their rulers, made a violent attempt to mistreat and stone them,
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, when there was an attempt on the part of both Gentiles and Jews, with their leaders, to resort to violence and to stone them,
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 when a violent attempt was made by the Gentiles and the Jews, with their rulers, to make an attack on them and have them stoned,
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.
when some of both the Gentiles, and the Jews with their rulers, made a violent attempt to mistreat and stone them,
Word-for-word swaps
- both→some
- despitefully→mistreat
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.