Acts 18:21 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.
But bade them farewell, saying, I must by all means keep this feast that cometh in Jerusalem: but I will return again unto you, if God will. And he sailed from Ephesus.
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.
but taking his leave of them, and saying, I will return again unto you if God will, he set sail from Ephesus.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
but bade them farewell, saying, [I must by all means keep the coming feast at Jerusalem]; I will return to you again, if God will: and he sailed away from Ephesus.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
but took leave of them, saying, `It behoveth me by all means the coming feast to keep at Jerusalem, and again I will return unto you--God willing.' And he sailed from Ephesus,
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.
but taking his leave of them, he said, “I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem, but I will return again to you if God wills.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
as he took his leave, “I will come back again to you, please God,” and then set sail from Ephesus.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
as he took his leave, ‘I will come back again to you, please God,’ and then set sail from Ephesus.
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.
And went from them, saying, I will come back to you if God lets me; and he took ship from Ephesus.
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.
But taking his leave of them he said, I must by all means keep this coming feast in Jerusalem: but I will return again to you, if God wills.” Then he set sail from Ephesus.
Word-for-word swaps
- bade→taking
- saying→he
- unto→to
- And→wills
- sailed→set
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.