Acts 24:15 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 have hope toward God, which they themselves also allow, that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.
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.
having hope toward God, which these also themselves look for, that there shall be a resurrection both of the just and unjust.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
having hope towards God, which they themselves also receive, that there is to be a resurrection both of just and unjust.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
having hope toward God, which they themselves also wait for, that there is about to be a rising again of the dead, both of righteous and unrighteous;
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.
having hope toward God, which these also themselves look for, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.
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 I have a hope that rests in God – a hope which they also cherish – that there will one day be a resurrection of good and bad alike.
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.
Hoping in God for that which they themselves are looking for, that there will be a coming back from the dead for upright men and wrongdoers.
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.
having hope toward God, which these also themselves look for, that there will be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and unjust.
Word-for-word swaps
- have→having
- themselves→these
- allow→themselves
- shall→will
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.