Amos 3:2 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.
You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.
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.
You only have I known of all the families of the earth: therefore I will visit upon you all your iniquities.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore will I visit upon you all your iniquities.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
Only you I have known of all families of the land, Therefore I charge on you all your iniquities.
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.
“I have only chosen you of all the families of the earth. Therefore I will punish you for all of your sins.”
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.
You alone have I cared for of all the nations of the world, this is why I will punish you for your crimes.
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.
You only of all the families of the earth have I taken care of: for this reason I will send punishment on you for all your sins.
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.
I have only chosen you of all the families of the earth: therefore I will punish you for all of your sins.”
Word-for-word swaps
- known→have
- iniquities→sins
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.