Bible Verses
Translation comparison

Deuteronomy 29:15 in 6 translations

6 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.

King James Version
KJV

But with that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with that not here with us this day:

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.

American Standard Version
ASV

but with him that standeth here with us this day before Jehovah our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day

1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.

Darby Bible
DARBY

but with him that standeth here with us this day before Jehovah our God, and with him that is not here with us this day

1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.

Young's Literal Translation
YLT

but with him who is here with us, standing to-day before Jehovah our God, and with him who is not here with us to-day,

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.

World English Bible
WEB

but with those who stand here with us today before Yahweh our God, and also with those who are not here with us today

2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.

Simplified English

Built from a deliberately small vocabulary so the sense stays reachable for new readers and non-native speakers. Trades nuance for clarity.

Bible in Basic English
BBE

But with everyone who is here with us today before the Lord our God, as well as with those who are not here:

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 with those who stand here with us today before Yahweh our God, and also with those who are not here with us today

Word-for-word swaps

  • standeththose
  • daytoday
  • LORDYahweh
  • thatthose

The verses either side

King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.

14Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath;
15But with that standeth here with us this day before the LORD our God, and also with that not here with us this day:
16(For ye know how we have dwelt in the land of Egypt; and how we came through the nations which ye passed by;

Not shown for this verse: Open English Bible (US), Open English Bible (Commonwealth). Those translations are still incomplete in the corpus, and empty cards are not padded in.