Galatians 5:13 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.
For, brethren, ye have been called unto liberty; only not liberty for an occasion to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
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.
For ye, brethren, were called for freedom; only [use] not your freedom for an occasion to the flesh, but through love be servants one to another.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
For *ye* have been called to liberty, brethren; only [do] not [turn] liberty into an opportunity to the flesh, but by love serve one another.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
For ye--to freedom ye were called, brethren, only not the freedom for an occasion to the flesh, but through the love serve ye one another,
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.
For you, brothers, were called for freedom. Only don’t use your freedom for gain to the flesh, but through love be servants to one another.
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.
Remember, friends, to you the call came to give you freedom. Only do not make your freedom an opportunity for self-indulgence, but serve one another in a loving spirit.
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.
Because you, brothers, were marked out to be free; only do not make use of your free condition to give the flesh its chance, but through love be servants one to another.
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.
For, you, brothers, were called for freedom. only don’t use your freedom for gain to the flesh, but through love be servants to one another.
Word-for-word swaps
- been→you
- liberty→for
- liberty→don’t
- occasion→gain
- by→through
- serve→be
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.