Hebrews 1:14 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.
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?
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.
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation?
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out for service on account of those who shall inherit salvation?
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
are they not all spirits of service--for ministration being sent forth because of those about to inherit salvation?
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.
Aren’t they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
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.
Are not all the angels spirits in the service of God, sent out to minister for the sake of those who are destined to obtain salvation?
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.
Are they not all helping spirits, who are sent out as servants to those whose heritage will be salvation?
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.
Aren’t they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?
Word-for-word swaps
- Are→Aren’t
- ministering→serving
- forth→out
- minister→do
- heirs→the
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.