John 17:9 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.
I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me; for they are thine.
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.
I pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for those whom thou hast given me; for they are thine:
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
I demand concerning them; I do not demand concerning the world, but concerning those whom thou hast given me, for they are thine,
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
`I ask in regard to them; not in regard to the world do I ask, but in regard to those whom Thou hast given to me, because Thine they are,
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 pray for them. I don’t pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me, for they are yours.
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.
I intercede for them; I am not interceding for the world, but for those whom you has given me, for they are your own –
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.
My prayer is for them: my prayer is not for the world, but for those whom you have given to me, because they are yours
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 pray for them: I don’t pray for the world, but for those whom you have given me; for they are yours.
Word-for-word swaps
- hast→those
- thine→yours
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.