John 4:18 in 8 translations
8 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 thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: in that saidst thou truly.
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 thou hast had five husbands; and he whom thou now hast is not thy husband: this hast thou said truly.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
for thou hast had five husbands, and he whom now thou hast is not thy husband: this thou hast spoken truly.
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 five husbands thou hast had, and, now, he whom thou hast is not thy husband; this hast thou said truly.'
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 have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband. This you have said truly.”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
“For you have had five husbands, and the man with whom you are now living is not your husband; in saying that, you have spoken the truth.”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
‘For you have had five husbands, and the man with whom you are now living is not your husband; in saying that, you have spoken the truth.’
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · The Commonwealth spelling edition of the Open English Bible. Identical wording to the US edition apart from spelling.
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 have had five husbands, and the man you have now is not your husband: that was truly said.
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 have had five husbands; and he whom you now have is not your husband: This you have said truly.
Word-for-word swaps
- hast→you
- thou→you
- hast→have
- thy→your
- thou→This
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.