Luke 12:11 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.
And when they bring you unto the synagogues, and magistrates, and powers, take ye no thought how or what thing ye shall answer, or what ye shall say:
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.
And when they bring you before the synagogues, and the rulers, and the authorities, be not anxious how or what ye shall answer, or what ye shall say:
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
But when they bring you before the synagogues and rulers and the authorities, be not careful how or what ye shall answer, or what ye shall say;
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
`And when they bring you before the synagogues, and the rulers, and the authorities, be not anxious how or what ye may reply, or what ye may say,
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.
When they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, don’t be anxious how or what you will answer, or what you will say;
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
Whenever they take you before the synagogue Courts or the magistrates or other authorities, do not be anxious as to how you will defend yourselves, or what your defense will be, or what you will say;
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
Whenever they take you before the synagogue Courts or the magistrates or other authorities, do not be anxious as to how you will defend yourselves, or what your defence will be, or what you will say;
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.
And when they take you before the Synagogues and the authorities and the rulers, take no thought about what answers you will give, or what you will say:
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.
when they bring you before the synagogues, the rulers, and the authorities, don’t be anxious how or what you will answer, or what you will say:
Word-for-word swaps
- unto→before
- magistrates→the
- thought→the
- shall→you
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.