Luke 20:2 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 spake unto him, saying, Tell us, by what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this authority?
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 they spake, saying unto him, Tell us: By what authority doest thou these things? or who is he that gave thee this authority?
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
and spoke to him saying, Tell us by what authority thou doest these things, or who is it who has given thee this authority?
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 spake unto him, saying, `Tell us by what authority thou dost these things? or who is he that gave to thee this authority?'
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.
They asked him, “Tell us: by what authority do you do these things? Or who is giving you this authority?”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
and addressing him, said, “Tell us what authority you have to do these things. Who is it who has given you this authority?”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
and addressing him, said, ‘Tell us what authority you have to do these things. Who is it who has given you this authority?’
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.
That the chief priests and the scribes and the rulers of the people came to him and said, Make clear to us by what authority you do these things and who gave you this authority.
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.
They asked him, Tell us, by what authority do you do these things? or who is giving you this authority?
Word-for-word swaps
- unto→They
- thou→do
- thee→giving
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.