Luke 21:37 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 in the day time he was teaching in the temple; and at night he went out, and abode in the mount that is called of Olives.
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 every day he was teaching in the temple; and every night he went out, and lodged in the mount that is called Olivet.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And by day he was teaching in the temple, and by night, going out, he remained abroad on the mountain called [the mount] of Olives;
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 he was during the days in the temple teaching, and during the nights, going forth, he was lodging at the mount called of Olives;
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.
Every day Jesus was teaching in the temple, and every night he would go out and spend the night on the mountain that is called Olivet.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
During the days, Jesus continued to teach in the Temple Courts, but he went out and spent the nights on the hill called the ‘Mount of Olives.’
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
During the days, Jesus continued to teach in the Temple Courts, but he went out and spent the nights on the hill called the “Mount of Olives.”
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 every day he was teaching in the Temple and every night he went out to the mountain which is named the Mountain of Olives to take his rest.
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.
Every day Jesus was teaching in the temple; and every night he would go out, and spend the night on the mountain that is called Olivet.
Word-for-word swaps
- the→Every
- he→Jesus
- at→every
- went→would
- in→spend
- mount→night
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.