Luke 23:23 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 they were instant with loud voices, requiring that he might be crucified. And the voices of them and of the chief priests prevailed.
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.
But they were urgent with loud voices, asking that he might be crucified. And their voices prevailed.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
But they were urgent with loud voices, begging that he might be crucified. And their voices [and those of the chief priests] prevailed.
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 they were pressing with loud voices asking him to be crucified, and their voices, and those of the chief priests, were prevailing,
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.
But they were urgent with loud voices, asking that he might be crucified. Their voices and the voices of the chief priests prevailed.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
But they persisted in loudly demanding his crucifixion; and their clamor gained the day.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
But they persisted in loudly demanding his crucifixion; and their clamour gained the day.
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.
But they went on crying out loudly, Let him be put to death on the cross. And they had their way.
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.
But they were urgent with loud voices, asking that he might be crucified. Their voices And the voices of the chief priests prevailed.
Word-for-word swaps
- And→But
- instant→urgent
- requiring→asking
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.