Luke 7:42 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 had nothing to pay, he frankly forgave them both. Tell me therefore, which of them will love him most?
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.
When they had not [wherewith] to pay, he forgave them both. Which of them therefore will love him most?
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
but as they had nothing to pay, he forgave both of them [their debt]: [say,] which of them therefore will love him most?
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 not having wherewith to give back, he forgave both; which then of them, say thou, will love him more?'
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 couldn’t pay, he forgave them both. Which of them therefore will love him most?”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
As they were unable to pay, he forgave them both. Which of them, do you think, will love him the more?”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
As they were unable to pay, he forgave them both. Which of them, do you think, will love him the more?’
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.
When they were unable to make payment, he made the two of them free of their debts. Which of them, now, will have the greater love for him?
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 couldn’t pay, he forgave them both. which of them therefore will love him most?
Word-for-word swaps
- to→couldn’t
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.