Mark 10:37 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.
They said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and the other on thy left hand, in thy glory.
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 said unto him, Grant unto us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and one on [thy] left hand, in thy glory.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And they said to him, Give to us that we may sit, one on thy right hand, and one on thy left hand, in thy glory.
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 said to him, `Grant to us that, one on thy right hand and one on thy left, we may sit in thy glory;'
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 said to him, “Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right hand, and one at your left hand, in your glory.”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
“Grant us this,” they answered, “to sit, one on your right, and the other on your left, when you come in glory.”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
‘Grant us this,’ they answered, ‘to sit, one on your right, and the other on your left, when you come in glory.’
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 they said to him, Let us be seated, one at your right hand and one at your left, in your glory.
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 said to him, Grant to us that we may sit, one at your right hand, and one at your left hand, in your glory.
Word-for-word swaps
- unto→to
- thy→at
- thy→one
- thy→your
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.