Mark 11:2 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 saith unto them, Go your way into the village over against you: and as soon as ye be entered into it, ye shall find a colt tied, whereon never man sat; loose him, and bring
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 saith unto them, Go your way into the village that is over against you: and straightway as ye enter into it, ye shall find a colt tied, whereon no man ever yet sat; loose him, and bring him.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
and says to them, Go into the village which is over against you, and immediately on entering into it ye will find a colt tied, upon which no [child] of man has ever sat: loose it and lead it [here].
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 saith to them, `Go away to the village that is over-against you, and immediately, entering into it, ye shall find a colt tied, on which no one of men hath sat, having loosed it, bring it:
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.
and said to them, “Go your way into the village that is opposite you. Immediately as you enter into it, you will find a young donkey tied, on which no one has sat. Untie him, and bring him.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
“Go to the village facing you,” he said, “and, as soon as you get there, you will find a foal tethered, which no one has ever ridden; untie it, and bring it.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
‘Go to the village facing you,’ he said, ‘and, as soon as you get there, you will find a foal tethered, which no one has ever ridden; untie it, and bring it.
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 said to them, Go into the little town opposite: and when you come to it, you will see a young ass with a cord round his neck, on which no man has ever been seated; let him loose, and come back with 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.
And said to them, Go your way into the village that is opposite you: Immediately as you enter into it, you will find a young donkey tied, on which no one has sat; Untie him, and bring him.
Word-for-word swaps
- unto→said
- against→that
- soon→Immediately
- entered→you
- shall→you
- colt→young
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.