Mark 5:20 in 8 translations
7 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 he departed, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all did marvel.
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 he went his way, and began to publish in Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him: and all men marvelled.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And he went away and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how great things Jesus had done for him; and all wondered.
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 went away, and began to proclaim in the Decapolis how great things Jesus did to him, and all were wondering.
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.
He went his way, and began to proclaim in Decapolis how Jesus had done great things for him, and everyone marveled.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
These 2 editions word this verse identically.
So the man went, and began to proclaim in the district of the Ten Towns all that Jesus had done for him; and everyone was amazed.
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
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 he went on his way, and made public in the country of Decapolis what great things Jesus had done for him: and all men were full of wonder.
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.
he went his way, and began to proclaim in Decapolis how Jesus had done great things for him: and everyone marveled.
Word-for-word swaps
- departed→went
- publish→proclaim
- marvel→everyone
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.