Philippians 1:22 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.
But if I live in the flesh, this the fruit of my labour: yet what I shall choose I wot not.
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 if to live in the flesh, --[if] this shall bring fruit from my work, then what I shall choose I know not.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
but if to live in flesh [is my lot], this is for me worth the while: and what I shall choose I cannot tell.
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 if to live in the flesh is to me a fruit of work, then what shall I choose? I know not;
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 if I live on in the flesh, this will bring fruit from my work; yet I don’t know what I will choose.
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 what if the life here in the body – if this brings me fruit from my labors? Then which to choose I cannot tell! I am sorely perplexed either way!
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
But what if the life here in the body – if this brings me fruit from my labours? Then which to choose I cannot tell! I am sorely perplexed either way!
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 if I go on living in the flesh--if this is the fruit of my work--then I do not see what decision to make.
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 if I live on in the flesh, this will bring fruit from my work; yet I don’t know what I will choose
Word-for-word swaps
- the→will
- of→from
- labour→work
- shall→will
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.