Philippians 1:23 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.
For I am in a strait betwixt two, having a desire to depart, and to be with Christ; which is far better:
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 I am in a strait betwixt the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ; for it is very far better:
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
But I am pressed by both, having the desire for departure and being with Christ, [for] [it is] very much better,
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
for I am pressed by the two, having the desire to depart, and to be with Christ, for it is far better,
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 I am in a dilemma between the two, having the desire to depart and be with Christ, which is far better.
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.
My own desire is to depart and be with Christ, for this would be far better.
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.
I am in a hard position between the two, having a desire to go away and be with Christ, which is very much better:
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 I am in a dilemma between the two, having the desire to depart, and be with Christ; which is far better:
Word-for-word swaps
- For→But
- betwixt→dilemma
- a→the
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.