Philippians 2:2 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.
Fulfil ye my joy, that ye be likeminded, having the same love, of one accord, of one mind.
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.
make full my joy, that ye be of the same mind, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind;
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
fulfil my joy, that ye may think the same thing, having the same love, joined in soul, thinking one thing;
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
fulfil ye my joy, that ye may mind the same thing--having the same love--of one soul--minding the one thing,
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.
make my joy full, by being like-minded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind;
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.
I entreat you to make my happiness complete – Live together animated by the same spirit and in mutual love, one in heart, animated by one Spirit.
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.
Make my joy complete by being of the same mind, having the same love, being in harmony and of one mind;
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.
make my joy, full, by being likeminded, having the same love, being of one accord, of one mind.
Word-for-word swaps
- ye→make
- be→full
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.