Psalms 58:11 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.
So that a man shall say, Verily a reward for the righteous: verily he is a God that judgeth in the earth.
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.
So that men shall say, Verily there is a reward for the righteous: Verily there is a God that judgeth in the earth. Psalm 59 For the Chief Musician; [set to] Al-tashheth. [A Psalm] of David. Michtam; when Saul sent, and they watched the house to kill him.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And men shall say, Verily there is fruit for the righteous; verily there is a God that judgeth in the earth.
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 man saith: `Surely fruit is for the righteous: Surely there is a God judging in the earth!'
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.
so that men shall say, “Most certainly there is a reward for the righteous. Most certainly there is a God who judges the earth.”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
People will say, “Yes, the just are rewarded: yes, on the earth is a God who is Judge.”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
People will say, ‘Yes, the just are rewarded: yes, on the earth is a God who is Judge.’
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.
So that men will say, Truly there is a reward for righteousness; truly there is a God who is judge on the earth.
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.
So that men shall say, “Most certainly there is a reward for the righteous: Most certainly there is a God who judges the earth.
Word-for-word swaps
- man→men
- Verily→Most
- he→Most
- in→who
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.