Psalms 79:13 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.
So we thy people and sheep of thy pasture will give thee thanks for ever: we will shew forth thy praise to all generations.
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 we thy people and sheep of thy pasture Will give thee thanks for ever: We will show forth thy praise to all generations. Psalm 80 For the Chief Musician, set to Shoshanim Eduth.. A Psalm of Asaph.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And we, thy people and the sheep of thy pasture, will give thanks unto thee for ever; we will shew forth thy praise from generation to generation.
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 we, Thy people, and the flock of Thy pasture, We give thanks to Thee to the age, To all generations we recount Thy praise!
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 we, your people and sheep of your pasture, will give you thanks forever. We will praise you forever, to all generations.
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.
Then we, your people, the flock of your pasture, will give thanks to you for evermore, and tell your praise to all generations.
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.
So we your people, and the sheep of your flock, will give you glory for ever: we will go on praising you through all generations.
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 we your people and sheep of your pasture will give you thanks forever. we will praise you forever, to all generations.
Word-for-word swaps
- thy→your
- thee→you
- ever→forever
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.