Psalms 81:16 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.
He should have fed them also with the finest of the wheat: and with honey out of the rock should I have satisfied thee.
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.
He would feed them also with the finest of the wheat; And with honey out of the rock would I satisfy thee. Psalm 82 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 he would have fed them with the finest of wheat; yea, with honey out of the rock would I have satisfied thee.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
He causeth him to eat of the fat of wheat, And with honey from a rock I satisfy thee!
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 he would have also fed them with the finest of the wheat. I will satisfy you with honey out of the rock.”
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 you would I feed with the richest wheat, and with honey from the rock to your heart’s desire.”
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
But you would I feed with the richest wheat, and with honey from the rock to your heart’s desire.’
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.
I would give them the best grain for food; you would be full of honey from the rock.
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 He would have also fed them with the finest of the wheat: I will satisfy you with honey out of the rock
Word-for-word swaps
- should→would
- and→I
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.