Revelation 19:8 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.
And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.
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.
And it was given unto her that she should array herself in fine linen, bright [and] pure: for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
And it was given to her that she should be clothed in fine linen, bright [and] pure; for the fine linen is the righteousnesses of the saints.
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 there was given to her that she may be arrayed with fine linen, pure and shining, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.'
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.
It was given to her that she would array herself in bright, pure, fine linen: for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
And to her it has been granted to robe herself in fine linen, white and pure, for that linen is the good deeds of the people of Christ.’
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
And to her it has been granted to robe herself in fine linen, white and pure, for that linen is the good deeds of the people of Christ.”
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.
And to her it was given to be clothed in delicate linen, clean and shining: for the clean linen is the righteousness of the saints.
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.
It was given to her that she would array herself in bright, pure, fine linen, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Word-for-word swaps
- And→It
- arrayed→would
- righteousness→righteous
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.