Romans 1:5 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.
By whom we have received grace and apostleship, for obedience to the faith among all nations, for his name:
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.
through whom we received grace and apostleship, unto obedience of faith among all the nations, for his name`s sake;
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
by whom we have received grace and apostleship in behalf of his name, for obedience of faith among all the nations,
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
through whom we did receive grace and apostleship, for obedience of faith among all the nations, in behalf of his name;
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.
through whom we received grace and apostleship, for obedience of faith among all the nations, for his name’s sake;
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.
Through him we received the gift of the apostolic office, to win submission to the faith among all nations for the glory of his name.
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.
Through whom grace has been given to us, sending us out to make disciples to the faith among all nations, for his name:
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.
through whom we received grace and apostleship, for obedience of faith among all the nations, for his name’s sake;
Word-for-word swaps
- By→through
- the→of
- name→name’s
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.