Romans 4:3 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.
For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.
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.
For what saith the scripture? And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned unto him for righteousness.
1901 · Public domain · The American revision of the English Revised Version. Deliberately literal, and the base text behind several later translations.
for what does the scripture say? And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.
1890 · Public domain · John Nelson Darby's translation, made for close study rather than public reading. Often exposes grammatical detail other versions smooth over.
for what doth the writing say? `And Abraham did believe God, and it was reckoned to him--to righteousness;'
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.
For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”
2000s · Public domain · A modern-English update of the ASV. Reads close to contemporary speech while staying in the literal tradition. Includes the Apocrypha.
For what are the words of scripture? ‘Abraham had faith in God, and his faith was regarded by God as righteousness.’
in progress · Public domain (CC0) · A modern open-licensed translation, still being completed. Some Old Testament books are not yet available.
For what are the words of scripture? “Abraham had faith in God, and his faith was regarded by God as righteousness.”
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.
But what does it say in the holy Writings? And Abraham had faith in God, and it was put to his account as righteousness.
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.
For what does the scripture? say? Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.
Word-for-word swaps
- saith→does
- unto→accounted
The verses either side
King James text. A comparison is easier to judge when you can see the sentence the verse sits inside.