The 21st Century King James Version is a minor update of the King James Version. However, unlike the New King James Version, it does not alter the language significantly from the 1611 version, retaining Jacobean grammar (including "thee" and "thou"), but it does attempt to replace some of the vocabulary which no longer would make sense to a modern reader.
An example from Ezra 9:3
|
King James Version |
...and sat down astonied. |
|
21st Century King James Version |
....and sat down stunned. |
Another example from the Gospel of Luke 11:27
|
King James Version |
...the paps which thou hast sucked". |
|
21st Century King James Version |
....the breasts which thou hast sucked". |
The 21st Century King James Version is also known for its formatting. Passages considered "more familiar" are in bold print, while "less familiar" passages are placed in a sans-serif print. Passages from the Revised Common Lectionary are marked with diamonds, and the translations of names are sometimes included with brackets.
The 21st Century King James Version has also been released in an edition with the Apocrypha and without the unusual formatting; this is known as the Third Millennium Bible.
Famous quotes containing the words century, king, james and/or version:
“Giving is good, but taking is bad and brings death.”
—Hesiod (c. 8th century B.C.)
“I know I have the body of a weak and feeble woman, but I have the heart and stomach of a king, and of a king of England, too.”
—Elizabeth I (1533–1603)
“All it means, if you wilt that way with a lady, is that you haven’t yet really met her. You’re not trying to make love to a woman, you’re trying not to miss an opportunity.”
—Clive James (b. 1939)
“I should think that an ordinary copy of the King James version would have been good enough for those Congressmen.”
—Calvin Coolidge (1872–1933)