It’s amazing how KJV Only madness has sipped into the churches because of conspiracy theories. Some people have bought some degree of Ruckmanism (which even David W. Cloud, a KJV Only, rejects as heretical). Meanwhile, Charles H. Spurgeon, a preacher admired by KJV Onlyists, wasn’t a KJV-only preacher. I would like to mention Romans 8:1 since it’s part of the verse of the day for the Tecarta Bible.
Here’s an interesting note from The Spurgeon Library in regards to the matter:
In 1886, Spurgeon said that the phrase at the end of Romans 8:1 was not part of sacred scripture. He acknowledged, “The Holy Ghost meant to say this very thing a little further on, in its proper place [in v. 4].” Justification must come first, and only after that may good works follow. Spurgeon added, “The more nearly the text of Scripture is restored to its original purity, the more clearly will the doctrines of grace be set forth in it. The more we get back to true Scripture, the more we shall escape all interference with the complete and perfect salvation which comes of our being in Christ.”
Apparently, some of the manuscripts found by the KJV translators (until 1769 which was its final revision) had some manuscripts where footnotes or marginal notes were accidentally added into the translation. Spurgeon also had this in mind in regards to the fact he wasn’t a KJV Only preacher:
On occasion, Spurgeon mentioned textual variants from the pulpit. Sometimes he even rejected the reading of the KJV in favor of the reading in the critical Greek text, represented in the Revised Version.
It would be interesting that KJV Only types (especially the extremes) had said it’s another evidence of sabotage from the “Alexandrian Cult”. The fantasies brought in by Chick Publications are indeed amazing and I bought them before as “truth”. Now, for a bit of comparison between the two passages namely Romans 8:1-4.
| KJV | ESV | |
| There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. 3 For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: 4 That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. | There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. 3 For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, 4 in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. |
An interesting point is that the critical reading that Spurgeon did reveals that Romans 8:1 didn’t have the phrase “who walk not after the flesh but after the Spirit.” To say it was removed as sabotage is something. It’s possible that the first edition of the KJV may have written it in italics then the subsequent releases failed to remember it. Much time can passed between 1611 and 1769 which means that errors can happen. The KJV was given by the virtue of preservation and not inspiration. The KJV translators had to check multiple sources. Being men, they knew that they could fall into an error while handling the translation of the Scriptures.
Has removing the phrase “who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit” from Romans 8:1 justified carnal living? Notice that the phrase is present in Romans 8:4. It would be very important to know the manuscript evidence first.
Christian Apologetics and Research Ministry (CARM) also points out the manuscript evidence to help clarify things further:
Examining the manuscript evidence
There is manuscript evidence in support of each of these three traditions:
*Affirming the short form in the NASB and other modern translations: Codex א and B (fourth century), Codex D (sixth century), and a number of other Greek manuscripts in the centuries that followed and on into the middle ages. This is also the reading in itd (sixth century) and some other Old Latin manuscripts, as well as the Sahidic and Bohairic Coptic translations, the Ethiopic, and some of the Armenian and Georgian witnesses.
*Affirming the middle form found in Wycliffe’s translation: Codex A (fifth century). A later scribe added this reading into Codex D (probably seventh century). The reading is also found in a number of Greek manuscripts in the centuries that followed. It is in most of the Old Latin manuscripts, including itm (fifth century). It is also the reading in the Latin Vulgate. This reading is found in the Syriac Peshitta, which is the earliest surviving form of Paul’s letters in Syriac, and it is the reading found in the Gothic and some of the Armenian copies.
*Affirming the long-form found in the KJV and other TR-based translations: The earliest manuscripts to contain this reading in the main body of the text are from the ninth century, though a scribe did add the reading into Codex א probably around the seventh century. It is the reading in the majority of the medieval Greek manuscripts. It was the reading of a few late Old Latin manuscripts and of some of the later Syriac manuscripts. This reading is found in the Old Slavonic and in some Georgian witnesses.
As you can see, all these readings do have diverse witnesses in their favor. Our oldest manuscripts affirm the short form, which is a major reason why modern translators prefer it. The middle reading also has notably early evidence, though not quite as early as the short reading. Because it was the reading adopted by the Vulgate, the middle reading can also boast the largest number of ancient and medieval copies (if copies of ancient translations are included). The long reading does not show up in the manuscript record until notably later, though because it was the preferred reading in the Byzantine monasteries where Greek continued to be used and copied on through the middle ages, it does ultimately find itself in the largest number of Greek copies, though all of these copies are quite late by comparison to the other two readings.
Then again this isn’t to discredit the KJV either. The KJV had done much in the revival of England. However, going KJV Only based on conspiracy theories and half-truths is another. I still do some KJV reading every now and then. Though, I’ve used the ESV now as a secondary source since the KJV is full of archaic words. Besides, the KJV had to be updated several times. Later, older manuscripts by Origen and Eusebius were also found. The arguments for the extreme KJV-only crowd falls flat because most of them tend to use spurious sources like Chick Publications, Conspiracy World, and Jesus-is-Savior.
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