(Continued)
The phrases and cadences of the King James Version maintained this reach and resonance well into the modern age. Consider this second example, taken from a famous passage in the speech Martin Luther King, Jr. delivered in August of 1963:
I have a dream today. I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, and rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together. This is our hope. This is the faith with which I return to the South.
Compare that with these verses from Isaiah 40:4-5
in the KJV:
Every valley shall be exalted, and every mountain and hill shall be made low: and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places plain. And the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together: for the mouth of the Lord hath spoken it.
King’s quotations are nearly exact, and his rhythmic cadences throughout the speech are a pitch-perfect match, consonant with words chosen 350 years before his time. Whether or not Dr. King utilized the KJV in a way in keeping with its original prophetic meaning, he showed that the imagery and style of the translation still held immense power well into the latter half of the 20th century.
Other examples abound. But the success of the King James Version is not simply due to its employment of the English language, though its translators were certainly more aware than we are of the power of words and the effect of a cadence fitted to its content. God in His providence did assemble a group of men with the wisdom to build on the best of the past in order to serve the church and society in the future. But, in the midst of its literary excellence, there is also the eternal power of the translation’s content. One translator, Miles Smith, who served both on the “First Oxford Committee,” responsible for translation of much of the Old Testament, and on the “Revision Committee,” wrote these words in the preface to the great work:
Translation it is that openeth the window, to let in the light, that breaketh the shell, that we may eat the kernel; that putteth aside the curtain, that we may look into the most Holy place; that removeth the cover of the well, that we may come by the water.
Even on the 400th anniversary of this translation – a monumental work of scholarship and collaboration, of theological precision with an ear for literary beauty – we do no justice to the King James translators by merely chronicling the effect of their employment of language. Their work, by their own admission, was done so that we could have the light of God’s word, so we could come to the water ourselves. They were first persuaded of the importance and relevance of God’s Word, and next concerned with showcasing its splendor.
Our culture is richer for it.
If we venture back even further – 2700 years, rather than 400 – we encounter another king named Josiah. He lived in a time of dramatic change. Threats were all around. He faced financial challenges; and he could rarely trust the wisdom of those who advised him. When Josiah was twenty years old, his high priest Hilkiah called Shaphan, his secretary, to report on a recent discovery. Hilkiah declared, “I have found the Book of the Law in the house of the LORD.” Shaphan first read the book himself, and afterwards he read it aloud to Josiah the young king. The reading of this rediscovered Bible brought conviction and clarity to Josiah, changing his personal life, and shaping his understanding of the vocation he had as a ruler in Judah. God had preserved His written word: He used a building project, a loyal priest, and a curious reader to bring it to the ears of the twenty-year-old king. When recovered and read, the Word did its work – as it always does. It provided an understanding of God, gave a true account of the nature of man, and shaped Josiah’s thoughts about the world in
which he lived.
Today it does the same. The Bible will thoroughly equip us for every good work, and the influence of its recovery and proclamation is incalculable – in our age, as in any. Clear thinking, faithful action, and right education stand and fall on the primacy of this written Word. Now, as then, “Let it go among our people.”
[framed_box]Jonathan Master is an Associate Professor in the School of Bible and Ministry and the Director of the Center for University Studies. He began teaching at PBU in 2011. Interact with Jonathan on PBU’s blogsite.
[/framed_box]